Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

Funeral Girl was a clever and touching story which follows Georgia as she learns to deal with her grief following the loss of her grandmother, and her strange connection to ghosts. This book handled multiple different topics like grief and anxiety quite well! It all felt very authentic and I feel like a lot of people will connect with Georgia. Her character was very well done and I really loved getting to see her character growth throughout the story. Something I appreciated was how different types of grief were discussed and how it was shown that everyone copes differently. Finally, I really liked how the ace-rep was incorporated into the story!

This review will be published on The Wellesley News in the next few weeks! I will come back and add the link to the review on NetGalley once it's up.
Content warning: discussions of death, particularly anxiety about death.
I was a teenager when I first really thought about the fact that I am going to die someday. I know that’s a little late to have that realization, but I had been fortunate enough to not have any deaths in my family, which is usually what sparks this awareness for kids.
My grandparents are all still alive, actually, but the concept of death caught up to me anyway. I’d lie awake at night petrified by the thought of never waking up, the idea that I and everyone around me would just be gone. It only got worse during the pandemic, escalating to full panic attacks whenever I pondered the idea.
So it’s safe to say that the whole concept of Emma K. Ohland’s “Funeral Girl” — an asexual girl who speaks to ghosts and learns to cope with the inevitability of death — really spoke to me.
16-year-old Georgia Richter has grown up in the Richter family funeral home with her parents and twin brother. She is surrounded by death pretty much every day, and it gives her a great deal of anxiety to consider that one day, she and everyone she knows will have their turn on the embalming table.
Since she was young, she has had the ability to summon and talk to ghosts, as well as to send them off into the ether. (And no, that does not ease her anxiety whatsoever, because where do they go?) So one day, when her classmate unexpectedly dies, she does what she always does and summons his ghost so he can have one last word. Except he wants to stay around for a bit, so she lets him.
I don’t have many panic attacks about death right now, but those thoughts never totally went away, so reading this book was intensely relatable. I felt at times that Ohland had somehow accessed all of my thoughts and spit them out onto paper. “Funeral Girl” is the kind of book that makes me feel like it was written specifically for an audience of me — even though that is obviously not the case.
Georgia’s friendship with Milo (the ghost) is heartwarming and heartbreaking. Milo absolutely did not deserve to die, and I cried my way through the process that it takes for Georgia and Milo to accept his death. (Seriously, I think that I was just full-on sobbing while reading the entire last quarter of this book.)
What really got me was that Georgia’s asexuality actually contributed to her worries, which just really felt like a personal attack. Life is scary, and having That Person to do it with you is a major source of comfort for many people. But if you don’t desire that type of companionship, then what are you supposed to do? Terrifying to think about, right?
One of my favorite things about this novel is that Ohland allows Georgia to be the messy teenager we all once were. The main scary thing that occupies your mind, whether that’s friend drama, an impending exam or massive existential dread, is incredibly consuming when you’re young. This can cause you to make some pretty poor decisions, and Georgia makes a lot of those. Her relationships with her friends, her family and even total strangers are in flux, but what I love is that all those around Georgia are incredibly supportive and forgiving when she does open up to them.
Above all, I think “Funeral Girl” is a story about learning to cope. This is a very real worry for a lot of us, and what Georgia learns (spoiler alert, I guess) is that there’s not one way to manage your fears. That’s a very powerful message that I definitely needed to hear, and I think a lot of teens and young adults do too. I have a feeling this book is going to be really important for a lot of kids.
“Funeral Girl” comes out on Sep. 6, 2022. I received an early copy from the publisher, Carolrhoda Lab (an imprint of Lerner Books), in exchange for an honest review. Also, not to brag, but I will be meeting Emma at a book talk in June for an anthology in which she is a contributor, and I think that’s pretty cool.

“Do you think it’s the unknown about death that scares people so much, or is it that we all secretly know and we’re too scared to admit it?”

First, thank you to Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this book! Parts of it were hard to read, especially the description of the funeral home and funerals. My mom died in 2018 and it just brought me right back there. But from my experience, I found the descriptions to be really accurate.

