I had a hard time getting through this. It dragged in some places and I found myself struggling unfortunately. The ending wasn’t bad, but getting there was an effort for me.

As a story and as a family drama, this book delivered for me. I love how tense the setting gets at times and how the story will keep you turning page after page just to figure out what’s happening or what’s truly going on. I think the relationships in this book are well demonstrated and described, you get a sense of how important the family is to each member, and how the death of her brother sets things in motion. I am so curious to see what this author does in the future, great debut!

This book starts with the funeral of Alice's brother, however the reader does not realize how important this and what the relationship was like with the siblings and anything about the family dynamic. I felt that the book really didn't demonstrate this in an effective way and it ends up feeling like it is some kind of mania she is under as opposed to a close relationship. Yet, on the other hand, her family has no clue about any of this. She has built her marriage around excluding this information. I found it kind of strange that Alice is aloof with her husband, however she is so strong in trying to figure out what happened to her brother. I think that in the end there was just too much meandering around about other things as opposed to sticking with and building up the story. There were parts of this that really just made no sense and I never really did get a concept of who and what the brother was like. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

This was such a solid debut! I really liked the story line of this one. I love a good family drama and this one delivered! I really appreciated the surprises all throughout the book and this definitely kept me turning the page! Such a great read!

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

So, the title of this book really drew me in. I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did.

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Alice adored her older brother, Rob, but he left her. He ran away and left her when he was a teenager, and she was a child. She never saw him again, and then he died. Years later, with her father gone, her mother losing her memories, and her own family on the brink, Alice finds letters from her brother, most addressed to people she never met. She’s determined to deliver them so that she may figure out what happened to the brother she adored.

This book was excellent. Family drama and secrets, emotions, characters that you want to win. I definitely recommend!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of How to Bury Your Brother by Lindsey Rogers Cook.

When Alice gets word that her brother Rob has passed away, she is devastated. Not only at the loss, but because they were never able to reunite after he left the family when he was sixteen. Now it is just Alice and her ailing mother left, leaving Alice to start cleaning out the family home.

In her organizing she finds a stack of letters from Rob addressed to multiple people, except her. What could possibly be in the letters? And might they have answers as to where Rob has been all these years? Desperate to know, Alice begins to devote a huge majority of her time finding the recipients of the letters, taking time away from her husband and two children. Through her travels and discussions, she slowly begins to piece together her brother's life and what kind of a man he really was.

Oh wow, this was a rich tale. I love books that slowly peel back one revelation at a time. This was written beautifully and full of rich storytelling and emotion. I enjoyed every page.

I went into reading this book thinking it was would more mystery rather than a literary fiction. And I was somewhat correct but it didn’t start to become exciting until the last 20% of the book. The rest of the book was more to do with the emotions of the main character dealing with the loss of her brother. You’d probably enjoy this book if you are a fan of literary fiction. Lit fiction is not my first choice of book. Most of the time I was just sort of bored with the flashbacks from the main character. Just felt slow.

I have to admit that the reason I didn't enjoy this book as much as I'd hoped has nothing to do with the author and everything to do with me and my intentions going into it. It was the title that broke me and drew me in all at once. If I'm honest, I'm not sure what exactly I wanted to get out of it when I requested this one on NetGalley. Perspective? Advice?

Closure?

Whatever it was, I didn't find it in these pages, nor was I really meant to. I read the synopsis and chose to more or less ignore that it was a work of fiction, a mystery. I read that it was about a girl who grew up in Georgia with her beloved brother, and she goes home to bury him. It delivered exactly what it promised in the blurb, and I shouldn't have been reading it seeking healing when it was written to entice fans of mystery and family drama. While that completely impacted the way I read it, I should add that I found myself seeking an emotional connection that just wasn't there, and that think I can argue is an actual fault of the book. Frankly, if there were ever a book that had potential to punch me right in the emotional face, it was this one. It dealt with a lot of heavy material, but somehow still felt consistently flat.

