3.5/5 rounded up

Thank you Macmillan Audio for the advanced listening copy! -- out 4/9!

SYNOPSIS -- It's 1999 in Southeast Texas, and the Evans women are up to their eyeballs in dead bodies. While this isn't entirely unusual seeing as they own the local funeral parlor, it is definitely an unexpected twist that some of these dead bodies are, well, undead. Local busybody Mina Jean Murphy rises first, setting into motion a string of chaos that seems familiar to some of the Evans, especially matriarch Ducey, her daughter Lenore, and HER daughter, Grace. Grace's daughter, Luna, is about to find out about a major family secret revolving around the Strigoi, the original vampires. Armed with trocars and deceit, the Evans woman have to protect their town and themselves.

This book was sooo different than anything I normally read, and I'm surprised that I liked it so much! It was definitely creepy and icky at times, but I was hooked from the start. All of the characters had a ton of layers and nuance between them, which added to the story a ton. There were, however, too many POVs in my opinion; I think this made things confusing and diluted more than it needed to be. I think the audio could have been way more clear and effective if there had been a different narrator for all of the characters. The middle got a little bit lost on me, but we made our way back for a powerful and shocking end. The Evans women were fantastic and fun main characters, and I enjoyed their dynamic with each other and the other characters immensely. I'm super intrigued by this series and hope to read more of it soon! That cliffhanger.... I can't wait!

Bless Your Heart was a fun and campy introduction to a new horror-comedy series by Lindy Ryan.

I really enjoyed getting to know the 4 generations of the Evans women, however I did find it a bit overwhelming to jump between so many characters. It definitely felt like it was a first book in a series, setting up the characters for more adventures as they go on, however the pacing was inconsistent throughout - it was medium paced throughout most of the novel, but the events of the last 25% seemed extremely fast and it was really difficult to process one event before another was starting.

There were also some characters that i wonder if were intentionally less developed to create a storyline for further books? Either way, it was harder to connect with those characters (like Crane).

The narration, however, was fantastic! A huge win on that front, as the narrator was so engaging and really good as distinguishing all of the characters.

3.5

Started out great but really devolved in to a disappointment at the end. The Southern platitudes run rampant in this book but are for the most part well written; it’s too bad it falls apart at the end.

This was too much on the horror side for me - very descriptive gory, weird, and I just didn't care for the mystery portion of the story.

I didn't know what to expect from this book. The cover made me think it would be a cozy story but I'll be honest, there was a lot of gore. Is there such a thing as cozy horror? Even though it wasn't what I expected, I really enjoyed this book and the narrator was very good!

A southern gothic masterpiece, Bless Your Heart follows four generations of women through the story of their lives in a small Southern town. A delightfully detailed horror story ensues, keeping the reader on their toes and enthralled in the dark happenings of a town plagued by vampire-like creatures.

Copied from Goodreads:

2.5⭐️ rounded up for its potential

“Bless Your Heart,” the debut novel of Lindy Ryan, is more comedy than thriller. The colorful Evans women—Dulcey, Lenore, Grace, and Luna—serve as multi-generational custodians of their small Southeastern Texas town’s dead. As Luna discovers, however, they also serve as protectors of the townspeople. The reader learns of the Strigoi (vampires) and their history alongside Luna. Ryan’s novel is the first in a series, so significant exposition and character development is understandably necessary. While I don’t think I’ll be reading the next installment, I have no doubt that a “Bless Your Heart” series will have fans.

If you’ve ever wondered what Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire series (origin of the HBO series “True Blood”) would look like if melded with “The Golden Girls” and set in 1999 Texas, then this is the book for you!

“Bless Your Heart” will be released in the U.S. on April 8, 2024. Many thanks to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for this audio ARC given in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Audiobook file didn't work. This seems to be a NetGalley issue and not the author/publisher. Disappointed. Rating is reflection of the experience, not author's ability.

This story takes place in 1999, and revolves around the Evan’s women, who run the towns mortuary. Surprise twist, they’ve been putting down strigoi for generations. What are strigoi, (besides hard to spell), they are the dead come back to life.
Luna is just learning about all this from her great grandmother, grandmother and mother. She’s also learning that she has.a link to the dead and there’s more to her than meets the eye.
The dead are rising and Luna and her family have to get a handle on it quick to save the town:
I was expecting more humor in this book. Maybe because of the title? I think I thought this would be more Sookie less Stoker. It’s an enjoyable listen for the most part. The story and characters are engaging. It’s very gory, but I didn’t mind that.
If I had one critique of this book, it’s all the mentions of what people are doing with their mouths, sucking on their teeth, constantly sucking on candy…..it’s a lot after awhile.
Lyra Parrish does a fantastic job narrating this audiobook and I would definitely listen to one of her narrations again.
Thank you to Macmillan Audio and Minotaur books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I went into this one completely blind. I almost didn’t finish it but I pushed through. The fantasy/vampire scene is not my go to so I really couldn’t connect with any of the characters. I am giving this one 2 stars just because I really had to convince myself to finish this one.

I think I went into this expecting something completely different than it was. I wanted something funnier, more southern belle banter, more fun. The characters were great, but not sure I would describe this book as fun. This was a darker more horror than comedy. There were twists and turns and it definitely had some unexpected plots. It was well done, but at times dragged on. It was often very repetitive. I wish it had more banter and fun to balance out the mystery aspect.

