A complex mystery, action and suspense, global conspiracies…

This is the first book in the Gravediggers series.

There are odd happenings in Last Stop, Texas, which few know about, this small out of the way town provides good access to the various forms of transportation a clandestine group might need with a single funeral home that is the perfect cover for their operations.

Like all of his men, Deacon Tucker, leader of the Gravedigger team, masquerades as a funeral home assistant. He’s watched the feisty, sexy, red-headed mortician go about her life for years wanting her but the life he leads doesn’t conform well to relationships, anyone tied to him is in danger, falling in love could mean his death and theirs, distractions are deadly in his world. Needing the use of Tess’s language skills Deacon is given the authorization to bring the mortician on board, seducing her if he has to, which gave him license to do what he’s been wanting to do. This man is alpha and protective with a dark edge and enjoys the adrenaline rush of his work. All the men ponder how they came to be where they are now yet we aren’t given all of their personal details.

Tess Sherman is the only mortician in town. When the funeral home was purchased, renovated and employees that weren’t needed added, Tess had to wonder about the nature of their activities. There aren’t enough deaths to warrant the extra manpower but they do assist with the funerals and keep the grounds pristine. Preferring the company of the dead to the living she doesn’t make waves for she’d like to keep what is a good steady job but she notices more than she lets on, and she notices one of the men more than the others. She’s about to get a shocking surprise, she’s fallen into a deadly adventure with a man who awakens her senses like no other. We follow Tess’s daily activities and really get to know her. She’s sassy and quirky but also intelligent and independent, her eccentricities made her likable. Who hasn’t talked to themselves periodically? Tess has more internal strength than she realizes, her rough childhood prepared her for what she’ll now be dealing with. This reader always appreciates strong heroines who can think.

I like the premise of this new romantic suspense series, an elite group of black operations specialists comprised of men from all over the world, working behind the scenes to protect everyone from terrorist threats and not subject to bureaucracy and its reams of red-tape, yet they are not totally without some oversight. These men work for a shadow organization only known to a select few in the government and were specifically chosen because they are the best there is and life had thrown them a curve, they were betrayed, disavowed, and dishonored and they’d turned rogue. This is their second chance to continue saving lives and the price is their deaths to the world that once knew them. They are called grave-diggers for a literal reason.

This book contains details of the secretive team and set-up for the future. We’re given dual points of view. This was a great story replete with a complex mystery, action and suspense, global conspiracies and intriguing characters. The banter was engaging, the humor dark yet enjoyable, the chemistry between the protagonists quite palpable and steamy, their connection intense.

This reader is definitely looking forward to more in this series.

An advanced reading copy was obtained from the publisher via NetGalley.

This is an intense book with suspense, sexually heated banter, and plenty of muscles. The first two chapters lay it all out there, how the guys become Gravediggers, why the funeral home, all of it. I really loved this book and the idea behind is very unique. I can't give it five stars because of two reasons. The first is the cover, glad to not see a half naked tattooed man, but something military related would have fit better. Seeing the cover I figured I was reading a mystery not a black ops military group operating from a funeral home. The second reason is the lead's name. In the blurb (according to Goodreads) he's Solomon but for the book he's Deacon, I'd assumed Solomon was his name before the change. However, he writes a note for Tess and leaves the initial S which she doesn't even question, I assumed it would be explained later, but no. Despite some of those quirky editing issues the book starts off with excitement and doesn't really stop. Definitely worth the read if you enjoy suspenseful military black ops books.
*ARC received from Netgalley.

The Darkest Corner by Liliana Hart is the first book in her new Gravediggers series. This is romance suspense with some humor that takes place in a small town and revolves around a group of elite former military men that are presumed dead, and must stay that way with no contact to anyone from their previous lives. These men are called Gravediggers, and work for an undercover government agency that even the President knows nothing about. They take on suicidal missions to help save the world.

Tess Sherman, is our heroine, who runs the local funeral home in Last Stop, Texas. Though Tess is the director of the home, it is Eve Winter who owns it. But Eve rarely visits the place, as unbeknownst to Tess, she is the leader of the Gravediggers , and the men who work with Tess, are actually undercover agents that are sent on secret missions by Eve. Tess and her friend Miller love ogling the men as they work outside the home. The town, made up of weird funny people, can’t understand why these men are working in their small town. But even the older women love ogling the men. 

Deacon Tucker, our hero, is the original gravedigger and former black ops agent. He leads the 4 other men that work around the funeral home, while secretly waiting assignments. He has also been attracted to Tess for a long time, and despite the rules not allowing them to ever be serious, the romance between Deacon and Tess will heat up and become hotter than hell. But Deacon knows they have a difficult assignment ahead of them, with a terrorist group from Russia attempting a major chemical attack on US soil that is called The Day of Destiny.

