There Aren't Any Dogs This Christmas by Dani Brown

For Christmas 2023, there are three short stories, all without dogs (let alone dogs that die at the end). They follow Leon through three different Christmases. 

Story One: Gracie

Leon is caught on a loop of smashing plates and stomping footsteps. Gracie left the night before their wedding (the Christmas wedding that never was). The house he stands in slowly decays with the memories Gracie left behind. 

Story Two: Sugarplum Cockroaches

Leon has escaped his house but his body decays. He must reach a quota of fresh souls. Leon comes for the lonely, the lost and the trapped. He hovers over a woman who craves social media attention and dreams of being the Principle Dancer. He snaps her pictures as he works on collecting her soul. Uploading them to his own social media, this gives him some weird half life. 

Story Three: Spiders Nest in the Ceiling

Leon is trapped inside the body of a sexbot named Jenny. She has it set up like a home, but all he can do is think about Gracie.