Thank you NetGalley for my advanced reader copy.

This was exactly what I thought it would be (in a good way), I always appreciate when the blurbs actually match up to the story and this one totally does. I really enjoyed the close knit family of women and their….unusual…occupation, it was a fun and unique take. While I enjoy high drama supernatural books, this was a nice reprieve from the sometimes exhausting intensity they often have. The more casual, cheeky vibe made it a fun read that I didn’t have to be too emotionally invested in. Also, the late 90s in the South vibes were spot on (as someone who lived in Alabama and Florida for a big chunk of my 80s/90s childhood). I would definitely pick up future books by Lindy.

The narrator gave me all the southern nostalgia and suited the story perfectly, I liked that she did great accents for the characters without the entire book being narrated that way. Highly recommend!

This is a fun genre mashup of a novel. I loved the characters so much and could see this like a movie in my mind. For some reason, it gave me Fried Green Tomatoes, Beaches, and Mystic Pizza vibes

Absolutely loved the storyline! I am not a gore person, but it was so well written and visual... I could not stop reading. This is an excellent addition to your TBR!!

A southern vampire, or more accurately Strigoi (troubled spirits who rise from their graves and gain vitality from the blood of their victims), story the only funeral home in a small Southeast Texas town and the women who operate it.

BLESS YOUR HEART is like no vampire story I have ever read. There were no bats or caped creatures with fangs. It is not a scary or gruesome story. Some scenes are "gross", but not horrible. I enjoyed the story and was intrigued and surprised by the end.

The narrator for the audiobook was great in creating voices for the various characters which made the book more enjoyable, and easier to follow the dialogue.

2.5 stars⭐️

This book is about four generations of Evan’s women who run a funeral parlor. When people in the small town start showing up dead in some very gruesome and disturbing ways, and the bodies sent to their parlor start rising from the dead, they realize the Strigoi, the original vampires, are back. The Evan’s women have to fight off these vampires in order to protect their town.

This book started off so well and I was so interested. Once it got towards the middle, it kind of just got slow and repetitive, and I started to lose interest. Don’t get me wrong the premise was interesting, I just think the pacing was a little off and we could’ve cut out like at least 50 pages. There were deaths that happened that just felt like they happened to get a reaction out of the reader and because of that it just felt repetitive and pointless at times. I did enjoy the family dynamic between the Evan’s women and their banter!

I do, however, recommend the audiobook. I think the audiobook is really well done and it’s the only reason I didn’t dnf it. This gave me Grady Hendrix vibes, so if you like his work you may love this!

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for sending me an audiobook arc of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

I loved the campy vibe, it was gruesome but fun. This was a comedic horror and I enjoyed the small town vibe and southern setting. The narrator did an amazing job and brought the story to life. Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advance copy in exchange for a honest review.
4/5

Okay, this was actually quite surprised me by how gruesomely fun it was! This was totally outside of my typical read but I really enjoyed it as an audiobook! It was one of those books that you just got caught up in the story and were entertained but also slightly creeped out.

I felt like a couple scenes were like inna movie Will you put your hands over your eyes because it's kind of creepily gross because I would say this is a satire horror. It literally felt like Salem's lot meets True Blood but make it a funeral home of women who are slaying the dead. I really loved the different point of views especially the teenage daughter. If you're looking for something fun and unique, I would definitely check this out! I enjoyed it! Highly recommend that audiobook!

I absolutely loved this book! Lindy Ryan is a new author for me. I’m so happy this book was recommended to me. I’m surprisingly very emotional at the end of this one. It is a five star read for me. I love good horror!

The Evans women run the local funeral parlor in their small Texas town. They also have another responsibility: taking care of the restless dead. Ducey, Lenore, and Grace keep the town’s secrets, and protect those who don’t even know they need protection. But when a string of missing persons cases start to pop up in town, things start to get strange. Grace’s daughter Luna is having strange dreams, and the Evans women have secrets. The author weaves a tale that keeps you guessing, has chapters from the perspectives of multiple characters, and brings a fresh take on the elements of horror throughout the story. I enjoyed every page. I also adored these women!

The monsters in this story are the Strigoi - they are vampires, but they have an interesting twist. I really want to give details here, but you should read about them with no prior knowledge. This was a very original take on a well-known creature.

This book was truly a delight for a reader like me who loves horror. I’m really hoping to get to read more about the Evans women. Thank you to NetGalley, St.Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read and listen to this book. I did both, and the audiobook has an absolutely incredible narrator in Stephanie Nemeth-Parker. This book releases on April 9th. I highly recommend it!

Vampire, mystery, and a dash of horror? Yes, please? This book was so much fun. I was a little worried it would be too similar to other vampire stories set in the south, you probably know the ones I am talking about, but this was such a fun and fresh take, I just had an absolute blast with it.

The Evans’ run a funeral parlor in a small southern town, that looks normal on the outside, but secretly part of their business is keeping the restless dead, well, dead. Things had been going well for years, but recently the dead haven’t been staying dead and things are getting a bit out of control, threatening to reveal the secrets of the Evans’ women’s’ pasts if they can’t figure out what on earth is going on.

This was seriously the best mix of funny and horror I have read in a long time. The only slight issue I had with it was that I wanted more of the vampire moments, which is maybe a bit nit-picky because there were quite a few. It was just such a new version of a vampire story that I wanted more!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book. I leave this review voluntarily.