A strangely awkward book. Both MCs are awkward in the beginning then gradually get to know each other. The pacing was slow while the romance was fast. A little paranormal with Garrett working for death. It was an odd pacing, the MCs kept getting into the same argument before asking for space and repeat. It is a close door romance, when the first fade to black happened I thought the characters went all the way, the writing suggested it happened. But they didn’t, until later. It was a little confusing. The dialogue between MCs seemed very robotic, felt like when you’re on a call with an automated phone operator and you mess up a number and it repeats all the options again. Little to no emotional depth. I liked the story concept but the execution was a little off.

The paranormal aspect was what drew me into this book. Their story is an instalove connection, which made me feel unsure and question whether the characters were genuine with each other to begin with. There are some jokes here and there, but there’s not much comedy, so don’t mistake this for a “rom com”. I think that’s where a lot of readers were expecting this story to fall, but a lot of death talk does make depressing content – especially with a somewhat depressed MC. What I liked about the book is that it gives off small town vibes, and the portrayal of grief felt relatable, without shying away from the difficult emotions. The premise of working for “Death” was very interesting, but I think the back-and-forth was a bit much.

Casket case was small town cute writing. I enjoyed reading about these characters and how they interacted with each other. I laughed and found this book to be a pleasant read.

I don’t have words for this book. I am Nora. Nora is me.

My great-great-grandparents started a funeral home in our incredibly small town in south Louisiana. My great grandfather was named William (Billy) and my grandfather was William (Tommy). My grandparents opened their funeral home location the same year as the casket company opened. My grandmother makes a banana pudding for every funeral. My grandfather passed a few years ago, but he reminds me so much of Nora’s grandfather. I had a favorite casket as a 6 year old, and I helped fold programs and scan in photos for the slideshows over the summer. I went with my grandparents to the Funeral Directors Convention in the summer. I even went to Birmingham last summer and ate at the trendy Mexican restaurant and had a conversation about the plantain nachos!

Seriously if you sub out Alabama for LSU, I felt like I was reading about my life. And ironically enough, I even married an Alabama fan. Yes, this book is morbid. Yes, there are jokes that most people who did not grow up around a funeral home will not appreciate. But this book felt like sitting around my grandmother’s dinner table talking with my uncle about who died that week and my grandfather making a joke about being “the last one to let you down” or “dying to do business with us” and I loved it.

Simply put, this book felt like home, and it really might be one of my favorites of the year!

Thank you to the author + Netgalley for the ARC

I read "Casket Case" by Lauren Evans on NetGalley. I really enjoyed this book and would read more by Evans. The main character, Nora, has moved back to her small town to take over the family casket business after her parents died in a car accident. Then one day a stranger, Garrett, comes to town. They are instantly attracted to each other, but you'll need to read the book to see if it works out.

This book had so many elements I usually like. Quirky FMC, opposites attract romance, elements of magic. There was a lot to like, but ultimately it ended up not being my favorite.

What I liked: the quirky small-town vibe was spot on. I live in the south, though not Alabama, and I recognized a lot of the culture. It felt very authentic. I appreciated how open and honest the FMC was. She didn’t beat around the bush or play dumb. And the MMC, although he kept his job a secret, was honest and straightforward about everything else. I felt like they had a solid foundation. The spice was fade to black, but realistic. I also appreciated that the FMC, although she struggled with intrusive thoughts and self doubt, ultimately stood on her own two feet and didn’t let all the men in her life make decisions for her.

What I didn’t like: despite what I’ve said above, I didn’t feel the chemistry between the main characters. They seemed a good fit logically, but I didn’t feel any of their passion for one another. They had a very caring, considerate relationship, but I a romance novel I want more. Also, the cast of secondary characters was hard to keep up with. There were so many townspeople. And none of them were distinct enough to stick in my mind. They were all so interchangeable that I couldn’t remember who was who. And finally, I wanted to know a bit more about the MMCs job. It was so vague. I just wished there had been more explanation about how it all worked.

Overall, it was a very interesting premise, but a very slow execution that left me wanting.

Review shared 8/29/24 on my Instagram account (@b00ksrmagic) as well as Goodreads, StoryGraph, and Fable.

This was a unique story and I have been conflicted on how to review it. I liked it as a whole, but there was so much about Nora that I didn’t like. It was as if she was half developed. There wasn’t really an understanding to me of why she was so difficult but also didn’t seem to care or have opinions and the anxiousness didn’t have a root cause either. I didn’t get the instant love between she and Garrett either. I actually thought the banter between she and Johnny was a better fit for her. I felt like Garrett could have done much better.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The owner of a casket shop meets and begins dating a Grim Reaper. Sounds like the plot to a romcom filled with hijinks, right? At least it did to me.

That is not what this book is.

Nora, our casket seller, is awkward, a little shy, and dealing with not only her grief over the loss of her parents, but also her grief and trauma over the ending of her previous relationship. She is not in a good headspace, at all.

Enter Garrett, our reaper, in town to assist someone to the Other Side. He stops into Nora's shop to ask for directions, and is immediately drawn to her. Winds up asking her out. And Nora is drawn to him as well - but continues to hem and haw over whether she should date him, constantly apologizes for things, etc.

I was not expecting this to be a clean romance, but there are absolutely no smutty scenes at all. I feel this is something that the author may want to list at the beginning, as it can be a deal breaker for some readers (like myself).

I had a hard time with this book. Most of it, save for the random flashback scenes, are written from Nora's POV, and while I know she is meant to be healing from her grief and past experiences, I feel that she was not a character I could relate to or even empathize with very well. I feel she really created a lot of the drama in the book herself by projecting a lot of her own issues onto other people. And yes, Garrett kept the truth of his job from her but really, who doesn't find out secrets after dating someone for a while?

