Bless Your Heart is a cozy horror mystery that’s heavy on the charm and Southern family bonds.

The Evans Women have been battling the restless dead since 80 year old matriarch Ducey was a young woman. Professionals at dealing with ghouls, and with That Godawful Mess from 15 years ago peaking over their shoulders, the dead are starting to rise again.

It’s up to this great grandmother and her three descendants to fix this problem before it gets out of control. That’s no easy feat when this family has been keeping secrets from their youngest, Luna, who has no idea what her mom and grandmothers actually do at the funeral parlor they own. Coupled with a creepy new kid in town and a nosy Police Department, these women have their work cut out for them.

This is a well paced horror story with a lot of heart. As the secrets start to come to light, the body count rises, and the family must band together. The third act was fast paced and exciting and managed to surprise me, not an easy task when I’m notorious for predicting the ending. There were three distinct shocks for me and that delighted me endlessly.

I didn’t realize this was the first book in a new series and I can’t wait to check back in with the family for a new adventure next year!

Thank you St Martins Press, Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for the arc.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for letting me read BLESS YOUR HEART early. This one is out now!

I didn't love this one, I think this could make a better movie than a book. Maybe it's just that cozy horror is hard. I'd skip this one.

Bless Your Heart
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Lindy Ryan

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Rise and shine. The Evans women have some undead to kill.

It’s 1999 in Southeast Texas and the Evans women, owners of the only funeral parlor in town, are keeping steady with…normal business. The dead die, you bury them. End of story. That’s how Ducey Evans has done it for the last eighty years, and her progeny―Lenore the experimenter and Grace, Lenore’s soft-hearted daughter, have run Evans Funeral Parlor for the last fifteen years without drama. Ever since That Godawful Mess that left two bodies in the ground and Grace raising her infant daughter Luna, alone.

But when town gossip Mina Jean Murphy’s body is brought in for a regular burial and she rises from the dead instead, it’s clear that the Strigoi―the original vampire―are back. And the Evans women are the ones who need to fight back to protect their town.

As more folks in town turn up dead and Deputy Roger Taylor begins asking way too many questions, Ducey, Lenore, Grace, and now Luna, must take up their blades and figure out who is behind the Strigoi’s return. As the saying goes, what rises up, must go back down. But as unspoken secrets and revelations spill from the past into the present, the Evans family must face that sometimes, the dead aren’t the only things you want to keep buried.

My Thoughts: This was a mystery spun with horror and splash of fantasy blended in. This is the first book in the Bless Your Heart series. The story takes place in 1999 in Texas. The Evans women (Ducey, Lenore, Grace, Luna - four generations) run the only funeral home in town. They have placed a lot of bodies in the ground, sometimes more than once. The Strigoi, vampire who wants control of the town, is back. It is up to the Evans women to fight back and save the town and their funeral home. This follows the trope of cozy mystery with slight humor and horror blended in.

This was a slow burn at first, but a great reading journey. The Evans women are very spunky. The characters were well developed with depth, eccentric-minded, mystery, were witty, and fierce. The author’s writing style was complex, multifaceted, a tad suspenseful (I would love to see more), funny, great world building, and engaging. The paradox between the mystery coziness and the dark (horror) was fabulous, I really enjoyed seeing this combination that I have not seen before. Some of the scenes were quite graphic. Now that does not bother me because I am an 80’s slasher horror movie buff. I loved the vibe of the small town, the ingenuity of incorporating horror elements, and then the Evans family dynamics were well executed.

I had the pleasure of having the digital and audio versions for the ARC, I leaned on the audio more. This was a light, fun, mystery with a flare of horror and fantasy (vampires & people rising from the dead). Think Finlay Donovan vampire edition. This was not scary and won’t keep you up at night or give you nightmares. I would love to see more suspense in the next book in the series. I highly recommend picking up the book or audiobook today.

3.5 stars

This was a fun read! I really loved all the Evans women in this book. Especially Ducey! The story follows a family of women who run a funeral home along with all the services.. and some extra! This book definitely took you on a fun and interesting ride.

Thank you netgallry for the earc in exchange for an honest review.

This would be such a funny movie. I can picture it. Take the women from Sweet Magnolias and place them in a funeral parlor. Oh and then the dead become undead. And there is a vampire that caused all this??? If Gothic Southern writing was your jam in high school you are going to love this book. It is so funny and so southern. And so gothic. It’s going to make you laugh and suspend your disbelief.

Thank you so much to Net Galley and Minotaur books for an e-copy!

A family job!

The Evans women have kept the town safe from Strigoi for decades as the owners of the Evans Funeral Parlor where they can dispose of the spreading evil around town.

Ducey Evans is in her eighties, Lenore is her daughter, and Grace is Lenore's daughter. Last, there is Luna. She is Grace's daughter. A teenager who doesn't know what her family's job really is.

When several bodies start rising, Ducey, Lenore, and Grace know what they have to do.

Bless Your Heart was a light horror novel. At times, the pace was slow and for me, the "Strigoi" felt more like ghouls than vampires.

Cliffhanger: No

3/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Minotaur Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Super cute horror mystery story. Set in a small town, it contains all types of ghouls and monster. I loved the strong women in the story. I loved how it opens in a shocking way - giving you an idea what you are in for!

