#HowNotToDieAlone #NetGalley

Andrew is a lonely single man who accidentally makes up a family to his co-workers. He also has an obsession with trains and is haunted by the song "Blue Moon." As sad as that (and the title) sounds, this a very funny, sweet novel.

The MC Andrew's inner monologue is cracking me up! His funny retorts he never verbalizes have me dying. There is a sensitivity to his voice and perspective that is lonely and insightful and not that of a misanthrope. Peggy, his new coworker is a catalyst in waking Andrew up and helping him see he might not be contented with a life of beans on toast and a fantasy family.

It's pretty straight, white, etc. which offers one perspective, but I guess authors "write what they know." I'm not mad about it, but it's just something I notice.

The story of team bonding gone awry, online friends, estranged family, blackmail and the deaths of elderly people come together to make for a lovely, funny book.

This book is so good. Andrew is so endearing that you will find yourself drawn in. The novel is set in Britain so his occupation seems a bit unheard of here in the States. He works for a Council and goes into homes after the Coroner has removed the dead body and they need to find the next of kin. This grim task is of course where the name of the book comes from. Andrew is a bit hapless and accidentally found himself agreeing to something that led to the impression that he was married with children when in actuality he has lived alone for years. This lie isn’t a problem until he finds himself drawn to a new co-worker. This will lead him to realize he needs to change his life. It sounds grim but it’s very sweet for the most part. I did find myself feeling anxious for Andrew and rooting for him to tell the truth and get on with his life. I had never heard of the author but I was very impressed with this novel so I will be looking up his previous novels and excitedly waiting for the next one.

This book interested me because of it's comparison to Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, but unfortunately I don't think it stood up to it. Definitely well-written, a little depressing at times, but overall a fine read. I wouldn't necessarily recommend to a friend unless I knew their tastes well, whereas I think Eleanor Oliphant was more broadly popular. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book!

I received this book from netgalley in exchange for my honest review/opinion

I read and liked Eleanor Oliphant, so when I saw the comparison I went ahead and requested it. Not too long into it, I wish I hadn't, I knew from the start that this book wasn't for me. I am so happy I finally finished this book, I felt like it took forever to read. I skimmed a lot of it trying to make it go faster, I couldn't tell what the plot was, and I felt like it was a little bit boring. I didn't connect to any character, at all the best parts of the whole entire book was the house scenes and the dead people, I found those interesting, and the end, with the Diane story, that brought some life to the book, but other than that, bleh.. Some of it was over my head..who would get fired for lying about personal life? I can understand if I lied and said I had a kid and called out sick a lot because my "kid" was sick or something, but really what's the harm, does that mean he was hired only because he had a "family" ? maybe things are different overseas.

I liked the writing, it was well written, grammar and all that, I didn't feel like I was reading a sloppily written self published book, I can see this sitting on a book shelf in the book store, I just wish there was more life in the story itself.

A perfect combo of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and The Office (UK). I really enjoyed this one!

Andrew is a 42-year old loner who works for the city council organizing "pauper funerals" for deceased with no family or friends to do so. This thankless job involves searching homes of the deceased for any signs of next of kin, while back at the office he must maintain an elaborate 5-year long lie he'd told his coworkers in a moment of weakness that seems likely to be exposed any day now. I get it, this sounds like a downer and a tough sell for a novel! But Andrew is a lovable character and he quickly snuck into my heart and made How Not to Die Alone one of the sweetest and funniest stories I've read this year. The story takes its time but the characters were right up my alley (anyone who is charmed by slightly dark British humor will agree) and I laughed just enough to make the somber bits touching rather than devastating. 4.5 stars, rounded to 5.

Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for this advanced copy in return for my honest review.

Andrew sneaks into your heart a sad loner a man closed off from emotions,then Peggy shows up.Peggy brings out hope life in Andrew .Andrew Who now has to reveal himself pull down the walls.A lovely read. #netgalley #penguinputnam.

Poor Andrew started his job many years ago with a white lie that has snowballed. During his interview, he led the boss to believe that he had a wife and kids, and since that time he has been unable to backtrack, indeed he has embellished the fabrication beyond all recognition. Andrew's job is to investigate the lives of people who have died alone, in order to track down any relatives or friends who might be able to assist with funeral expenses and other estate issues. The job suits his lonely soul, but when Peggy starts working with him his life becomes more interesting and enjoyable. The author conveys Andrew's dilemma and personality with compassion, humor, and insight, without being heavy-handed.

