To me, this book was very similar to Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. And seeing as how I really enjoyed that book, I also adored this book.

Andrew has his own quirky habits and a simple way of going through life. His job is unique; he is tasked with the job of going to people's houses when they pass away and tries to sort through their belongings to try to track down the deceased's next of kin. He muddles through life until he meets his new coworker, Peggy. Peggy helps Andrew reach inside himself and face his past so he can fully live in the present.

This book was a little slow at times, but I still really enjoyed it!

How Not To Die Alone made me think about some things that I would rather not, and often made me laugh out loud while doing so. It has the unique combination of wrenchingly sad and humorous, one of those stories that will stay with me long after having read it. Andrew is a quirky, sensitive character that works for the government locating next of kin for people who have died alone. This must be an awful job, but he approachs each case with respect, even going to the funerals of those that have no one. Andrew is also a lonely person, awkward and as it is revealed, grief stricken, but a genuinely nice guy. I was hoping throughout the book that he would find a way to not die alone. I both laughed and cried.

Andrew works for the council who tries to find the next of kin for recently deceased people. He visits the apartments of the recently deceased to search for clues for the next of kin or friends who may want to attend the funeral. Often, he finds himself alone attending the funeral of these people so that there will be at least one person to say “goodbye”. No one should die alone. However, Andrew lives alone with his Ella Fitzgerald records, trains, and online train chat group. It is a charming story of a man who, we eventually learn, is dealing with hardship and loss the only way he can, by living a lie that has gone on so long it has taken on a life of its own. A new employee, Peggy, and her problems help him to finally come to terms with his issues. He takes Peggy under his wing on visits to the deceased apartments and they start to form a friendship which then forces Andrew to confront his issues and move forward with his life.

Human Vulnerability at one of its lowest points, with a dash of redemption and hope as well as a reminder that sometimes things need to fall apart to fall together.
Read this if your feeling hopeless and insecure about what you see as failures past and present.

⭐️ Review ⭐️
Andrew is a quirky, lonely, forty-two year old single guy who spends his days at work searching for next-of-kin for people who have died alone. At home, he spends his evenings in solitude, chatting with other model train aficionados online. Unfortunately, everyone at work thinks he’s happily married with two kids, a fiction he created after a misunderstanding at work, and since then he’s continued this fantasy. But when new employee Peggy joins his workplace, he begins to consider that he may need to rethink this fictional life he’s leading.

I surprised myself by truly enjoying this book! Andrew is a lovely, quirky, relatable character. The humor is wry and at times a little dark, which I love. As we slowly get to know Andrew—and the past he’s trying to forget—it’s impossible not to root for him. I kept thinking of all the lonely people out in the world, and how we all need connection with other people—even those of us who are introverts. Without basic human connection, we start to wither away. Sweet, funny, touching, and ultimately uplifting, this has been compared to Eleanor Oliphaunt but reminded me more of Nick Hornsby stories. Recommended! If you chose this for your #bookofthemonth choice this month, I think you’ll enjoy your choice!

Releases May 28. Thanks to Netgalley and @penguinbooks for an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC of this book.

As soon as I saw this being advertised as a book similar to Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, I was immediately interested. I loved that story and I was eager to dive back into something in that same lane. And I was pleasantly surprised that this book did live up to the hype IMO.

Andrew was such a likable character, even though I got so frustrated with him a couple times. But I never stopped rooting for him and hoping that he would make the right decisions. I loved following his journey and hearing about his everyday life.

Another thing I loved was the side characters in this book. I pictured them and the office dynamic so easily in my mind.

I also enjoyed the sarcastic, sometimes biting humor. I laughed out loud a few times at Andrew's self-deprecating humor.

The writing in this book was so smooth and the sentences flowed so well. I am absolutely astounded that this came from a debut author. I wouldn't think twice about reading another piece of fiction from Richard Roper.

In a community council office the job is to go into dead peoples' homes and figure out if they have any family or loved ones who would bury them. They have died alone, but have they lived a solitary life? This is the question that haunts Andrew as he and his new partner, Peggy, search through bed mattresses, kitchen cupboards, and boxes of old cards to find someone who cared about the deceased. Yet Andrew has his own dark secrets, one that has led to him creating a family of his own that does not truly exist, covering up his solitary life in a lonely bedsit in London amidst his model train set. What does one do when a simple white lie turns into a huge white whale that just won't go away? This lovely little book combines elements of The Rosie Project with A Man Called Ove and is utterly delightful.

How not to die alone tells an insightful and endearing story about the life of Andrew. The plans that Andrew and Peggy come up with will make it possible that people don't die alone are interesting.

I thoroughly enjoyed this charming and really laugh out loud funny novel. People need other people. That is the main message in this book, and it really is so true. I don’t want to say much else because it is better read without knowing too much. It has been called the male Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, and I think that is a very accurate comparison. However, the tone of this book is much lighter and, to me, the characters are generally more likable and real. The story is the right amount of complex with a few twists and turns to keep you turning pages. For the first few chapters, I was unsure how I felt about it, but it did not take too long for the story to take off and when it did, it really grabbed me. Overall, this book and it’s quirky characters won me over with it’s hopeful message and hysterical dry humor.

This book is so charming, in the only way a book about a lot of dead people can be. While the deceased play a major plot point, this book is actually about a lonely man making friends and falling in love. Throughout the whole book you can kind of guess what happened is Andrew's past, but that doesn't make the big reveal any less enjoyable and the ending is still satisfying and fulfilling. Richard Roper has a way with words and a knack for explaining awkward situations in a way that will make you understand fully and cringe. I loved this book

The blurb describes How Not to Die Alone as a quirky, humorous story: "A darkly funny and life-affirming debut novel for readers of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine." Having recently read and enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine as well as similarly-themed The Kiss Quotient, I thought I'd take a chance on this debut author.