At times, Georgia of reminded me of Evan from Dear Evan Hansen. They both had this huge secret they felt they couldn't tell anyone about and had to lie to people because of it.

I enjoyed seeing Georgia's growth and her relationship with Milo. While her reasons for waking him up may have been a little selfish, she truly gets to know Milo for Milo. Not the perfect picture of him everyone wants. In the end, she really starts to understand herself, Milo, her family, and how everyone truly grieves differently.

All in all a solid debut novel and I can't wait to read more from Ohland in the future!

Georgia is the Funeral Girl.

Still grieving the loss of her grandmother, shell-shocked by rumors that have plagued her since middle school, and terrified of death that surrounds her at her family's funeral home, what Georgia really wants is to help the dead with a final wish.

But her personal mission gets complicated by Milo - not exactly a friend but in need nonetheless. Oh...and he's dead.

Part ghost story, part teen bildungsroman; part modern update of Our Town, part friendlier Sixth Sense, this book gently taps into our fears of death and the unknown and urges the reader to continue moving on.

"We held funerals at Richter and built these beautiful graves and carved everlasting words to remember. But eventually, it would all be forgotten. We all inevitably forget."

In so many ways, this book reminds me of Maggie Steifvater's Raven Boys - genre-defying YA with the main character so close to the line between worlds, between life and death.

That's probably the best way to describe Georgia - treading the line between here and the hereafter.

You know, grief is a difficult thing to process. We all grieve differently. Some of us read; some of us write. Whatever your process is, author Emma K. Ohland encourages you to find your way through.

Maybe this book will help.

"Well, you have to decide how you feel, and you have to decide what you're going to do with how you feel. You get to decide what you do and whether or not it's the right thing for you. No one else can." (Wise words, Milo.)

I am conflicted about this review, while the writing wasn’t astounding I can see it serving a great purpose of helping teenage kids deal with death.

This felt like it was written for a young teen or “tween” even, so it didn’t hold my attention well. The author also REALLY pushed the LGBT content in a forced way. It would have been better to set up the gender identity and keep it moving, but she threw in the “it’s they, okay?!” trope which feels overplayed and forced.

3 out of 5 stars as I wouldn’t recommend beyond a young teen, especially a grieving one.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

Georgia Richter and her twin brother have always been surrounded by death. Growing up in a funeral home, they know all the ins and outs of the business of death. The emotions of it, however, are complex. When a classmate dies unexpectedly, Georgia uses her gift, the power to awaken ghosts, to ask them their final wish, on him. Milo has a big wish, one that Georgia isn't sure she can help with. It starts her on a journey of examining how she feels about death and grief.

All in all, I think this book deals with the subject of death and grief well. Georgia has a lot of anxiety and it comes through in many ways, all of them realistic. Yes, this is a book about ghosts, but it's more about the fact that death and trauma are haunting Georgia and she has to learn to cope with her fears and anxiety.

Ohland's debut novel, Funeral Girl, follows a story of anxiety and death and grief and ghosts. naturally, it is right up my alley. the protagonist, Georgia, is a high school girl who was born and raised in her family's funeral home. while her twin brother Peter and her parents seem to see no issues with this, Georgia struggles with death. like, a lot. most recently, she has to come to terms with a classmate's death. she didn't know him very well, at least before he died.

oh, right. Georgia can touch the dead and awaken their spirits. which is exactly what happens with Milo, the boy who used to sit behind her in English.

full disclosure: I cried through basically the second half of the book, so I had to decipher the ending through blurry vision. reading this, I felt incredibly seen and loved through a character who suffers from the same "death anxiety" I have had since I was a child. (I remember waking up my parents in the middle of the night in elementary school, clattering through the medicine cabinet, looking for Tums to soothe my anxious stomachaches. what happens after we die? why do we die? can I maybe... not do that instead??)

but death anxiety is not Georgia's only conflict. she is shy, "weird", bad at comforting people - sometimes not a very good friend. I was really caught up in the character development through this novel (I will say time and time again characters over plot every time) and Georgia's growth was particularly alluring. no one is a good person at age 15... but no one is a bad person, either, and we see her navigating a lot of tricky territory that comes with growing up.