As Deacon and Tess’s romance escalates, he begins to worry about Tess; especially since Eve thinks Tess will be an asset to the team, with her ability to understand Russian and other languages. At this point is when the story line becomes very exciting and suspenseful. Tess will become part of the team, working with them on the start of this mission. There are some terrifying situations, but the 5 guys and Tess are up to the challenge.
Though there is much as the humor within the town and Tess’s relatives, it is the romance suspense aspect that drew me to the story. This was exciting, action packed and thrilling. I enjoyed this very much, though I could have done without some of the craziness in the town part, which I thought was a bit too long.

The Darkest Corner was very well written by Liliana Hart, as she gives us a great sexy romance, wonderful couple, and awesome Gravediggers team. I look forward to the next book in this series.

I wasn't sure when I started this story, but I loved it. Great tension with the main characters and I want to see what happens next.

The Darkest Corner is the first book of the new Gravedigger series from Liliana Hart. I just want to start by saying that I love the Addison Holmes Series by Ms. Hart. She is a wonderful writer. I have been meaning to try out some of her other novels, so I was super excited to be picked to review this brand new series. I have to say I was not disappointed. This book was action packed thrill ride.
You have a lonely, smart mortician running a funeral home and then enters 5 hot sexy men, whom carry a dark secret. They are all declared dead and working for a complex secret operation. The use the funeral home as a front for their identities. In a small town like Last Stop, everyone knows your business. Will the guys be able to save the day and their identities?
This is a fast paced romantic thriller. It is full of suspense and action. You can’t help but become part of the story. You will not want to put it down, afraid you will miss something. I loved the characters and was so interested in their story. This could easily be a great movie. Anyone looking for a great romance with spy quests will love this book. Ms. Hart is a wonderful author. If you have not read any of her books, then I suggest you start. I promise you will not be disappointed. #Happy Reading!

What a wonderful book. I’ve been a fan of Liliana Hart for sometime now, but, this book just absolutely blew me away. A cross between JJ Graves and the Mackenzie men with some Tom Clancy thrown in, I couldn’t put it down. Romance, suspense, intrigue and action packed from the first page to the last.

Tess is a mortician in a small Texas town, who tries to fly under the radar. She is not aware of how attractive she is and how strong she can be. Tess knows Deacon is more than what is seen on the surface. and that her attraction to him can be her undoing.

Deacon is a dead man walking. A man for all intents and purpose dead to all that knew him in his former life. He has been betrayed by his country and the agency to which he gave most of his life, has disavowed him. A black ops agent with no country to serve, he is recruited as a Gravedigger. He is given a single mission and that is to save the world, He knows he shouldn’t fall in love, but then he meets Tess and all bets are off.

Deacon and his team are assigned the task to stop a terrorist attack known as The Day of Destiny. He discovers Tess has skills that can make this mission a success. But, can he work this close with Tess and not have his heart broken? Can he trust her with his secrets and his heart ?

I strongly recommend to anyone to read this book, you will not be disappointed.

Having read many of Liliana Harts other series this book for me felt the most complete. From the details of each characters, writing, grammar and editing this book seem to be complete.
Gravediggers is a dark and gritty series with dark humor and sexual chemistry which Liliana hart is known for.
From page one you will know about as much as each of the characters which will keep readers questions.
The Characters have cracks but are not completely broken and readers will wonder about each characters past, present and what the future holds for them. The villains are dark, the hero's are dark with hope in their hears and the heroin has moments of light, dark humor and she struggles to find her identity.

The characters are developing though out the book keeping readers wondering who and what they have done to make them traitors.
From the town, to the people no one is a wasted character they all have purpose in the story and keep it moving forward.

Great Start to the Gravediggers series that will hook readers in and won't let them go until the last book in the series. Liliana Hart better get those fingers typing because I need the next one and soon.

Thank you for the advance copy from Netgalley and the publishing company.

