3.5/5 stars
The lessons and premise of the book are very important and could definitely be helpful to some. There were a few things that resonated with me (dealing with grief, anxiety/fears, relationships past and present, etc.) but overall the book felt a bit dull. The characters all felt pretty flat and boring. (Milo was a decent character though.) I really expected it to make me emotional, like to the point of sobbing, but I barely teared up. For a debut it was decent and I think there's potential, this just wasn't really it.

While this story makes it sound like it will just be a spooky story, it actually deals with some serious issues like depression, anxiety, grief, sexuality, saying goodbye, and more. I really enjoyed reading about Georgia and seeing her character developed as the story continued. I appreciate the way Georgia struggles to figure out who she is, navigate friendships, and how those around her are dealing with grief. This was a really good, quick read with serious issues handled in a way that made it easy to understand.

This is the type of story I normally LOVE! A coming of age with some spooky elements? Sign me up. Unfortunately, I just didn't really connect with Georgia - or, to be honest, any of the characters. An intriguing premise that will probably work for others but unfortunately fell a bit flat for me.

Funeral Girl felt like a very unique read to me, and I really enjoyed it. While we often spend time with the idea of coming to terms with the idea of death as young children, not too many stories follow that into young adulthood and forward. Between both the story, and its unusual setting, I thought this was an unforgettable read. The casual inclusion of nonbinary and ace characters was very appreciated, and while it might've been a tough place to be, I loved spending time inside Georgia's mind. She was so complex, and I was really rooting for her as she went through all her struggles. A great book!

When I first started reading this book, I considered it to be a good idea for a series of young adult novels where Georgia would wake up murder victims and help solve their cases so they could rest easily in the aftermath but I soon gave that up. Georgia has so many fears and has to work through them all in such a dire situation that I wouldn't want her to go through it again. The way the author can make you see how life and death are just teetering on a precipice and that you need to live each day the best you can was just so well done.

Georgia is a 16 year-old-girl whose family owns and operates a funeral home which already makes her quite familiar with death and mourning - even without her uncanny knack for talking to the dead.

Funeral Girl was a really fantastic exploration of mourning and grief that definitely hit home pretty hard. Sometimes it can be hard for me to read about this very natural part of life, but this book handled it extremely well. It was fun enough that I couldn't it down, but was never blasé and was honestly pretty cathartic to read. It was such an interesting idea, and was executed very well.

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Lerner Publishing Group for an e-ARC of this new young adult read.

If you grew up loving the movie "My Girl" you need to run and buy this book. Quirky girl in a funeral home that can communicate with the dead. Friend that dies and leaves her to face emotions shes tucked away, I mean if this isn't hitting that nostalgia in my heart I don't know what is. The entire book had my feelings everywhere reading how Georgia had to face all these emotions. It was definitely one that hit my heart.

3.5/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishers, and Emma K. Ohland for allowing me to read and review this book.

This is not typically my type of book, and it was not exactly what I was expecting from a Young Adult Fantasy.

This was a really good book dealing with anxiety, grief, and death. This book deals with a lot of sad and difficult topics, but in a way that is easy to understand and process. I believe this would be a good book for anyone, young or old, that is going through a death of a loved one. This book really puts into perspective the different ways people cope and how differently death effects people.

Although this was not my typical type of read, I am really glad I read it and would definitely recommend it for just about everyone.

Thank you so much, NetGalley, Lerner Publishing Group, Carolrhoda Lab ®, for this chance to review this book in exchange of an honest review.

TW: grief, depression, anxiety

Georgia Richter is a sixteen years old girl whose parents run a funeral home. She feels very conflicted about it, mostly because she has the ability of summon ghosts, simplu by touching a corpse and with a second touch she can make the spirit disappear. To where, she doesn't know. In order to deal with her anxiety caused by death, she decides to help the spirits fulfill their final wishes, helping them. But when her classmate, Milo, appears as a corpse, she finds herself involved in another unfinished business and a way to cope with death, mortality and anxiety.

Funeral Girl is a deeply fascinating, original and a bit gloomy story. It reminded a bit of Ghost Whisperer and I do love this book and the show. Georgia is an amazing and compelling character, very relatable in her feelings and anxiety and I found her really realistic in everything. This book explores with great care and sensitivity important themes like death, grief, depression, anxiety and relationships.
I really liked reading this book, from the compelling writing style, complex characters, gloomy read and it was so fun and intriguing. Totally recommended.

