I loved the small town setting, the atmosphere and the supernatural elements of the grave birds. To me the strength of the story was in the town dynamics and not the romance which felt too insta-lovey and superficial.

This book caught my attention from the beginning and held it until the end! It was just the right amount of southern to not be overdone like some books do it. It was full on southern heritage drama with a gothic, gothic, ghostly twist. Grave birds are interesting and I loved the dive into a bird that only some can see. There was a lot going on in the plot and that made the twist at the end that much better. The added unexpected romance made this great too! It didn’t take over the plot at all. I loved the character development of the FMC, I was so glad to see her tackle all her problems head on. She was not sassy like most FMC are this day. She’s was more humble and it worked for this book!
Also, I enjoyed our dark mysterious stranger that literally caused more chaos in an already chaotic small town!

The audio was great. Brittany Pressley’s voice was just right for this book. I was able to listen on 1.8x speed and still enjoy everything clearly.

Over all I definitely recommend this book.

Thanks NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for giving me the chance to review this ALC.

Oh my gosh I DEVOURED this book in one day! I absolutely loved it. Atmospheric, souther gothic, murder mystery, a girl who sees ghosts and their birds, strong-willed FMC and a dark and moody MMC....perfect recipe. Chef's kiss!

Haunting and atmospheric. This is a southern gothic mystery touched by the paranormal.

This is magical realism exactly how I like it — atmospheric, slightly spooky, but not too scary to keep you up at night.

Hollis Sutherland is a small town girl, but she’s been touched by death. Ever since a traumatic car accident, she can see grave birds that are invisible to others. When she touches one, she’s catapulted into the mind of the deceased, their memories shattering her waking consciousness.

🕯️Haunting and atmospheric, I could see the vivid scenes and the ghostly charm in my mind’s eye.

🎧 Brittany @britpressley brings the voice of Hollis Sutherland to life in this cozy horror murder mystery! I recommend the audio format, although both work.

🐦‍⬛ I had high hopes for this one as I loved In the Hour of Crows and I would say that if you liked that one, you’ll also enjoy this one. The vibes are on point.

🪶 Get your copy preordered — this releases July 1st.

Thank you to @danaelmendorf and @htp_hive @htpbooks_audio @readmirabooks for the review copy and ALC!

LOVED this one! As previously mentioned, In the Hour of Crows by @danaelmendorf was one of my favorite reads in 2024, and I'm now adding Grave Birds to my top 25 of 2025 even though we're only halfway through the year. I think more attention needs to be given to this amazing author! Dana does southern gothic so well. The atmospheric vibes, magical realism, and mystery surrounding the story were 🤌🏻 I enjoyed the grave birds giving hints to the overall mystery and trying to piece things together. I see Dana's growth as a writer as there was no sophomore slump here! I can't wait for her next book!

Ａｕｄｉｏｂｏｏｋ Ｒｅｖｉｅｗ
🌟🌟🌟🌟.2
Grave Birds by Dana Elmendorf is my first book by this author and will not be my last. If you are looking for a murder mystery, small-town setting, a dash of romance, and some paranormal elements, I highly recommend this book! I was hooked from chapter one and couldn't put it down. The premise intrigued me. Hollis almost died as a young girl, and because of this, she can now see grave birds that are haunting the cemeteries of Hawthorne, South Carolina. The grave birds represent unfinished business. Then Cain enters with his eerie presence, and things start to happen.

The audiobook is narrated by Brittany Pressley, who did a good job telling the story and bringing it to life. I enjoyed listening to her; she was easy to understand. I listened at 2x speed.

Thank you, NetGalley and Harlequin Audio, for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

🎧 ARC Review 🎧
Hollis Sutherland has had a unique gift ever since the day she died and came back to life. She can see the dead’s unfinished business in the form of birds or “grave birds” as she likes to call them. They need closure and her help to find rest.