That said, the writing is good stylistically, just a bit unaffecting for me. Overall it wasn't a bad read. It was intriguing enough that I finished it pretty quickly, and I especially liked that it's the first mystery I've read in ages that wasn't centered around a straight-up murder. Something a little different. The pacing could use a little tidying up. Overall, it was okay. Solid two stars.

Thank you muchly to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review. The opinions are entirely my own, and any quotes are taken from the ARC and may be different in the final published copy.

How To Bury Your Brother is the debut novel of Lindsey Rogers Cook. The title drew my eye, and I thought it would have been a humorous novel. Reading the description, you quickly realize it is not. After selecting the book, because of personal reasons, it was not easy to start reading this book. However, once I started, I could not put it down.

Alice thought she would see Rob, her estranged brother, again. His funeral happened first. Years passed, and while cleaning out her parents' house, she discovers a box of letters her brother wrote to other people. Devastated he did not write a letter to her, Alice is determined to learn about the brother she lost and discover why he left by delivering the letters and meeting people who knew Rob.

Doing so forces Alice to look at the dysfunctionality of her seemingly normal family, how Rob and his abandonment shaped her life, newly discovered family secrets, and secrets she has kept from her family and friends.

The well-written story is a fast read. Cook pulls from her Georgian background to accurately portray southern families, their interactions with each other, with the community, and the stories they tell.

This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 10/2/20.

This book is exactly what you would expect from the title. Alice's brother dies and she has to deal with her feelings on his death while learning things about his life. I feel there was more potential with the plot, and expected there to be a little more mystery involved in the story line than there ended up being. Overall, it was a decent story.

At first I was a bit sceptical in reading this novel. I couldn't get into the story, but then after the first couple of chapters I couldn't put the book down. Glad I read it.

This book covers a lot of different topics, suicide, grief and family situations and overall I thought it was a good read! I like the aspect of family and revealing all their secrets but a few things fell flat for me. I think Alice was written well but parts of the story were pretty slow and I cant say that I enjoyed the ending that much.

I would however recommend this book to my library, I still think there are plenty of readers that would enjoy this! I will continue to read Lindseys books!

How To Bury Your Brother
by Lindsey Rogers Cook

This is such an emotional book that griefs with family, grief, loss and love. The story opens with news that Alice's estranged brother who left their home when he was 15 yo and she 11 yo has committed suicide. With a family of her own, she has to learn to accept that she will never see him again, Years later as her mother is suffering from dementia and will now require more help and need to move to a facility, she discovers some letters from Rob that were kept hidden. The process of Alice discovering the truth about Rob's story and why he left home is soon revealed.

This is a poignant story that spans generations about the Tate family and the secrets they hold. Cook wrote a beautiful story against the backdrop of the beautiful South and the ugly family traumas and drama people are willing to hide and keep secret.to save face. The story moved me as the story is slowly revealed from the past and how Alice is navigating her present circumstance and her own family.

Great domestic drama I enjoyed reading.

If you love a southern family with drama and secrets look no further than 'How to Bury Your Brother.' It is a complex story of grief, loss, suicide, and moving forward.

The plot had a lot there, but honestly I was a little confused by the chronology of things. There were things that were happening in the current timeline, but also long passages about previous occurrences with Alice and with Robinson, and it was kind of difficult to follow.

Author #Lindsey Rogers Cook #How To Bury Your Brother is a psychological thriller.The story is dark and the main character Alice has lost her brother.Taking part in the south Its heartwarming and tugs at the heart.It takes the reader on a emotional ride.
Thank you,
#Netgalley, #Lindsey Rogers Cook and # Source books Landmark

