Looking for death-positive stories and romances.

[ShepherdOfMyself]

Hi all. As I confront my own mortality, I've been interested in finding stories that deal with this issue- especially ones with a romance component, as my girlfriend and I are in this together. They don't have to be about suicide, just something where the protagonist or their love interest knows they don't have much time left. For instance, I loved Scott McCloud's graphic novel The Sculptor- a story about a depressed man who makes a deal with Death to be able to sculpt anything he wants for 200 days before he dies- and then falls in love. I prefer video games and novels, but I can accept any medium (and yes, I've read The Fault in Our Stars).

 

[Smart No More]

There was an interest first person kind of puzzle adventure type game a few years back. There's a sequel too I think. If I remember correctly it was called Gone Home on consoles. Revolved around a family (mainly the sister) retracing last steps of her brother who committed suicide. There's a whole narative trail found in a trail of breadcrumbs he left behind. Honestly I never played through them but they seemed ro have critical success. There may well be more to them than the story element I'm talking about. Maybe worth a look though if you haven't already.

I watched a food film recently too with a kind of similar storyline only it was from the perspective of a young boy who's dad (played by Tom Hanks) died in the twin towers. He was one of the jumpers photographed and the jimping element plays with the kids mind. It's a really good film and well worth viewing. He leaves his son a kind of treasure hunt to work through. The film is called Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. Good one to view with your girlfriend I'd say.

Pretty sure there are some more romantic ones worth a look but can't pull them to mind right now. I'll update as and when I do.