I’m not sure that I found this debut novel dark or funny. I was initially excited to dive into this advanced readers copy based on Andrew’s morbid occupation alone. That part of the story kept me hooked, but everything else fell short. I would have loved more character and relationship development between Andrew and Sally. Forget the Peggy drama. The familial dynamic could have been enough to make this story shine. Do I think Andrew needed a work buddy to push this story forward? Absolutely. Did she need to be a love interest? Absolutely not. It took away the impact of the beautiful Diane reveal.

Andrew is a 42-year-old loner who has a job working with the estates of the deceased. He even attends the funerals of those people with no next of kin. He lives alone and does not have any "real life" friends. He presents his life very differently to his coworkers, however - he has invented a life in which he is a family man with a wife and two children. He ends up at a crossroads when a new employee, Peggy, joins the company - he develops feelings for her that make him doubt his ability to maintain his fictional reality. Does he tell the truth and risk the friendship he has developed with Peggy? Or continue the facade to save face?
This book was a departure from my normal genre and I enjoyed it! Andrew is very likable and I definitely rooted for him throughout the story. It was very well written I really liked it!
Thank you to Richard Roper, Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the ARC of this interesting book!

What a pickle this book has left me in! I should have hated it because it contained my (maybe only) dealbreaker plotline – one that 99.99999% of the time makes me want to pull a Beyoncé and throw my middle fingers up.

Since I received an early copy, common courtesy says not to divulge too much and ruin things for everyone else. Buuuuuuuuuut, Imma do it anyway because I don’t think it’s fair for readers to spend their dollars on books that they didn’t know contained subject matter that they would have steered clear of if they known about it, and I don’t think it’s fair for authors to get blasted with 1-Stars due to readers picking up something they should have never touched with a 10-foot pole. But first, let’s briefly go over what this book is even about, shall we?

How Not To Die Alone focuses on 42-year old Andrew. Andrew works for the council as an organizer of “pauper’s funerals.” When someone dies with no apparent next-of-kin, it is Andrew’s job to sort through their homes (no matter how Hoarder-y or disgusting they may be) in search of contact information for any long-lost family or friends (or at least some stashed cash to help cover the burial costs). It’s a perfect fit for Andrew as his job provides plenty of time away from the office and less interaction with others – which is great when you accidentally created a fake wife and children due to not paying attention during your interview (years ago) and failed to ever correct said accidental fib. All that changes when new trainee Peggy is hired and assigned to job shadow Andrew. Funny, friendly, and full of life, Peggy makes Andrew see things in a whole new light.

Okay, so the thing that a lot of people are going to take exception to (myself included) is Peggy is married and has children, but is, at minimum, emotionally cheating on her spouse throughout the duration of this book (not to mention despite Andrew’s family being imaginary, as far as everyone is concerned he’s married too). I’m telling you I’m just not okay with some things. Married co-workers grabbing lunch together during the workday is questionable enough for me when there is clearly a sexual chemistry between the two, but going out to dinner sans spouses? Hell nah. That’s a date, bro, and also known as grounds for divorce. Maybe I'm just old fashioned, but I also think I'm the target demographic for this book and have a sneaking suspicion I'm not the only one with antiquated beliefs who will be interested in checking it out.

But here’s that pickle I mentioned. I still loved this book. I mean, yeah I put it down/took a breather several different times and was very happy my husband wasn’t around to see the R.B.F. to the nth degree that was occurring as Andrew and Peggy’s relationship evolved, but at the end of the day the blurb was spot-on. This absolutely was “darkly funny” and “life-affirming” and, despite there being DOZENS of taglines on books out there saying they are “for readers of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine,” this one might actually fit the bill. I fell in love with Andrew and Peggy and the end result????

4 Stars

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley!

This was an okay book for me but not one I'd recommend to friends. The characters were somewhat interesting but the plot line was way too bizarre.
Nevertheless, the message was sweet and the dialogue often humorous and poignant.