IMHO, this novel starts out very slowly and is initially way more dark than funny. However, as Andrew works with and gets to know Peggy, the new employee, his quirky, neurotic personality breaks free. The badinage between the two of them is cleverly written and makes for enjoyable reading. Eventually, we learn more about Andrew and what makes him tick. There are ups and downs in Andrew's world (both past and present) which eventually force him to make a decision on whether or not to come clean and tell the truth. The conclusion is satisfying even though it doesn't resolve all plot-lines.

I was glad I read this on my Kindle as I could easily look up the definitions of the numerous British terms and jargon used throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Andrew is a lonely 42 year old man working at a job which seems oddly fitting, given his life's circumstances. He arranges (and then attends, our first clue that he is at heart a genuinely good man) funerals while seeking out next of kin for those who have died alone. Andrew has concocted an imaginary family, whom he shares stories about with his work colleagues, never quite knowing how to get out of the lie that grows day by day. Instead, he settles into the semi comfortable life he's made for himself like an old, patchy blanket that should really be thrown out. It is only when the new arrival, Peggy, begins working in the office that Andrew begins to seriously consider divulging the truth.
Throughout the book, death and its aftermath are dealt with using a combination of dark humor and brutal honesty. I laughed out loud more than once, sometimes uncertain if I should feel guilty for doing so afterwards. Andrew makes many spot on observations, not just about himself, but about others as well. Some of my favorite parts of the book involved his spoken out loud voiceovers while he was in the middle of cooking a mundane meal at home.
Some readers may take umbrage with Andrew for steadfastly continuing to live a lie, but I found his reasoning for it plausible, if not understandable. As Andrew's lie becomes more and more tangled up in his everyday life and harder to sustain, his relationship with Peggy deepens. Without giving too much away, readers will find the ending poignant, charming, and highly satisfying. As another reviewer remarked, the comparisons to Eleanor Oliphant are justly deserved (though I actually preferred this book despite my love of EO). A solid 4.5 stars as this is a book I'll be thinking of years after having finished it. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy, which did not affect my review.

How Not to die alone is a warm and refreshingly honest book about awkwardness, lies and feeling vulnerable. I was rooting for Andrew to get it together and to find a way to not die alone. Did he do it? You’ll have to read it to find out.

*I received an ARC from NetGalley for a fair and unbiased review of this book.

3.75 stars

This is a quirky and appealing novel about a very decent (but neurotic) man named Andrew. Andrew is 42, and works in London for the government looking for next of kin or assets for those who have died alone and unattended. The descriptions of his actual day to day job are gruesome, poignant, and darkly funny as he actually dons rubber gloves and wades through the homes and death sites for his late clients.

Andrew lives alone, kept company by Ella Fitzgerald records and an elaborate train setup complete with website and online members. It's a pretty solitary existence until a new co-worker, Peggy, begins to become friends with Andrew.

He has a huge awkward secret that he begins to regret more and more as he and Peggy spend time together. When he was first hired, he made up a wife and family on the spur of the moment and now, years later, his deception has become so elaborate he can't find his way clear to confess.

If this sounds pathetic, there are certainly elements of that here. But the novel never sinks to the maudlin level, kept afloat by humor and wonderful characterizations. And we do finally learn enough about Andrew to appreciate his dilemma and how he came to be trapped by his fabrications.

This manages to be entertaining and funny and sweet. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Have you ever accidentally told a lie? During a job interview Andrew accidentally says "yes" without listening to the question. The question was asking if he had children. When Andrew is hired for the position with the council he doesn't know how to fix this problem so he creates a family, a wife and two children. It doesnt seem like a big deal at first but eventually he realizes that he cannot continue with this charade.

This is a charming story about someone who is very content with being a loner until the day he meets someone special at work. Andrew has no family and no friends. He has an interest in trains and a dedication to his work. Through his work he sees people who die alone every day. When he meets Peggy at work he realizes that something has to change in order for his life to be more than trains and work.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Romance
Women's Fiction
Release Date: May 28, 2019

I really enjoyed this book! Andrew accidentally leads his coworkers into believing that he has a family at home, and watching him maneuver this white lie is fun. However, discovering the connection between his real life and his made up one is what gives the book some real sustenance, and in my case, surprises the reader! The only reason that I didn’t give the book 5 stars is a purely personal one - it was way WAY too British for me!! Thanks to NetGalley for providing this ARC - I predict that it will be a well liked book when it comes out!

This was a a book that definitely grew on me. Even though I felt the first half to be painfully slow at times, I do honestly believe that the payoff was worth getting through those slow periods. While the character of Andrew starts off just being socially inept and awkward, he blooms into the person he was always meant to be and could've been earlier if his personal growth was not stuttered by a severe trauma. I really loved not only experiencing Andrew's emotional change but also seeing how much the story included the other characters more as he was ready to accept them into his life. I recommend this book to readers who like characters that you shouldn't take just on face value and have true depth and meaning behind their actions.

A book that shows you can't ever really know the truth about someone else's life. The whole premise was intriguing. There were a few spots that went a little slowly for me in the beginning (hence the 4 stars) but I grew to really care about the characters and thoroughly enjoyed the book.

DNF at 25% - I had a difficult time getting into this book, which may have been a result of my own reading mood, not the book itself. I was going to stick it out but I saw this was a May BOTM selection so I felt comfortable knowing it would get the attention it deserved.

I received an ARC through NetGalley. I loved the characters in this story. I think it would make a great movie. Readers who enjoyed, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, will enjoy this read as well.