I’m always keen to learn about all things strange and unusual so the opportunity to discover some of the more bizarre ways that humans have met their end was too tempting to pass up. Here, you’ll learn about the often untimely deaths of people from the ancient world, the Middle Ages and the modern world.

“It is estimated that since the human species first came into existence, slightly over 100 billion people have died. It would be surprising if at least some of the them did not do so in extraordinary, noteworthy, or downright comic ways.”

This book’s dearly departed don’t always expire in ways that would result in a Darwin Award but they do run the gamut of deathly debacles, from war and disease to human stupidity.

In the ancient world, we have people being cooked by Brazen Bull, turned into a pillar of salt and torn apart by dogs. There’s death by elephant, roof tile and being fed to eels.

Sisamnes learned the hard way not to take a bribe. His throat was cut and he was flayed. As if that wasn’t bad enough, his skin was then made into a chair for the next governor to sit in. Who was the next governor? Sisamnes’ son.

In the Middle Ages, you could meet your maker by bucket, being quartered or by toilet, as was the case for sixty people who drowned during the Erfurt Latrine Disaster.

Then there was Charles II of Navarre who, covered in sores and boils, was “sewn into strips of linen at night that had been soaked in brandy.” The maid responsible for sewing Charles into his sack forgot her scissors one night so decided to burn a loose thread. This went as well as expected, with the king dying almost a month later as a result of his burns.

The modern world gives us technological advances but it also gives you death by scarf, turnip and clown.

Besides the potential to make you squeamish, György Dózsa teaches us that declaring yourself king can result in a truly memorable death. In all seriousness, if you’re squeamish, don’t Google him.

Now, to lighten the mood, there have been those who died from laughter. A mayor tripped over his beard and one king may have died by pudding. Others have been bested by lions and tigers and bears, oh my! Or by someone wearing a bear costume.

This was an entertaining read. The entries are succinct, providing a summary of the best/worst bits of the lives of some poor unfortunate souls. At times the writing could be a bit crude, especially when it wandered into toilet humour territory, but if you’re a reader who’s easily offended, it’s unlikely you’ll be picking this book up in the first place.

It ends with some famous last words. My favourite of the bunch came from a man whose death came by guillotine during the French Revolution.

“When Thomas de Mahy was sentenced to death, he gave the order for his execution a read and handed it back, saying: ‘I see that you have made three spelling mistakes.’”

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Pen & Sword History, an imprint of Pen & Sword Books, for granting my wish to read this book.