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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
In a quaint, southern town, the Evan's women run the local funeral home and take care of the dead - in more ways than one. When a rush of disappearances and blood trails has everyone on edge, the women must figure out what's going on while handing local police investigations and dealing with family secrets that have returned from the grave.
This book is full of southern turns of phrase, a bit of horror, and a unique twist on the things that go bump in the night.
I honestly did not expect the ending - though after I finished it, I sorta thought I should have seen it coming.
I like Grace, Luna, and Crane the most.
This book is full of southern turns of phrase, a bit of horror, and a unique twist on the things that go bump in the night.
I honestly did not expect the ending - though after I finished it, I sorta thought I should have seen it coming.
I like Grace, Luna, and Crane the most.
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This southern gothic set in 1999 just post-Columbine stars a magical matriarchy that runs the only funeral parlor in their tiny Texas town–with a side job of sending any dead that reanimate back to the grave for good. The Evans ladies keep their secret skill close, only disclosing the true family business when the next daughter comes of age. A series of recent violent and disturbing deaths has local law enforcement thinking that a large animal is on the loose and on the attack; Ducey, Lenore, Grace, and Luna know better, and hope to get everything resettled again before the townspeople gain a true realization of the monsters in their midst.
The strigori are a Romanian-based cross between a zombie and vampire: the restless spirit of a corpse rises as a flesh-eating monster that can only be killed for good with a metal stake through the heart. Some evolve to be powerful enough to pass for human, which is a whole ‘nother can of worms. The mythology is excellent, and the plot twists and turns include hints of romance and a lot of mystery.
The worldbuilding here is as complete as an excellent fantasy novel, down to nail polish trends, what was playing on the radio and in the movie theatre, and cultural trends, including what was on the national radar for news and concerns. I am not able to pin down WHY the story needed to be set in 1999 (note: are books set in 1999 historical? Am I … OLD?), but it works, and for this Gen-X reader, it was an accessible, authentic, and validating stroll down memory lane populated with landlines, malls, black trench coats, and misguided homophobia.
Point of view shifts from the Evans to law enforcement, availing readers to multigenerational perspectives. The characterizations are strong and distinct, and the dialogue is snappy and funny (“There’ll be time for math after the zombie apocalypse, points out one teenage character eager to help.”) It’s juxtaposed with truly disgusting descriptions of stomach-turning gore. To be able to balance humor, pathos and horror so wonderfully and viscerally is a true skill; Bless Your Heart is recommended or fans of Breathers: a Zombie’s Lament, Sookie Stackhouse mysteries, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sadly, it will not be out in time for Halloween, and is slated for publication in April 2024.
Side note: I love the vibrantly colored, flat, cut-paper collage look of the cover!
I received a free, advance reader’s review copy of #BlessYourHeart from #NetGalley.
The strigori are a Romanian-based cross between a zombie and vampire: the restless spirit of a corpse rises as a flesh-eating monster that can only be killed for good with a metal stake through the heart. Some evolve to be powerful enough to pass for human, which is a whole ‘nother can of worms. The mythology is excellent, and the plot twists and turns include hints of romance and a lot of mystery.
The worldbuilding here is as complete as an excellent fantasy novel, down to nail polish trends, what was playing on the radio and in the movie theatre, and cultural trends, including what was on the national radar for news and concerns. I am not able to pin down WHY the story needed to be set in 1999 (note: are books set in 1999 historical? Am I … OLD?), but it works, and for this Gen-X reader, it was an accessible, authentic, and validating stroll down memory lane populated with landlines, malls, black trench coats, and misguided homophobia.
Point of view shifts from the Evans to law enforcement, availing readers to multigenerational perspectives. The characterizations are strong and distinct, and the dialogue is snappy and funny (“There’ll be time for math after the zombie apocalypse, points out one teenage character eager to help.”) It’s juxtaposed with truly disgusting descriptions of stomach-turning gore. To be able to balance humor, pathos and horror so wonderfully and viscerally is a true skill; Bless Your Heart is recommended or fans of Breathers: a Zombie’s Lament, Sookie Stackhouse mysteries, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sadly, it will not be out in time for Halloween, and is slated for publication in April 2024.
Side note: I love the vibrantly colored, flat, cut-paper collage look of the cover!
I received a free, advance reader’s review copy of #BlessYourHeart from #NetGalley.
This strikes me as a book with a title added by the publisher - much like a ghoul's skin, it just doesn't quite fit.
A little horror, a little mystery, the book is surprisingly lighter on the Southeast-Texas charm than I was expecting. It's a quick read, though it does take a little bit to get moving. The point of view keeps moving, but not in a bad way, just in a way that is occasionally frustrating.
In the end, I wanted the book to turn up the hue and saturation a little - the action scenes got a little muddled, and while there's plenty of gore, there's an awful lot of gray and brown. It felt just slightly drained in all the wrong places.
A little horror, a little mystery, the book is surprisingly lighter on the Southeast-Texas charm than I was expecting. It's a quick read, though it does take a little bit to get moving. The point of view keeps moving, but not in a bad way, just in a way that is occasionally frustrating.
In the end, I wanted the book to turn up the hue and saturation a little - the action scenes got a little muddled, and while there's plenty of gore, there's an awful lot of gray and brown. It felt just slightly drained in all the wrong places.
Trouble has come to southeast Texas that seems similar to “that Godawful Mess” of 15 years ago. The Evans women who run the only funeral parlor in town have noticed a few more undead (called strigoi which seems to be a cross between a vampire and zombie).