Currently reading book 2 in the series also advance Copy from Netgalley and the publisher

When I was given the opportunity to review this book I jumped at the chance. Having never read any of Liliana Hart's work before, but always hearing good things, I was excited to get my teeth into this new series. The series follows a group of super elite ex military personnel from different backgrounds and countries, all the men are presumed dead and are not allowed to contact any previously known friends, relatives or associates. The group are known as the Gravediggers and work out of a funeral home managed by Tess Sherman, who has no clue about their extra curricular special operations. Deacon Tucker heads the Gravediggers from their base of operations at the funeral home and after trying his best to not act on his feelings for the red headed, super feisty Tess he ends up having to involve her in the operation in the best way possible. Tess has ogled her five employees from afar for the past two years, especially Deacon, who she seems to have an intense connection with. Even so, she is certain things aren't exactly what they seem and that there is a lot more to this band of merry men. Loved the writing, the story and the characters. The chemistry between Deacon and Tess is off the charts scorching. The whole book worked for me and I am most definitely going to be reading the next book in the series which is out later this year. I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to like this book-- the premise sounds so exciting, but I struggled with info-dump dialogue, like:

"Right," she said remembering Deacon's explanation of what exactly a HALO jump was. "So you're going to jump from a plane at thirty thousand feet, in freezing temperatures..."

It was made worse by writing Tess as the kind of character that talks to herself, or to the bodies in the morgue, which just seemed like an excuse for lazy writing. The Tess/Deacon relationship also suffered from a bad case of 'insta-love' and just wasn't enjoyable to read, and the whole 'gravedigger' set-up that had so much potential didn't really live up to expectations. Overall, pretty disappointing.

Absolutely riveting beginning to the story, but no conclusion for the event. What happened to the little girl?

Fantastic premise, but no conclusion for the story either.

Interesting romance. Luckily it does reach a satisfactory end.

I'm a bit half and half on this book. I like the idea and most of the book but you'll have to get through some uncomfortable stuff before you get to the rest of the book. You'll have to decide for yourself if you like it.

It's set in a mortuary in Last Stop, TX and it's cemetery. Then it becomes more but getting there isn't as pleasant as most of what I read. I had to go back and forth to get through the first quarter of the book, then it was smooth sailing from there.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It takes an appreciation of macabre, black humour to like this book; thankfully the dry kind that I love can sort of easily be translated into a love for this kind of dark comedy.

In contrast to the sombre, almost-sinister cover which made me wonder if ‘The Darkest Corner’ was a murder mystery or a thriller, there’s quite a bit of wry, self-deprecating humour in this, as characters run the gamut from dark and shady to weird and mentally unstable. It’s eccentricity exemplified and probably not a story for people who love straight-out romantic suspense and hear-pounding thrillers but one that meanders and winds around the daily lives of Tess Sherman, her relatives and their ilk, while keeping a mysterious group of men called the Gravediggers who’ve died and come back to life, all in Tess’s back garden, so to speak.

We’re given the odd life that Tess leads, right down to her babbling personality and the actual happenings in a funeral home, except that it’s suddenly populated by men whom she can’t understand, not least a mysterious leader named Deacon Tucker who never gives straight answers when she needs it. Her funeral home business is, unbeknownst to her, the perfect cover for what they do and Tess is slowly but surely waking up to things that go bump in the night—and not of the supernatural kind.

I’m reminded of 6-feet under in its morbid glory, with all the tangential, long descriptions of peripheral characters who add to the quirky mood of the story but not to the plot, which is surprisingly slow-going after the actual introduction to the Gravediggers. For the first half, I was entertained somewhat and undoubtedly en route to boredom, though the cloak-and-dagger conspiracy theories and the spy stuff did get interesting, interspersed with the small-town life that Liliana Hart tries to bring to life. Unsurprisingly, it was Deacon and his unhappy band of operators that captured my imagination, and I think we simply didn’t see enough of them in this book. I was straining the end of my leash for the action and suspense to begin, given that there is a real threat out there and it only materialised in the last quarter of it.

Hart however, has already written a potential series of books into this opener, with sufficient characters have enough depths to plumb until the daylight fades. So while I’m a little on the fence with this slow start, I’m nevertheless eager to dig deeper into this strange band of brothers. Just more of the action and the spooky spy-stuff please.

Wow! I loved this book! The author has long been a favorite of mine, but this is the first book in a new series and I wasn't sure what to expect. Suffice it to say, no matter what you're expecting, it will be different and so very much better.

A group of men have been declared dead and then returned to the living as part of a very special group of operators that step in when no one else can or should step in. They have complex missions in which the weight of the world rests on their shoulders. Their cover is as employees of a funeral home. Five men to assist one funeral director that might have two funerals a month in a very small town....a town so small that it has a tiny population and everyone knows everyone else's business...a town so small that there is a bet on when (or if) the funeral director will take one of the men for a tumble. How hard could that be to keep a secret?

This is fast paced romantic suspense that fans of the genre will love. I cared about the characters and felt invested in their story. Once again, the author has demonstrated that she is a master at her craft. For those who have not yet discovered her, snag this one as quickly as possible, you'll be glad you did.