Popular fiction doesn't get any better than this! Loved the prose, the plot & the characters. I would recommend this novel highly to all sorts of readers. I gobbled it up~!

Andrew is a middle aged man who works for the city council and has to go to the homes of the deceased to search for clues in hopes of finding their relatives and any money to pay for the funeral. Sometimes he is the only attendee at the funeral. Andrew himself has lived alone for 20 years and essentially has no family since they all passed away. His "friends" are fellow train enthusiasts from an online forum that he converses with on a regular basis. One of his biggest fears is dying alone.

But a misunderstanding during his job interview five years ago became a huge lie and has spiraled out of control. It got harder to hide once he started befriending the new employee Peggy, who is going through a rough time with her marriage.

I can see why this book is often compared to Eleanor Oliphant but I actually like this book more! It's so witty and British - the humor, the slangs! I enjoyed the story a lot and it's a very quick read but I didn't love the ending - wish there was some closure in their relationship.

How Not To Die Alone is Richard Roper’s debut novel. This contemporary novel follows a middle aged man, Andrew, who works for a death registry and is offered a second chance at life and love when he develops an unlikely friendship. I started reading this book a couple of months ago and dismissed this book a bit too quickly. I initially didn’t finish it quite simply because I thought it wasn’t a right fit for me. The book was a bit depressing for my taste as the main character works for a death registry. After seeing this book as a May BOTM selection, I decided to pick it up again to see what I was missing out on. I’m glad I decided to read it again because even though the book is a bit depressing, there are moments where it’s funny, sweet, and touching. I liked the characters in the book as they were pretty lovable and realistic. The story was intriguing even though the death registry part was a bit morbid and I wasn’t a big fan of the British terms/jargon. I recommend you pick it up if you enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant.

Unusual setting for a book which made the story more appealing to me. Story of a man who is caught up in a "misunderstanding" about his family while also coming to grips with his past life. Heartwarming story of a lonely quirky man and those around him.

This is a little different than my normal everyday read, but I was excited to dive into it. There were times in the book where I had to stop and think about what I would do in that situation. It was definitely begging some introspection. The humor was dry, my favorite kind! And I thought the writing was very well done. Would definition recommend to a friend.

I loved this book, Andrew is an odd character at first but you quickly get to understand him more. This book is qirkly, a bit morbid at times but a good reminder to keep a social circle and to make peace with family. I loved it!

Thank you to Penguin Group, Putnam, and NetGalley!

I tried. DNF. Can we please stop comparing books to Eleanor Oliphant? That book was a gem. This book was not. There were moments, but not enough to keep me reading it. Sorry. I tried.

I can honestly say I've never read a book like this before. The whole story was just so different and "new." I truly did enjoy reading it!
The book follows a man in his 30's named Andrew who is trying to navigate life all while wondering if he will die alone. Andrew works for the government in a position where he attempts to locate next of kin and/or funeral funding, for people who appear to have died with "nothing." No family, friends, funds, etc. Doing this day after day takes a toll on your mentality, as you are basically going through a dead persons things to invade their privacy, and hopefully find a link to someone. For the ones that have nothing/no one, he attends their funeral and the government pays for the basics.
Andrew is going through life on autopilot most of the time because of his past, but when he meets Peggy everything changes.
This is definitely a fast read, with a different story behind it. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam Books for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Andrew works a public health job in which he tries to find family or friends of people who have, sadly, died alone. Depressing job. He’s led his co-workers to believe that he at least has a loving family to go home to.

A new co-worker, Peggy, comes along and Andrew becomes more and more drawn to her. But he’s trapped by his little white lies. Should he risk losing everything and tell the truth?

I loved every minute of this book! It was charming, sad, funny, and heartwarming, with a small element of mystery. And all those things were in perfect balance. The author created some great characters, especially Andrew. He’s a nice guy who’s had it rough and you just want to see him win at something.

This story is about loneliness, love, the guilt and regrets we carry, and taking chances that can make or break it all.

I definitely recommend picking up this book! Amazing debut novel and I hope to see more from this author!

How Not to Die Alone by Richard Roper
I received a free NetGalley preview e-book copy of this novel, and I requested it because the description said it was perfect for fans of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine. After reading it, I wholeheartedly agree with that assessment! While I don't know that it will appeal to my high school readers, I am still going to purchase copies for my library because teachers are also my patrons, and we will definitely be using this title for a teacher book club one month next school year.