I also really liked the ending. I liked how it all came together and there was a moment there when even the bad things were making sense. Cute intro, love that it is book 1 in looks to be a very cute series with this family. I'd definitely read another!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

To be honest, I found the book started off really interesting but quickly lost its momentum. My mind kept wandering, so I had to reread many sections and force myself to focus. While the characters were well-developed, the cozy horror left me wanting more from the plot.

Full review will be posted on goodreads, storygraph, and instagram then linked here shortly!

2.5 stars

I was SO excited for this one based off the title, cover, and synopsis. It was so great in theory. Unfortunately, the execution fell flat for me. I found it to be dragging and it couldn't hold my attention for very long at all (which is very uncommon for me when I'm reading!) I'd potentially read the sequel based on it's synopsis but I'm not sure yet!

“Bless Your Heart” is a thriller with a dash of comedy that soothed my 90s-kid heart! The chapters were quick to get through and the storyline kept me interested! Quirky characters that I didn’t know I needed, as well!
This is my first read from Lindy Ryan and I hope to pick up more of their work!

A very cozy mystery/light horror novel! I wasn't sure what to expect because this isn't a book I would necessarily go for right off the bat.... but, in the end, I was pleasantly surprised and genuinely enjoyed it! I definitely would recommend this to others who, like myself, may want to "slow roll" themselves into either of these particular genres (i.e., horror; mystery/suspense), as well as to anyone who ALREADY enjoys these types of books and are looking for a quick & fun holiday/staycation read!

This is a fun, quirky southern vampire story! I love a good southeast Texas moment and this one was a delight. I enjoyed the multi-generational family aspect of it all. What a legacy to discover, that your family kills vampires and that vampires are real!

Bless Your Heart tells the story of four generations of Evans women running a funeral parlor in rural Texas. When the dead start rising, all bodies go to the Evans' women and it's nothing they aren't used to. But why? And why are they rising now? And better question, how do they stop it without a repeat of what happened last time?

This story was absolutely hilarious, dark, scary, satirical, and so much more all rolled into one. I loved the horror aspects but also the larger than life characters. It is such a well laid out narrative and it makes me so happy to see that this is the first in a series! I need more Evans women in my life and we can all learn something from them. The horror was gruesome and the humor was hysterical. I found myself laughing in my car. Overall, a fantastic read that is all parts funny and dark!

The year is 1999 & vampires have made a comeback in a small Texas town. The Evans women run a funeral home & are the only ones who know how to put a stop to the Strigoi. This was such a fun read. It's got the cozy vibes but with surprisingly dark elements. I thought it was a great start to a series. I'll be looking forward to reading more of the Evans women.

This was interesting. Lots of weird phrases and words to describe the outbreak, and I got a bit lost here and there. Overall an OK read. I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

This was a deja vu plot that felt a mash up of several different books of the same genre.

I did not finish it as it was not my cup of tea.

Thank you #NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for giving me the opportunity to read this!

3.5 stars

Bless Your Heart was a fun read! Though it took me some time to keep Ducey, Lenore, and Grace straight, I loved the multigenerational aspect of the story. The plot was definitely unique - a family of woman who run a funeral home and keep their town safe from strigoi (aka zombies). I enjoyed Luna's backstory the most as she navigated high school and grappled with finding her place within her family. The story was more gory than I was expecting, and a little too descriptive when it came to strigoi attacks. However, this was balanced with dialogue that was full of southern charm. Overall, quite an enjoyable read!

Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

#BlessYourHeart:
Thank you so much Minotaur for my gifted copy.

Here’s the thing. I was born in Texas. I live in Georgia. I went to school in Alabama. I have the southern triangle pretty down pat. (There’s a few other states I’ve lived in the south, but let’s stick to the Jorts Triangle okay?) So if you’re going to say you’re going to give me a southern tale, I want a true southern tale. Not a saccharine/caricature of southern tales. I felt it was too hard of Steel Magnolias but more like a Not Another Teen Movie parody of SM (but like Steel Magnolia Vampire Hunters would be boss)

I felt like we had too much butterscotch candy, and not enough character development. Now I love multiple POVs but this was a bit too much for me.

But let’s talk about the good. Holy moly. The horror or deathly descriptions of the undead?! Amazing. It gave me Scream plus Walking Dead vibes. Did I close my eyes like my ears weren’t listening to the darn book? Yes. Lindy, boo, go write supernatural horror and I’m there ASAP. I did feel like once I had the audio it wasn’t as bad on the heavy southern, but still couldn’t keep my attention.

Overall, it genre bends between a cozy and horror? A corror? Hozy? I’d like to see what Lindy Ryan writes next.

Rise and shine. The Evans women have some undead to kill.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this novel in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I have a lot of love for Bless Your Heart! I thought this book was well-written, fun to read, and unlike any other novels I have picked up before. Lindy Ryan did a great job painting the picture of each scene and portraying the strong, opinionated characters.

The Evans women and their family business were brought to life with each page, and while what happened in the novel's final pages was not a complete surprise, it was still really thrilling to read and brought the book full circle for me. I also enjoyed the multiple POVs throughout- the author's ability to work in sections from the cops and other community characters added a lot of dimension to the story that I found developed the plot even better.

This was a funny, cozy mystery with a bit of Southern charm and a whole lot of spunk. I usually don't go for fantasy or horror, but this book was a hit for me. I would absolutely consider reading more by this author in the future.

Great for fans of Grady Hendrix, Elle Cosimano, or similar authors.

I really wanted to like this one because I love stories with vampires, but this one was not for me.

DNF'd at 35%