How to Bury Your Brother tells the story of Alice and her quest to find out what happened to her older brother Rob. Alice and Rob were extremely close growing up, until that one night Rob ran away from home when he was 15. Alice was devastated by Rob’s leaving and could never figure out what made him just up and leave. To make matters worse Alice parents never spoke of Rob again, virtually acting as if he didn’t exist. Alice spent most of her life haunted by Rob’s leaving and wondering what really happened. Always feeling like she saw him at certain times in her life Alice just cant get past the nagging feeling that there had to be an explanation for his leaving. At Rob’s funeral she still finds no clarity and only knows he died of a drug overdose, Alice however feels there’s more to the story. Alice is tasked with cleaning out her parents old home that is set to be demolished and finds a series of letters her mother has kept hidden all from Rob, and addressed to random people (some of whom Alice has no idea who they are). Alice doesn’t understand why there’s no letter for her, but she is determined to figure it all out. Alice becomes more suspicious when her “Uncle” Jamie comes to the home and tries to remove boxes quickly so Alice cannot see them. Jamie was her father’s childhood friend whose parents died and he ended up living with Alice’s father and grandparents. Alice sets out on a mission to hand deliver the letters and see if these people can offer any clues as to what happened to Rob.

In the midst of looking for answers Alice also has to content with the fact that she has found out that her husband is having an affair that he doesn’t think she knows about. Alice doesn’t really love her husband, he was just a safe bet after the love of her life moved away after college. Her husband has never been to happy with Alice’s obsession with her brother, so she keeps her feelings from him until the moment she has to go to New Orleans to really dig into what happened to Rob. In the end Alice finds out the truth can be shocking and hurtful, but will bring closure.
My only issue with the book is I felt Alice’s husband cheating was a main point of the story, but there was no closure. The book never closes that chapter. We know she called her childhood friend and asked him to draw up divorce papers but I would’ve like to see a little more details with what happened when she served her husband and where she ended up. The cheating was such a big part of the storyline, the way it ended was flat. I also didn’t understand the point of bringing up the fact that Alice’s daughter was a lesbian. It added no depth to the story and felt like it was just being put in the story so it showed inclusivity. I think if you’re going to use sexuality then explore a little more what that means for the character. Maybe how their relationship grew due to her daughters coming out. It just seemed like it was being said just to say it, but why did we need to know her sexuality if it added nothing to the story. Authors don’t do that with heterosexual characters so why do it with gay characters. Her sexuality never would’ve been mentioned it she was straight. All in all this was a good book. I figured out what secret her brother had pretty quickly into the book, but I will say reading Alice find out what heartbreaking because I feel the way her character is written, she would’ve done more to bring those secrets to life had she knew.

Thank you SourceBooks and Netgalley for this ARC

This was really interesting and thought-provoking. I liked the manner of how the story was told. I enjoyed seeing through his eyes, even though we'd never met him.

I think it's a good look into grief and how people cope.

Unfortunately, this book didn’t hit me the way I wanted it to, though plotwise there was a lot of potential.

The story starts after Rob’s suicide; Alice finds a box of letters written from her brother to various people in his life — a life she didn’t know that much about because he ran away when he was fifteen. Finally gathering up the courage to address what happened to her brother in the years they were apart, Alice delivers the letters herself and embarks on a journey to find the answers.

The plot had a lot there, but honestly I was a little confused by the chronology of things. There were things that were happening in the current timeline, but also long passages about previous occurrences with Alice and with Robinson, and it was kind of difficult to follow.

The characters were also quite interesting, but I was more connected to the present timeline with Alice and Walker and their children than with Robinson and what happened to him. Because the story started after his suicide and was so strongly in Alice’s perspective, it was honestly hard to care about Robinson and connect with him.

One thing that I really enjoyed was Alice’s character development in the present, and how even though she was given a little romance sub-plot, that did not put a halt to the mystery and her personal growth, which she kept trying to find.

The writing style was honestly a little slow for me. The first half felt like nothing was happening, and the last part felt like things were revealed very quickly, but not in a satisfying way where our main character found things out slowly and pieced them together herself, but rather because the information was handed to her in the form of a letter or just by someone telling it to her.

Ultimately, this book was just kind of “stuffy” to me. It was hard to get through because the characters were distant and the plot was slow. In more abstract terms, I appreciate the main character’s development and I appreciate the plot arc, but in execution it was hard to get through the novel.