Very good novel with an interesting premise, excellent plot, believable characters and more than that, characters that I really cared about. I thought the storyline dragged a bit much around the middle, but the ending was perfectly perfect.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

Andrew is a loner who has a job working with the estates of the deceased. He has taken it upon himself to attend all the funerals of the dead who do not have any locatable family/friends. With his coworkers, he has invented a life in which he is a family man with a wife and two children. Yet, in reality he lives alone and has no friends except an online community of fellow model train collectors. Eventually, he develops feelings for a coworker and his fictional reality becomes harder and harder to maintain.

This book was a very slow burn for me. I think the comparison to Eleanor Oliphant is spot on. It is very well written, and the story line is sweet and has you really rooting for the main character, Andrew. I really liked Andrew, a lot. But when you really think about the story sometimes it was a bit hard to wrap your brain around. It's really a bit creepy and far fetched. I did like the book, but something faster paced suits me better.

This debut novel by Richard Roper was ultimately worth the read because of the worthwhile messages about the power of truth, doing the hard work of healing, friendship, and taking risks. That said, I think publications that directly compared it in blurbs to Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine actually did it a disservice to put it side by side with this other book (I loved Eleanor Oliphant and would actually re-read it which is very rare for me to do with a novel), and thereby raised expectations in a particular way. For me, the first half of this book was not very engaging; I had simply committed to read it so I pressed on. But as I continued I could read it more for its own merit and I began to look forward to seeing how Andrew the protagonist's predicament would be resolved by the end of the story. I think at this later part of the book, the opportunity for a more memorable set of circumstances to resolve Andrew's secret-keeping was not taken and so it fell a little flat again. Not wholly unsatisfying - just a little bland.
One other thing of note: When I started reading I did not know this author was British and that the UK was the setting for the novel. which was also the case for Eleanor Oliphant. In the latter book, I had no problem understanding what I was reading, whereas in Roper's novel, at times I felt the slang and expressions were much more inaccessible to me. However, I expect those with more exposure to the UK may not have a problem.

This particular book would not be something I recommend to the book club I'm a part of, with other options available, but I would be open to reading another one by the author in time.

This odd book works well in so many ways because of its essential heart and warmth. The central character, Andrew, is cut-off from all things social and living. Consistent with his lifestyle, his job entails visiting the homes of the recently deceased and searching for any sign of relatives among their detritus. He has elevated his task to almost a ceremonial act. He has also created a fantasy life to ingratiate himself with his boss. Eventually, his worlds will collide and how he manages that balancing act is the tale at hand. Author Richard Roper has written a sweet and often, funny, tale that is fast and heart-warming. With office politics that require a level of social sophistication that Andrew clearly lacks, even his work life can be entertaining. This is a good book and very enjoyable. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book. I really enjoyed Andrew and his quirkiness. What made this book a strong one was the backstory of Andrew that the author slowly unfolds. We learn why Andrew is the way he is and root for him to find love and friendship so he doesn't die alone.

A sweet little tale of a man knocked around by life who closes himself off from those around him and then learns to open up and live again. Like a nice cup of hot cocoa on a winter’s day.

So, this was a thought provoking and sobering at times read. I did laugh a few times, but a few times while finishing I thought to myself will I die alone and if I do, will anyone be left after to miss me and come round to check in on me.

My family does a very good job of staying in touch with each other. We do Polos (videos) everyday almost to each other. We also text and sent pictures. When I go home to visit my family I stop in on older relatives who are content for me to sit and watch them watch television (mostly Lifetime). It just never occurred to me to not see them and check in on them.

This book shows us another side of those people who either lost loved ones, or didn't have any with them in the end. I ended up loving Andrew for just making sure that someone besides the local vicar was there to see them off. Roper does a great job with slowly revealing Andrew's story. You will have a lot of sympathy for him. And I also love that he didn't have Andrew just have a happily ever after romance wise. Honestly, I would have been happier without the romance. Between that and the flow of the book being off here and there, I ended up giving this book four stars.

"How Not to Die Alone" follows Andrew. Andrew works for public works and specifically gets involved when someone is found dead and it appears there are no next of kin to be found. Andrew seems to have a routine down pat. He goes to work, investigates a house, goes to a funeral if planned, comes home and talks in a chatroom with other model train enthusiasts, and talks to himself as he eats. We know he has a sister that he talks to once a quarter, and other than that he is trudging through his days. Until the day it comes about that Andrew who told a lie (he is happily married to a woman named Diane and they have two kids) which may get found out. With a new coworker named Peggy starting to push Andrew out of his rut, he is starting to realize why and how his life got so off unbalanced.