Lately though everything has gone to hell. Literally. The number of birds seeking her out has increased and she’s suddenly being haunted by ghosts too. The home she was about to purchase is taken right out from under her and freak natural disasters are happening left and right. I’m talkin’ firestorms coming from the sky, earthquakes, spiders raining down, and flocks of birds crashing to their deaths against the windows. It’s giving Revelations vibes y’all and it all started the day Cain Landry walked into town.

What exactly is this handsome stranger’s role in all of this? Is it purely coincidence or did the devil himself just come to town? And why is she so darn drawn to him?

If you appreciate eerie suspense, dark mysteries with a supernatural twist, ghosts, and southern gothic tales, this book is for you! Perfect for those spooky season TBR’s and available July 1st! 4.2 STARS 👻 🐦‍⬛

What I Loved:
🐦‍⬛ The Southern Dialect! The phrasing, the mannerisms, the small town charm, this book oozed Southern flavor. I was absolutely in love with the way these characters talked. And the narration? SIX STARS. @britpressley deserves a standing ovation.👏🏻 👏🏻 👏🏻

🐦‍⬛ The Atmosphere! From vivid descriptions of gothic Southern homes to food that’ll make you gain five pounds just reading about it, this story nailed that eerie, rich Southern vibe. Throw in ghosts, hauntings, and an increasing sense that something "other" is lurking and you've got a deliciously spooky setting.

🐦‍⬛ The Grave Birds! Dana truly created something unique here. The birds were haunting, yes, but also strangely human. I felt for them. I cared. Each time one appeared, I was equal parts scared and curious, what secrets were they about to sing?

🐦‍⬛ The Mystery! At its heart, this is a twisty, dark murder mystery that strikes a perfect balance between cozy and chilling. The author drops clues like scattered feathers throughout the story but I didn’t see the ending coming at all!

What I Didn’t Love:
🐦‍⬛ Time skips! Come on it’s just meannnnn to time skip like this. I was invested in these characters, and the skips made a lot of their growth happen off-page. Felt like I was being cheated out of some good development. 🥲

🐦‍⬛ The Romance. Cain Landry had so much potential to be a swoon-worthy lead. But sadly, he barely got any page time. I know not every story needs romance but with a character this intriguing, it felt like a SIN not to give us more. I needed way more Cain! 😩

As always a big thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. I had an absolute blast with this one and need to go read Dana Elmendorf‘s other work now!

Grave Birds presented a unique blend of paranormal fiction, mystery, and psychological thrills that kept me engaged. The story centers on Hollis, a young entrepreneur with dreams of launching her event planning business from her late uncle's mansion. Those plans are quickly derailed when Cain Landry sweeps into town and buys the house right out from under her. Not one to give up easily, Hollis is determined to compete with the established Richardson family for local events, and she lands a major gala with the Hawthornes.

As Hollis delves into planning, a string of unsettling accidents plagues the town: bizarre storms, fires, and even deaths from freak construction mishaps. Through her work with the Hawthornes, Hollis starts to unearth deeply buried town secrets, from their financial struggles to a past murder that was meticulously covered up.

The paranormal element comes in with the "grave birds"—spectral birds that appear after a human dies and often pester Hollis to intervene and help set souls free. Having died and returned to life herself, Hollis is uniquely attuned to these birds, and one follows her constantly. She quickly notices that Cain also seems aware of them, making her wonder if he's the cause of the town's strange occurrences or why he's truly there. While Hollis and Cain eventually find common ground, her trust in him remains fragile as she works to uncover the truth about the mysterious murder, the Hawthorne's secrets, and the accident that killed her grandfather—and briefly, her—years ago.

I really appreciated the unique story Dana Elmendorf crafted, particularly the concept of the grave birds. My one wish is that it had leaned a bit more into the paranormal. It felt more like a typical psychological thriller and mystery with just a subtle hint of the supernatural, despite the elements of seeing dead people and the titular birds. A big highlight for me was the narration; you truly can't go wrong with Brittany Pressley!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. Release date 7/1/25.

This spooky summer read was definitely what I needed. First time reading a book from the author and i absolutely loved it. The chilling gothic atmosphere was what I needed for this summer and I highly recommend this story !