What I liked:
- Character development! Roper does a thorough job of shaping Andrew with plenty of show-don't-tell. The transitions between the present and the scenes from his past seem a bit abrupt at first, but a few chapters later, they start to make sense. The further into the story I went, the more I realized that this timing structure is even more intentional and appropriate for the plot than I first thought.
- The idea of lying about something so major for so long seems impossible to me because I am a terrible liar, but I kept reading anyway, and I'm glad I did. I love it when I think I have a character figured out, but then the author reveals something that makes me realize that I totally didn't at all.
- The humor is quirky! I loved it, great little one-liners and all.
- I love it when a book is not only a good story to read, but it also makes you think differently about how you interact with the real world around you. Do I really see the lonely people around me and reach out to them? Why and how should I do a better job with this?

What I didn't love:
- Poor Andrew's job sounds terrible. It is critical to the story, of course, and it's a job that someone has to do, but it is not one I would feel called to do! I do love that Andrew makes a point of going above and beyond the call of duty to attend funerals of complete strangers.
- I'm not okay with the fact that Peggy is still married, regardless of the situation. I should stay more impartial and try to avoid imposing my personal values on a book review like this, I know, but I'm being honest. It doesn't change my opinion of the author's style or the character development and plot structure, but it does bother me on a personal level.

I find it difficult to review How Not to Die Alone, because while this is a good book, it just wasn’t a good book for ME. The story follows Andrew, a 42-year-old man who works for a government agency that buries those who die without any relatives. He has led his co-workers to believe that he has a wife and two kids, when in fact it is entirely possible that he will need the services of the agency for which he works when he dies, since he lives alone in a dingy apartment and his best friends are people he knows only by their screenames in a train aficionado forum. When a new woman begins working at the agency, he befriends her and starts to realize just how depressing his life has been up to this point.

The book is very well written; I enjoyed Richard Roper’s writing style and there is a definitely some humor in the book - both dark and otherwise. The story inherently is dark, with prevalent themes of death and loneliness, but it is mixed in with romance. I would not consider this book to truly be a romance novel; it’s more of a reflection on life and loneliness than anything else - especially since our heroine is married (and she believes Andrew to be as well), so fans of romance novels probably won’t enjoy the prolonged emotional cheating that happens throughout the book. It’s done in a tasteful way, but it’s definitely there and will probably trigger some readers. Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Though this isn’t the dark romance that I was hoping it would be, I enjoyed much of the book and appreciated reading a book with such depth.

I find the label of "women's fiction" to be a bit off-putting, as well as comparisons to other books that I haven't read. But once I got into the book, I understand the label and have to admit-- this will probably, most definitely(!) appeal to more women than men.
Andrew is in his 40s, single, and working a rather different job- he goes to the houses of the recently deceased to find clues about their life to see if there is any next of kin to contact and to determine how to pay for funeral costs. He is lonely at his job because he has lied to his co-workers about his family life.
I thought this was an interesting premise and was pretty excited to read it. It was a very slow start. So slow, in fact, that I happily made it to bed early for a couple nights. It picked up at about 40% though and ended up being a fun, interesting story.
Three-and-a-half stars rounded up to four for the slow start AND because I don't really like the main character. A lot of his relationship issues come from his personality and background (like every person ever, I know haha), but I just couldn't stand how clingy/needy he was. I guess I just prefer my main character male to have a little more backbone ;)

Thank you to Netgalley and GP Putnam's Sons for an ARC copy of this novel. I always enjoy reading books that I probably would not have otherwise picked up- I guess I need a bit more "women's fiction" in my life :)

I couldn't get into this one. The writing is fine, but for some reason it wasn't for me. I do see this being popular with patrons and book clubs, though.

DNF-ed at 29%. I thought the concept for How Not to Die Alone was really intriguing, but I ended up just not being able to connect with the story. There were times were I found it relatable and funny and other times where I thought the humor fell pretty flat. I read 29% before it started to lose my attention. I decided to set it down to read something else and planned to come back to it, but after reading several other books I can't make myself pick this one back up. While I'm sure that there people who will enjoy this book, it's just not for me.