This book was the perfect way to kick off Fall. I am starting to grow out of YA, but this is the YA I still enjoy: touching, emotional, and addresses issues real teens deal with. This book is certainly paranormal, but the main character, and side characters, are dealing with issues that make them feel real and most importantly make them feel like teens and acutely depict the teen experience.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an e-ARC of Funeral Girl by Emma K. Ohland.
Funeral Girl is a story of a teen, the child of the local funeral director, who struggles with death. When a classmate from school dies, Georgia is forced to confront her feelings. Georgia has the ability to summon the ghosts of the people who pass through her family's funeral home and Milo's ghost helps her look at death from a new perspective. Well thought out and well written, Funeral Girl is a story that will resonate with teen readers.

What a well written story! I never even thought about what if you grew up in a funeral home. I love the diversity of the characters and the lgbtqia representation in the characters. I don’t want to give too much away with my review but it’s like My Girl meets Ghost Whisperer. And how could that be a bad thing?

3⭐️

Georgia’s family owns a funeral home, and Georgia discovers that when she touches a corpse, she can summon the ghost of the dead. Georgia talks to the ghosts and tries to learn more about them before they pass on, including asking about their final wish. When an accident occurs and one of Georgia’s classmates ends up in their funeral home, Georgia does everything she can to learn about him and help fulfill his final wish. No one at school seemed to really know much about him, and Georgia sets out to find out who Milo really was.

This book was just okay for me. It’s very YA and not something I was in the mood for, but it’s good if you’re in the mood for something a little creepy!

Quite a few days late but, A big thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for approving me of a copy of an e-arc of this book!
Such A GREAT BOOK!
From the bottom of my heart, I say I love it.

In her debut novel, Emma K. Ohland crafts a refreshing story around a teen’s obsessive fear of death. Inspired by the writer’s own struggles with intrusive thoughts, Funeral Girl deftly describes the isolation that occurs with mental illness.

Georgia Richter lives with her family in an apartment above their funeral home. Her dad handles the bodies while her mother tends to grieving families. Georgia and her twin brother, Peter, have grown up with the understanding that one day they will inherit the family business. But while Peter is fascinated by the hands-on learning their father provides, Georgia has no interest in running the funeral home her grandfather built.

When Georgia’s grandmother dies, she discovers her ability to wake the ghosts of the recently deceased. The grief she feels in losing her grandmother is intense, and coupled with her strange new-found talent, Georgia’s anxiety begins to spiral. Her fear of dying becomes all-consuming. When her brother and close friend appear to dismiss and even mock her grief, Georgia copes by spending more and more time alone. The death of a classmate and the awkward friendship she forms with his ghost further intensify Georgia’s anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and isolation.

Funeral Girl is categorized as YA, but I felt it read like an adult novel - just with teen protagonists. Even though Georgia has supernatural powers, the book is more contemporary fiction than fantasy. I was impressed by Ohland’s true-to-life depiction of OCD (although Georgia’s illness is never labeled as such) - not just the paralyzing effect it has on the individual, but also the impact of mental illness on family and friends.

Despite themes of grief and anxiety, Funeral Girl doesn’t feel heavy. There’s also the loyalty and trust of family and friendship. This was a unique read that I enthusiastically recommend.

Thank you to Learner Books and NetGalley for early access to this title.

I have been talking about this debut ya novel all summer. Emma K Ohland is an extraordinary author who has brought to life a character you are going to fall in love with. Georgia is trying so hard to be ok, but she just isn’t. Her journey has stops and starts - like real life. She is often lonely even when she’s not alone, and she has to decide who in her life she can honestly count on. And is she there for them as well? Not always. Relationships are tested and might even be mended as Georgia faces her biggest questions and greatest fears. I absolutely loved this character driven novel. I hope you do too.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC to read and review. All opinions are my own.

This was unique and interesting, and I loved the asexual rep. The MC was a bit self-absorbed but I think it's addressed enough in the book.

I wanted to absolutely love “Funeral Girl,” but I just didn’t! It was an alright book, I wouldn’t say it was badly written or lacking, etc. It wasn’t what I was expecting or wanting from the description, though! I wish we’d gotten more with the ghost aspect and especially some closure with one of the storylines; and I wasn’t a huge fan of how her friends + family treated her and it was written off as just her fault, I felt.

I did like what parts with the ghosts we did get, and I think the overall plot was sweet and the ending was too. Not too good, not too bad, just…alright.

Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for the ARC of Funeral Girl.

There should be a warning for the detailed descriptions of preparing bodies for a funeral. If this is not something you're interested in you should be prepared to skim parts of this book or just don't read it.

I really enjoyed this read, however, I felt like the portrayal of panic attacks were unrealistic as someone who suffers from panic attacks. That being said this book was a beautiful portrayal of grief and the fear of the unknown after death.

Really good book and it does deal with death and grief with a lot of depth out into it. Definitely a good one.