Every time I review an anthology, I mention that it’s not easy because the quality of stories vary, and it’s difficult to talk about all of them. That holds true for Witnesses for the Dead: Stories, edited by Gary Phillips and Gar Anthony Haywood. Their introduction is as fascinating as some of the stories. They say the stories are inspired by Darnella Frazier who had the courage to record George Floyd’s death.

These are stories about people, often ordinary people going about their daily lives, who witness a crime. Instead of just observing the crime, they take the initiative to see that the guilty are punished, and the victim receives justice.

There are fourteen stories in the book, including ones by both editors. Several stood out for me. “Star Witness” by Darrell James is about a ten-year-old from Guatemala, a prisoner in a detention center, who witnesses a murder. Cara Black’s “Code Name Penelope” is set in 1941 in Occupied Paris. I wanted to read more about the protagonist, Odette, the breadwinner in her family who has a toddler, with a husband missing in the war. She wants to be able help her neighbors who are Jewish. Pete Fernandez, Alex Segura’s sports journalist series character, appears in “Post-Game”. He might have drank too much to cover his post-game interview, but he witnessed the death in the parking lot afterward. In “A Family Matter” by Sarah M. Chen, only one person truly cares when Vanessa witnesses a neighbor’s murder in Taiwan. There’s an unusual witness in “On Gossamer Wings” by Gar Anthony Haywood when police officers have to determine if a woman’s death was suicide or murder.

Actually, I could go on because there were other stories that jumped out at me. Of course, there are always ones that don’t mean as much to a reader. But, Witnesses for the Dead: Stories, with its unusual premise, does stand out. And, “All royalties from this collection will be donated to the Alliance for Safe Traffic Stops.”

Witnesses for the Dead: Stories, edited by Gary Phillips and Gar Anthony Haywood. Soho Crime, 2022. ISBN 9781641293983 (hardcover), 312p.

FTC Full Disclosure – The publisher sent an ARC of the book, hoping I would review it.