"A passive eavesdropper to the girl’s conversation as they went through topics." - The Lament of Philip Reyes, Infinite Lives, Infinite Deaths 

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I’ll admit it, I’m a bit of an eavesdropper when it comes to conversations. With my time in Human Resources, I’ve spent a lot of it focusing on people… how they act, their behavior, the infractions they make, and sitting in on admin hearings, listening to their reasons for it all. My HRBPs are great at getting those reasons out of them. Even in the hallways, the pantry, or the restroom, everything seems to be driven by conversation. And this book? It’s just like one of those talks you can’t help but listen in on. Even in bookstores, I find myself drawn to it from a distant vantage point, unable to resist looking at it while browsing other titles. It simply grabs your attention.

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“Infinite Lives, Infinite Deaths” is a wild ride through surreal nightmares, twisted histories, and mind-bending realities, delivered by the uniquely gifted Douglas Candano. This book doesn’t just sit in one genre – it dives into horror, magical realism, and even science fiction, all while mashing it with Filipino culture, folklore, and the complexities of the Chinese-Filipino experience in a hyper-stylized, almost dystopian version of Manila.

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In Dreaming Valhalla, it shows Candano's knack for merging the supernatural with the everyday. Similarly, in The Life and Death of Hermes Uy, takes a dark turn, hinting at the uneasy intersection of tradition and the occult with an exploration of ambition, loss, and transformation.

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But it’s not just about weird, haunting stories… Candano plays with deep emotional undercurrents in pieces like A Reply to a Query, which mixes academic critique with folklore, and The Life and Death of Hermes Uy,  a focus on characters’ complex, often unexplainable experiences with supernatural forces draw you in and leave you unsettled. 

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One of the standout pieces, A Visit to the Exhibition of the International Committee on Children’s Rights, takes you on a field trip to an exhibition that’s meant to teach about child rights but soon morphs into a chilling journey that I will not spoil for you. 

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And a lot more in store for you! What really makes “Infinite Lives, Infinite Deaths” work is its layered storytelling – Candano blends the real and the unreal, the ancient and the modern, with a style that’s as thought-provoking as it is eerie. It’s a book that will make you question everything: from your own history to the myths you grew up with, and even your own understanding of life and death. If you’re into books that make you think, feel, and occasionally have to check if you're dreaming, this one’s a must-read. Just don’t expect easy answers.