The Funeral Cryer is a beautiful story about a woman trying to find herself. Although this book is set in China, and the main character (we never learn her name) is bound by certain cultural requirements, it is very relatable. It is about a woman struggling to determine who she is as a person separate from her duties of being a wife, a mother and a daughter. We never learn her age, but we know she has an adult daughter and aging parents. Like so many of us, she is attempting to have an awakening in the second half of her life. She is struggling to find her true self, and learn what it is that she can be proud of about herself.
The view into life in a small Chinese village was fascinating. The book moves along easily. The story is not complicated, but it has a certain elegance in its simplicity. It is heartwarming and touching.

The Funeral Cryer is a reflective take on middle-aged womanhood in society not only in China but for many women throughout the world. Our main character (who remains nameless throughout the story) tells of her life interacting with an apathetic husband, a daughter that doesn’t live at home and hyper aware of death around her. Her job as a Funeral Cryer generates the household income, but brings more grief than good most of the times. Her own personal awakening gives younger women readers space to reflect on their roles in their homes, they goals for the future and what it means to be a woman in the world.

Conceptually, this story is beautiful. The themes it brings up (trust, love, happiness, disconnect) in the most subtle ways all within the framework of a woman shamed by her family for the role she plays (even as she is the provider and caretaker) are absolute perfection.

The writing style itself isn't working for me. It's choppy, and it isn't a seamless blend of words that take you away. It's blocks of dialogue and blocks of inner monologue. This is going to appeal to a very specific type of reader. I'm giving up at 10% in.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for the ARC.

I did not finish this one. I can see it being a favorite for hardcore fans of literary fiction. But I am not one of those people. I could not find myself getting invested.

A moving and thought provoking story about a funeral cryer in a small village in rural China. I was unfamiliar with the funeral cryer profession and found those sections to be fascinating. Unfortunately, the writing style didn’t work for me. Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for the ARC.

I got almost halfway through this book - the dialogue and descriptors often felt choppy, and even if I appreciated the framing devices and exploration of what it means to be in a community because they need you but not because they want you. I appreciated the building relationships the protagonist created, but I think the pacing of the story's growth was a bit too slow for me to get into it fully.

Many thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.