I was intrigued when I read the blurb for How Not to Die Alone by Richard Roper and I love reading and supporting new to me and/or debuting authors. This story was fun and dark and original and will definitely be reading more of this author in the future.

Andrew is an interesting character. He has been alone for years. An introvert that is lonely but comfortable in his life. His job is to go into home of people who have died and have no one to find either long lost family or money to pay for expenses. Then one day a new person is hired that changes his world. Peggy begins to bring Andrew out of his shell; however, Andrew has been living a lie at work and does not know how to change it. On the flip side, Peggy has her own problems as well, but seems to be good for Andrew.

How Not to Die Alone by Richard Roper was at times funny and at others emotional. It had many touching and sad moments. Though Richard is in his 40s, he has a lot of growth during this story. It was a story that makes you question so much and teach readers there is always hope.

Andrew is a forty years old, single, living in a small one room bed-sit, working for the council attending to those who have died with no apparent family or means to provide for a funeral. It's a grim and depressing job.

Due to a misunderstanding when he first got the job, his boss and co-workers think he has a wife and two children and he has never bothered to set them straight. 

Okay right here is where I started getting bored with wimpy Andrew and what may or may not have happened in his past. So much angst over a tiny lie that no one cares about. Maybe if he'd move his train collection to a warehouse he could have a life.

As it is I was bored to death by this book. There was no depth or logic to it.

NetGalley/ May 28th 2019 by G.P. Putnam's Sons

3.5/4 Stars for this book. It definitely was a questionable start for me with this book, but once it got going, I found myself enjoying it. I can see why so many are comparing this to Eleanor Oliphant, but Eleanor was a bit more enjoyable to me. There was an abrupt ending to this book where I thought I’d accidentally missed something. Altogether I’d recommend this book and appreciate NetGalley and the publisher for approving my ARC!

I wasn’t sure about How Not to Die Alone by Richard Roper when I first started it. It took a bit for me to become invested but when I did, I was hooked.

In the book, Andrew is a single, seemingly weird guy with a seriously morbid job: he goes to the homes of people who’ve died alone to search for clues/information that could help contact someone to pay for the deceased’s burial. Yikes, right? Andrew has no friends, and has told such a huge lie to his coworkers that it’s virtually impossible to really let anyone into his life. And it seems he likes it this way until a new coworker, Peggy, makes him wonder if being all alone always isn’t the way to go.

Andrew is essential the male Eleanor Oliphant. The similarities were so strong at first that I was turned off. Eventually though, I became attached to Andrew like he was attached to Ella Fitzgerald records and model trains. While some parts of the book left me wanting more (the darker bits that I feel Eleanor Oliphant addressed better), over all it was a good read with some depth, a lot of humor, and really likable main character. The musings and conversations related to his job and the people he “investigates” were especially poignant: no one should die alone or be left dead for long periods of time because they have no connections to the outside world. Watching Andrew slowly come to realize this while slowly making new friends, slowly confronting his past, made for a really good read. There were a few far-fetched and glossed-over parts, but nothing that made me want to stop reading. This book was not perfect and it didn’t have to be to be quite enjoyable.

For fans of Eleanor of Oliphant is Completely Fine- I think you will love this! A solid three star read. There were a few surprises in there and I enjoyed reading through Andrew’s journey. His job is fascinating and it was so interesting to think about what happens to people who die who have no next of kin. The journey for Andrew was a little slow for me but it was a good read.

"How Not to Die Alone" by Richard Roper has such an rom-com way-bigger-lie-than-anyone-would-get-away-with-for-so-long-or-even-tell-in-the-first-place premise that it feels tempting to dismiss it. But it actually has so much heart and while the MC Andrew has a very sad and tragic back story, the novel still maintains a deep sincerity that feels authentic but also has such sweet, light-hearted moments throughout. Andrew's job taking care of people who die alone is probably the most unique aspect of this book that was really interesting to think about. The relationship between Andrew and Peggy was so genuine and they had such fantastic but somehow actually realistic banter/dialogue. I was a little disappointed the ending didn't go further with the two of them, but it was probably for the best. Overall, Andrew's progression, his catharsis, was so well-done and heart-breaking and touching that I would recommend this book just for that, but there are plenty of other good things about it besides.