Name: Graveminder
ISBN: 9780061826870

Melissa Marr

When her grandmother Maylene, who always gave tender attention to the dead with unusual rituals, dies mysteriously, Rebekkah Barrow returns home and discovers that Maylene was murdered and that there was good reason for her odd traditions. 150,000 first printing.

Graveminder

Jess

Read my review here! --&gt; <a href="http://www.gonewiththewords.com/2011/06/review-graveminder-by-melissa-marr.html" rel="nofollow noopener">http://www.gonewiththewords.com/2011/06/review-graveminder-by-melissa-marr.html</a> The only thing I knew to expect from Graveminder was that it was going to be great, and heck yes, did it deliver! Melissa Marr has a way of writing that, to me, can only be described as poetic and cinematic. She lays the words out in a way that makes you feel like you’ve stepped into this world she’s created. It is descriptive enough to give you the perfect picture, but doesn’t over saturate you with details and the way the words just flow so smoothly...*sigh* It’s really amazing. I was completely engrossed in delving deeper into these characters and this story. There were so many layers to both. Just when I thought I had it figured out, something unexpected and/or original would negate that theory. I really liked Bek. She was tough, independent, doesn’t take crap from anyone, and I loved that she took everything in stride and with good humor, for the most part. The only problem is that she doesn’t feel she deserves happiness with the one person she’s loved for years, Byron. Byron...oh, Ms. Marr knows how to write her men (Irial, Niall and Seth from the Wicked Lovely series are some of my all time favorite males in any series). He is sensitive but not a pushover or weak. He’s ruggedly sexy with his jeans, boots, leather jacket and his Triumph bike. And when he promises to always be there for you no matter what, he honors that promise with all of his being. Being pushed away by the person you made said promise to makes it a little harder though. Once Bek comes back to town for good, he wants to make her realize once and for all that they belong together...if she can finally let go of the abundance of guilt she feels for loving him as much as he loves her. I loved the originality of the world also. Because of a deal the town founders struck with Charles there are two individuals who have to visit the land of the dead time and again: the Undertaker and the Graveminder, now Byron and Bek. Their duties are to make sure your body and soul are taken care of when you die. If everything goes normally, you are buried and the Graveminder will perform a very simple ritual that will keep your body in the ground and your soul in the land of the dead. Every now and then, somebody misses a dead body somewhere and the Undertaker and Graveminder have to lead this soul in there by the hand, literally. What happens when you die and the Graveminder doesn’t know, is what the characters in this story are dealing with. See, if left unattended for an extended period of time, the undead begin to munch on humans. The more they kill, the stronger they become, the harder it is for the Undertaker and Graveminder to find them and lead them underground. Simply put, I loved this book. It was a yearning love story, with some mystery, intrigue and original gothic, supernatural aspects. One book wasn’t enough. I am making a plea to Melissa Marr...please! We need more Bek and Byron!

Anastaciya

easy to read. although sometimes I got confused with the characters... I guess I wasn't very attentive...

Jessica Nottingham

I'd like to say that I've read everything by Melissa Marr. I'd like to say that. However the truth is that until Graveminder showed up at my door, and drew me in with it's Southern Gothic cover and blurb, I hadn't realized Melissa Marr's books were out there. Shame on me, I know. Let's just say that I've remedied that now, and if Graveminder is any indication of Marr's shining talent, then I'm 100% in. Call me a fangirl. 

Graveminder is deep, gritty and filled with the type of tension that you only see in really good, old, horror movies. You know, the ones where the town seems peaceful and quiet at first glance, but deep down you know there's something brewing under the surface. The small town feel allows the reader to watch characters interact who know one another so intimately that it is captivating. I believe it's on the front cover that Charlaine Harris mentions Melissa Marr's stunning world building abilities. I second that, third it, and go back to read this book another time through. Claysville is not only a town populated by some of the most intriguing characters I've ever met. It's not just a town that buries secrets. No, Claysville literally breathes. It's alive.

If the town itself is alive, the characters are even more so. Their lives bleed off the page, intermingling into a group of people you might just meet some day. I fell in step with Rebekkah and Byron almost instantly, watching as their paths widened, met, and finally tangled into a messy heap. Each of them was believable, and I enjoyed that Marr didn't try make them perfect. Rebekkah and Byron each have their own demons that they are fighting, even as they are trying to keep one another from drowning. The tension between them, both in terms of anger and sexual interest, is palpable. I couldn't get over the fact that they were thrown together so unceremoniously. Following them as they tried to sort things out, and learned to rely on one another, was definitely a big part of what kept me reading on.

There's not really too much I can share with you in terms of the story line, without spoiling things. I am enamored with how little the synopsis gives the reader in terms of back story. To be honest, the less you know going in the more you'll be open to falling in love with the concept. This isn't your typical zombie book my friends. I'm honestly not even sure it should be compared to that. What Marr has created in Graveminder is something new, fresh and beautifully original. Her characters, her setting, the gorgeously woven story, it all comes together to create one heck of a book. Grab a copy and dive into Claysville. You might find that you just can't leave.

Denys

Rebecca C Wright

Rebekkah Barrow never forgot the tender attention her grandmother, Maylene, bestowed upon the dead of Claysville. While growing up, Rebekkah watched as Maylene performed the same unusual ritual at every funeral: three sips from a small silver flask followed by the words, “Sleep well, and stay where I put you.” Now Maylene is gone and Bek must return to the hometown—and the man—she abandoned a decade ago, only to discover that Maylene’s death was not natural . . . and there was good reason for her odd traditions. In Claysville, the worlds of the living and the dead are dangerously connected—and beneath the town lies a shadowy, lawless land ruled by the enigmatic Charles, aka Mr. D. From this dark place the deceased will return if their graves are not properly minded. And only the Graveminder, a Barrow woman, and the current Undertaker, Byron, can set things to right once the dead begin to walk. . . .

Graveminder

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