I struggled with this one. To be honest, the writing style wasn't really for me. The third person perspective sort of made me feel detached from Nora and Garrett and made it extremely difficult for me to get into the story. However, I recognize that that may just be me. The premise is really interesting, and there are many who will really enjoy the book. I, unfortunately, just wasn't one of them.

The premise of this one was very interesting! Working for death is an intriguing prospect, and I appreciated the care Garrett put into his job and how important it was to him.

I didn’t love Nora and I didn’t love the romance. It was very instalove, and that’s not my favorite. It felt like a runaway train, and they were having so many fights over silly things. I understand she has anxiety and we were following her thought processes, but it got pretty tiring after awhile.

I did like the ending, I thought it was very sweet. Some things felt unresolved, like the big conflict of Garrett traveling for work and Nora staying in her small town.

3/5
Wouldn’t reread, but would recommend to certain people

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Ballantine for providing me with an early copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. For more book contact, follow me @romantic.ally_ on instagram

The premise of this one was very interesting! Working for death is an intriguing prospect, and I appreciated the care Garrett put into his job and how important it was to him.

I didn’t love Nora and I didn’t love the romance. It was very instalove, and that’s not my favorite. It felt like a runaway train, and they were having so many fights over silly things. I understand she has anxiety and we were following her thought processes, but it got pretty tiring after awhile.

I did like the ending, I thought it was very sweet. Some things felt unresolved, like the big conflict of Garrett traveling for work and Nora staying in her small town.

3/5
Wouldn’t reread, but would recommend to certain people

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Ballantine for providing me with an early copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. For more book contact, follow me @romantic.ally_ on instagram

I loved this unique death-centric love story! Despite the death, it was a really fun and enjoyable book. There were certainly moments of seriousness but I really liked this one of a kind spin on a love story. It warmed my spooky heart and I finished it in 2 days! Read this if you’re kind of dark and into non-traditional romantic fiction with minimal spice!

Wonderful Debut rom-com! I just loved the synopsis of this story and knew I would love it! I work in the logistics world and thought logistics coordinator for death would be interesting to read.

Nora has to come back home to take care of the family's casket business and falls in love with Garrett, whom unknown to her works for "death*.
When some hot random stranger asks you on a date and they are kind, and thoughtful why not? Your single in your thirties and have no other prospects. She thinks he's a logistics coordinator but weird stuff starts happening around town as residents suddenly pass away. Unfortunately Garrett is spotted at every scene where a death occurs. How do does he explain this coincidence and then to find out who he is with the person she feels she knows is mindboggling.

I enjoyed this fun rom-com and highly recommend.

I was really excited for this book. The concept was really cool and at first I was sucked into this book. Then once the relationship between Nora and Garrett started everything slowed down and the book really lagged. I enjoyed the ending and I wish Nora’s grandpas past had been brought into the book earlier.

I didn't quite vibe with this one, but I love the idea, so I'm giving it a tentative 3.5 (rounded to 4) stars based on a flip through. I'd give the author another shot in the future though; I think they have cool ideas! Thanks to Netgalley, Ballantine | Dell, and Lauren Evans for the arc! I might revisit at a later date.

Casket Case by Lauren Evans this was a new author for me, which I am always on the search for. To me this was one of the strangest book I have read in quite a while. I found the pace to be very slow, especially in the beginning. Then once the characters began to see each other it progressed pretty quickly. Then toss in a major landmine that will almost destroy the relationship. I would still suggest this book to others, because I know not everyone enjoys the same type of books.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Random House Publishing, and I am leaving my review voluntarily.

The whole concept of this romance was so different, so Garrett meets Nora, they meet by chance because Nora is being pushed to start dating but she’s not with it and she also knows that not going to happen in her small town, then Garrett walks, he’s lost and she offers directions and the rest is history.

They fall in love which is so darn fast, but Garrett has a secret and this has ruined his past relationship, and he doesn’t want that to ruin the new one with Nora. Nora runs a family casket business and she finds out from Garrett that he works with Death, he helps people go where they need to go after they die. This was CRAZY, but what was more crazy was the slow burn after the fact, Nora constantly asking over and over about his job, me being annoyed with this exchange as a reader. Nora has gone through a lot in the past with men but she was so infuriating at times.

It was hard at times to fall in love with their story since the romance was really fast, I really liked Garrett more than Nora, but I adored the people in the town, her friends, and grandpa was adorable, I love the characters that contribute to making stories worth reading.

Like the premise, but I’m just not feeling it. The chemistry between the leads is lacking, and while I like the idea of peppering the MMC’s backstory in through flashbacks, they diverted from the already tepid story in the present,

In the wake of tragedy, Nora discovers a new purpose managing her family's casket business and an unexpected romance blossoms with a stranger who seems too good to be true. As a “logistics coordinator” for Death, his compassionate nature seems at odds with his job. Can Nora reconcile his dual identities and embrace the possibility of love, or will she have to lay her heart to rest?

I was really intrigued with the premise of this book and wanted to love it, but it fell a little flat. While Nora's self doubt is relatable, it becomes frustrating when she won't take action. The chemistry between the MCs was good, but sometimes they got a bit too condescending to each other. I did still enjoy the storyline and it definitely made me think about death and grief in a new light. Overall a decent read, but didn't live up to my expectations.

This is really hard for me because I didn’t love this book. I very much wanted to. Garrett is fantastic and I instantly loved him.

The writing and character descriptions confused me. I know this is an advanced copy and I do think a good editor could really help.

Overall, I enjoyed the set up and concept but the delivery didn’t work for me.