Hollis Sutherland lives in a small southern town of Hawthorne, run by the wealthy Hawthorne family. As a child, she died and was brought back to life. Ever since she has had the ability to see grave birds, which are manifestations of deceased parties' unfinished business. What a cool concept! Only those who have died and been brought back can see these grave birds. When Cain Landry moves to town, Hollis's life is rudely interrupted. He may be handsome, but with him comes trouble, perhaps even the devilish kind. Hollis is hired to plan a big gala event for the Hawthorne family, but with Cain comes strange occurrences in town, people acting suspicious, and the Hawthornes not living up to their name. The grave birds begin showing Hollis snippets of the past, revealing buried secrets from the town of Hawthorne. And with this, unfolds our Southern gothic mystery! Overall, I liked it. The concept of the grave birds was awesome and the mystery was interesting enough to keep my attention. It went in a different direction than I expected it to. It's not YA, but it sort of feels like it is somehow? I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars! I did listen to it in one day, and the narrator did a good job.

I was so excited to dive into "Grave Birds", especially with Brittany Pressley narrating! She’s one of my absolute favorites, and once again, she delivers. Her voice is effortlessly engaging, and her use of accents feels natural, never overdone or cartoonish.

That said, the story itself didn’t quite land for me. While I appreciated the attempt to deepen Hollis’s character through various subplots, some of those elements felt unnecessary and distracted from the main narrative. The tone also leaned a bit YA for my taste, which made it harder to fully connect.

Still, I’d recommend this to listeners looking for a touch of gothic atmosphere, magical realism, and romantic undertones, especially if you’re in it for a top-tier narration experience.

Thank you to Dana Elmendorf, Brittany Pressley, Harlequin Audio, and NetGalley for sending me the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

The audiobook absolutely blew me away! I never turned the book off after I started listening. The narrator really brought to life the dark, yet beautiful atmosphere. I wouldn’t consider this one horror, per se, but it does have some dark aspects that come out.. Like the “Grave Birds” and them showing flashbacks of what happened to the person when they passed away. I truly loved this idea of when people pass, they each have a bird connected to them. Please be weary of some trigger warnings that may be disturbing for some readers. (ie ch!ld abuse, mvrders). This book pulls in some thriller, some romance, some murder mystery vibes and small town secrets.
There were times I shed a few tears.. right off rip when she was explaining what it was like to pass away, and then be brought back. Because that experience happened to me as a child. I remember standing next to my body in the exact way the author describes, truly got me to the core with that piece.
If you loved Ghost Whisperer (the she can see the dead and helps them move to the other side part), A Southern Book Clubs Guide to Slaying Vampires and Riverdale (the rich people’s family secrets in a small town) then you will LOVE this book.

Dana Elmendorf masterfully weaves a chilling atmosphere in Grave Bird, capturing the eerie beauty of Hawthorne’s moss-laden cemeteries and the unsettling whispers of the town’s buried secrets. From the first chapter, I felt immersed in a world where the line between the living and the dead blurs beneath the haunting calls of the ghostly grave birds. The story’s dark, mystical tone is palpable, with each strange occurrence—blood dripping from blossoms, flocks of ominous birds crashing into homes, fiery tornadoes—adding layers of unease and wonder. Hollis Sutherland’s uncanny gift and her quest to uncover the truth behind her town’s sinister past keep the reader on edge, questioning what is real and what might be supernatural. While the novel pulses with suspense and a sense of foreboding, it also gently explores themes of redemption and the weight of secrets long buried beneath Southern charm. Cain Landry’s alluring yet mysterious presence adds to the tangled web of lies and sins, making every revelation feel like a breath held in suspense. Grave Bird is a beautifully spooky read that lingers in the mind—a perfect choice for anyone craving an atmospheric tale filled with ghosts, grit, and the ghosts of the past. A few moments felt slightly stretched, but overall, Elmendorf delivers a haunting story that will leave you glancing over your shoulder well after the last page.