People are going missing and others rising and the Evans women (Ducey, Lenore, Grace, and Luna) have to deal with it (hmm, chosen ones, perhaps). All happening because of 15 years ago. Funny. Like Designing Women melded with Stephen King.
Fifteen years ago Grace becomes enthralled with Samael who was a master strigoi and bears his child, Luna. He was killed by Jimmy, Lenore’s husband, who was killed by Samael. Luna sets off the chain by feeding slowly on her boyfriend, Andy (not Crane). Ducey dies in the fight as does Grace when protecting Luna.
People are going missing and others rising and the Evans women (Ducey, Lenore, Grace, and Luna) have to deal with it (hmm, chosen ones, perhaps). All happening because of 15 years ago. Funny. Like Designing Women melded with Stephen King.
Fifteen years ago Grace becomes enthralled with Samael who was a master strigoi and bears his child, Luna. He was killed by Jimmy, Lenore’s husband, who was killed by Samael. Luna sets off the chain by feeding slowly on her boyfriend, Andy (not Crane). Ducey dies in the fight as does Grace when protecting Luna.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I would say it was less horror and more gore. The end left me with a fair number of questions though, which I now realize was probably setting us up for the sequel. It was pretty interesting, but was just missing something for me.
The cover plus the setting of southeast Texas drew me in. Thought it would be fun, but turned out to be trite and not fun enough to make me like it. Undead in a small Texas town.
I just finished Bless your Heart by Lindy Ryan and here are my thoughts.
The Evan’s women have a job to do. They own the funeral parlor and they bury the dead and for 15 years the dead have stayed dead but something has changed. The dead are again, coming back to life and the only people who even know and can do anything about it, are the town’s outliers, modern day southern Strigoi hunters.
As more and more of the town starts turning up dead and then undead, the Town Deputy has more questions than answers and as the Evan’s women gear up to fight, they know that it might be time to tell the secret that has plagued their hearts for the last 15 years.
I have a habit of not reading synopsis for books and I saw this one on instagram and was like, heck yeah looks good….. I requested it on netgalley and boom!! Was excited to start. I had no idea it was a paranormal mystery, I thought it was a romance so when I started reading I realized I had made the best mistake of my life! Even the cover didn’t give me a hint… The lady literally has fangs haha! I was drawn right in. It was a lighter horror kind of book and the Evan’s women family dynamic had me chuckling! Ducey was so funny. Each Evan’s got their own POV and it was a little much I understood why the author went this way.
It was a dark humor with some horror splashed in while the mystery of who the original vampire is in town. It was highly entertaining. I enjoyed the plot a lot, I am really glad it is book 1 of a series. The character development was well done and each person added value to the story. Big fan of southern books too. The tone was epic with a decent pace which is always a bonus when you are reading a mystery book.
I’m hoping now that we have been introduced to the main characters, that we will get less POVs in the next book because I really would like a more tidy storyline in the next one. If you are looking for a paranormal mystery that will make you giggle, pick this one up.
4 stars Thank you @netgalley and @minotaurbooks for my gifted copy
#bookalorian #blessyourheart #lindyryan #paranormalmystery #reader #goodreads #bookishlove #bookclub #amreading #ilovebooks #literature #readingtime #bookgram #bookblog #authorsofinstagram #bookaesthetic #bookdragon #fantasy #fiction #bookstack #readmorebooks #booklife #author #booknerdigans #tbr #bookstagramfeature #romance #yabooks #readersofig #bookporn
The Evan’s women have a job to do. They own the funeral parlor and they bury the dead and for 15 years the dead have stayed dead but something has changed. The dead are again, coming back to life and the only people who even know and can do anything about it, are the town’s outliers, modern day southern Strigoi hunters.
As more and more of the town starts turning up dead and then undead, the Town Deputy has more questions than answers and as the Evan’s women gear up to fight, they know that it might be time to tell the secret that has plagued their hearts for the last 15 years.
I have a habit of not reading synopsis for books and I saw this one on instagram and was like, heck yeah looks good….. I requested it on netgalley and boom!! Was excited to start. I had no idea it was a paranormal mystery, I thought it was a romance so when I started reading I realized I had made the best mistake of my life! Even the cover didn’t give me a hint… The lady literally has fangs haha! I was drawn right in. It was a lighter horror kind of book and the Evan’s women family dynamic had me chuckling! Ducey was so funny. Each Evan’s got their own POV and it was a little much I understood why the author went this way.
It was a dark humor with some horror splashed in while the mystery of who the original vampire is in town. It was highly entertaining. I enjoyed the plot a lot, I am really glad it is book 1 of a series. The character development was well done and each person added value to the story. Big fan of southern books too. The tone was epic with a decent pace which is always a bonus when you are reading a mystery book.
I’m hoping now that we have been introduced to the main characters, that we will get less POVs in the next book because I really would like a more tidy storyline in the next one. If you are looking for a paranormal mystery that will make you giggle, pick this one up.
4 stars Thank you @netgalley and @minotaurbooks for my gifted copy
#bookalorian #blessyourheart #lindyryan #paranormalmystery #reader #goodreads #bookishlove #bookclub #amreading #ilovebooks #literature #readingtime #bookgram #bookblog #authorsofinstagram #bookaesthetic #bookdragon #fantasy #fiction #bookstack #readmorebooks #booklife #author #booknerdigans #tbr #bookstagramfeature #romance #yabooks #readersofig #bookporn