I really enjoyed the character of Andrew. You at first may find him weird. Readers are told pretty much up front how he came to lie about being married and you may find yourself not feeling sympathetic to him. I maybe had my eyebrows raised through that part of the book because I just thought how odd it was. However, it takes almost until the end of the book for Roper to reveal why Andrew lied and specifically what happened to him. You then realize why Andrew has become so focused on making sure that the deceased are not left alone at their funerals. That someone should be there to mark them leaving the world. You find out why he loves Ella Fitzgerald so much, but why one song causes him almost physical pain.

Now onto the slightly negative. I didn't really care for the whole romance he had going on in his head with regards to Peggy. I liked how Roper developed their relationship from coworkers, to friends, to amateur sleuths when tracking down leads on possible kin to deceased men and women. However, Peggy has her own marriage and problems to deal with and I hard cringed at Roper possibly throwing the character development of both characters out the window to slap a bow on things. I was so happy to see I was wrong with that, no spoilers, but I loved how well done this was and how it was taken care of by Roper.

The other characters in this book, Andrew's sister (Sally), Sally's shitty boyfriend (Carl), and the frightful coworkers (Keith and Meredith) were written very well. We get a slow reveal about Sally and Andrew's relationship and I felt so sad about the whole thing. No spoilers, but when you read about how they were raised, what happens after, and why they seem so apart from each other's lives it all makes sense.

I already mentioned Peggy above, but she was written so well. Peggy has her own problems, but she does want to help Andrew when she realizes what is going on with him.

The writing was very good. I would also caution reading this while eating or anything. Some of the descriptions of the homes that Andrew and Peggy walk into turned my stomach a bit. FYI, I am a very clean person, I promptly went and cleaned my bathrooms after finishing this book. There is some dialogue that made me laugh here and there, but I loved how Roper shows Andrew's awkwardness and you are able to get the sense that he wants to make connections, but is out of practice.

The flow as I said was not consistent throughout. I think when Roper reveals things about Andrew's past it kind of brings the book to a halt. The passages concerning Sally, Andrew's mother, and what happened to Andrew after going to university were great, and I definitely don't think it should have been told in a chronological way. It just caused the book to grind slightly at times. And the book then moving back to the present didn't work for me all the time since a few times since I would get focused on what Roper revealed and wanted to go back and get more details on that.

The setting of this book takes place in London. It just feels like a London where the lights have gone out a bit. Though there is humor in the book here and there, it's a pretty grim subject matter at times. This book did make me curious about whether in the U.S. if we have a similar office going around taking care of unaccompanied deaths and ensuring the deceased are given a funeral and buried.

The ending though is a breath of fresh air. It will definitely warm your heart.

3 Stars.

Have you ever started a novel and known immediately that it was not for you and yet you kept going? Such was the case with “How Not to Die Alone.”

This novel is about a man named Andrew, who works for the death registry - his main job is to go to the homes of the recently deceased, determine if they have next of kin and/or funds to pay for funeral expenses. If they have no one, he makes sure to attend their funerals. You see, he is alone and has no one, yet he has lied to everyone at his office and has told them that he is married with two children because, in truth he could end up in the same predicament, he could die alone.

Then someone new starts at the registry, her name Peggy. She is married with children (she’s not married to Al, I swear, lol). Their friendship has a profound impact on Andrew and the way he thinks of himself and the world.

Admittedly, this novel was perhaps not the best choice for someone like me, as I am divorced, have no children and don’t have close family (I have the best of friends and I have books thus I am richer than most). That said, this though “How Not to Die Alone” is, at times endearing and quirky, it is also a heavier type read that was hard to shake off. There were no moments where it truly touched my heart or made me smile with utter joy unlike other books in this genre. It just didn’t have that same “feel.” The characters of Andrew and Peggy however both go through a lot of growth throughout the novel and have an incredible amount of believability and depth which was astounding considering this is a debut novel. If you can handle a bit of heavier read, this novel might be for you.

Thank you to Edelweiss, NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam and Richard Roper for an arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Published on Goodreads, Edelweiss and NetGalley on 2.26.19.
*Will be published on Amazon on 5.28.19.

This was a really good book! I loved the main character and wanted everything to be okay for him. He was flawed, but so lovable. I don't need a sequel, because this story was complete enough for me.