Brilliant but jaded Doctor Graeme Kilbride struggles to balance the demands of a high-pressure job with a stable but stultifying façade of domestic bliss, until a chance encounter with a patient leads to a discovery that will shake the foundations of modern medicine and challenge humanity’s understanding of our last moments, pulling back the veil to reveal the deepest mysteries about our transition into death. Teaming up with the captivating yet troubled Rita, Kilbride must wrestle with the implications this revelation and delve deep into his past to uncover secrets long buried for the sake of his own sanity. Are some memories best left forgotten, and must we be touched by death to be truly reborn? Darkly introspective and profoundly existential, Asystole is a genre-defying novel with compelling characters, a distinctive voice and otherworldly tone. Despite grappling with heavy themes and intricate, real-world science with corresponding terminological detail, the novel has a light, deft touch, Kilbride’s world-weary commentary adding a welcome element of satire and levity to balance moments of lurking dread and a pervading sense of unease. Part character study, part psychological thriller, part speculative fiction, and thoroughly gripping in all respects, Asystole is full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the final page, delivered in clear, stylish prose. Filmmaker Jim Jarmusch famously stated, "Authenticity is invaluable; originality is non-existent," but Asystole delivers flawlessly on the former, while proving that a high dose of the latter is still possible after all.