Set in small-town Texas, three generations of Evans women (Ducey, daughter Lenore, granddaughter Grace) run the local (and only) funeral parlor. When a local woman shows up on their slab and rises from the dead, they react not with the horror you would expect, but with a mixture of concern and resignation. The Evans women have been the first line of defense against the strigori. If this isn't an isolated incident, it may be time to let Grace's teenage daughter Luna in on the real family business.

As the deaths pile up and more bodies appear (or disappear) it seems they have a real problem on their hands and some secrets they thought buried, may not have stayed buried.

This is interesting, almost light-hearted horror. An inquisitive deputy sheriff who has a history with the Evans but doesn't know as much as he thought about them offers an outsider's view of the events which is important to ground the story. A cantankerous old sheriff who also has a history with them sheds his own kind of insight on the story.

With each death, the crisis becomes a little more critical. Ryan interjects some history of the Evans family as well as the strigori. This history interrupts the flow of the story and doesn't always inform you as much as you would hope. Some of the character's actions seem illogical, or at least slow given the seriousness of the situation. Still, it's a fun story with a generous amount of blood and some engaging characters.

The audiobook is narrated by Stephanie Nemeth-Parker who does a good job making the character voices distinctive. She also makes the dialogue fit the time and place of the story.

I was provided a copy of this audiobook by the publisher. ( )

Horror isn’t my usual fare, but this vampire/horror/mystery combo has me itching for a sequel. 3.33⭐ Read my full review here.

Publication is expected April 9.

#NetGalley #MacmillanAudio #BlessYourHeart ( )

The Evans women own the funeral parlor in town. But they sometimes have to kill the “undead”. It seems the whole town is now under attack. And all the Evans women may have to take up their blades just to make everything go back the way it was. In other words, what rises up must go back down!

Well! This was not exactly what I was expecting. Y’all know I do not read the blurb and I should not have chosen this book. Just not my genre…you would think I would have gathered that from the cover…but the title Bless Your Heart got me. I was expecting a more light-hearted, fun, southern read! I was bamboozled!

This tale is a bit gruesome and graphic. However, I did enjoy the characters and the hunt to save the town. So, if you like vampires and people who come back to life…THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU!

The narrator, Stephanie Németh-Parker did ok. But, there were several places that required very raspy voices. Just didn’t sit well with me.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review. ( )

Lindy Ryan’s latest book is like a cozy horror mystery. There are a lot of gory details and several deaths, but for some reason, I never found it too dark or scary, which speaks to the way Ryan presented the story.

Set in Southeast Texas, four generations of Evans women run the local funeral home. Readers soon learn that they have a past with vampire-like beings, and one woman even got up close and personal with one.

Fast forward to the present and things start happening again that get them worried. The local sheriff knows their secrets and he is immediately suspicious. To add to the drama, there is a new young man in town that looks mysterious and has befriended the youngest Evans woman.

This was an entertaining read and I found it safe to read when I was home alone. Many thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for allowing me to read an advance copy. I am happy to review this and recommend to other readers. ( )

I made it to 67% before I finally gave up. I was going to quit reading this book earlier, but there are so many happy readers that I thought I must be missing something and kept plowing on. I don't believe I was missing anything except the time I gave to keep on reading.

I do admire all the readers who found this a worthwhile book. Apparently, it is not my cup of tea for several reasons:

1) I'm just not that into extremely descriptive blood and guts scenes.

2) I don't like books that are filled with repetition and not action.

3) Reading about these Even's women running around doing nothing annoyed me.

4) Hearing about "the god awful mess" of 15 years ago, without an explanation, grated on my nerves.

5) The habit of some of the older women, such as sucking on candy constantly, made me want to smack something or somebody.

All in all, I can recommend this book to those who don't mind reading about gore and willy-nilly high drama.

*ARC supplied by the publisher Minotaur Books, the author, and NetGalley. ( )