I have some critiques, because how can you not - first, there was some great betrayal that kept being referenced, but it wasn't revealed until around 2/3rds of the way through. I guess that's a good spot for it in theory, but I was starting to get frustrated every time it was brought up but still left unexplained. in any case, the reveal came just in time to save me from these frustrations, but it was pushing it. second, I loved Georgia's best friend Amy. I mean, LOVED them. to the point where I was kind of like, why aren't they the protagonist? they're fun. they're witty. they're fashionable. they are remarkably good at setting boundaries for a sophomore in high school! obviously, they couldn't be the protagonist. and their lack of screen time actually did play a huge role in the plot. but still! I missed them!

other than that, I really enjoyed this book. I thought there were a lot of artful choices on what to reveal and what not to reveal - for example, (mild spoiler ahead) (view spoiler). and obviously I thought the characters were great - not just Georgia and Amy, but Peter and Eileen and the parents, too. everyone has their own way of grieving and coping, and this cast showcases just a few of the ways people might compartmentalize or panic or graciously accept death and move on.

if you were a fan of Cemetery Boys (and in my opinion, you should be), this is a great next read. themes of death and grief, ghosts that sleep on your bedroom floor, queer teens... but be warned that this book is less about a grand adventure and more a quiet, introspective read about how we can't control our deaths. we can barely control our lives!

if you were not a fan of Dear Evan Hansen, because the main character is kind of a dick, but you really wanted to be - here is your alternative! Georgia interacts with Milo's parents under the guise of being his friend, but handles the situation loads better than Evan did.

I did teeter towards a 4-star review based on my critiques above, but in my heart I knew that truly, I really, really enjoyed it. Funeral Girl will sit with me for a long time. I especially recommend it if you have recently lost someone you loved or even just someone you sat next to in school, because what are you supposed to do with the loss you feel? or if you, too, struggle with death anxiety. Georgia's journey became sort of a vicarious treatment for myself.

Georgia lives in a funeral home and has a special gift for connecting with those deceased. I liked this! This is a book I wish I had growing up and will definitely recommend to teens.

Thank you Netgalley for the advance reader copy of Funeral Girl by Emma K. Ohland in exchange for an honest review.

CW for this review: death

I really enjoyed this book! I think it was a really honest novel that felt very realistic. I really liked the fact that Georgia didn't actually know Milo very well, and that she wasn't actually that great of a friend, and that she admitted that she could have very real struggles of her own and at the same time not be treating people she loved rightly. I think this is a great book for teens, but also for people of all ages who don't know what to think about the realities of death. So many teenagers have to deal with death, even death of a classmate, unfortunately, and I think a book like this could be really helpful in giving grieving teens a way to process their own feelings and situations. The ace rep was good too; not a central element of the story, but woven in well-enough that it didn't feel forced but felt like a real part of Georgia's life.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC. I give this 3.5 stars, maybe could push to 4 if I was about 25 years younger. The premise was badass. A young girl, raised in a funeral home, who can speak to the dead! My head reeled with possibilities! Finishing their last wishes, solving crimes, falling in love with a ghost boy, etc. The author though, decided to go another, less showy, more philosophical route. This understated book on grief, trauma, and death's final mystery reminds me of TJ Klune's work, and that's not a bad thing, but it wasn't what I expected.

It read for middle grades rather than YA. I felt the relationships didn't ring true enough, and I also didn't feel they were interesting enough to care about, specifically the bullying/being friends again arch. I was much more interested in the main character's journey to finding their voice and making piece with life's finality. I did enjoy the closure at the end.

A surprisingly touching story about death, loss, and friendship told through the eyes of a teenager named Georgia whose parents own a funeral home. After the death of her grandmother, Georgia finds that she can speak with the ghosts of the departed by touching them. Then, a student in her year passes and Georgia finds herself unable to stop thinking about his life and death. The passages on the anxiety and turmoil that one can experience after loss I found on point and relatable. Georgia's own musings about her place in the world and her questions and misgivings about life and death are all ones that everyone will experience at some point in their lives, and I felt the handling of these topics was done well, despite an occasionally wandering plot. Generally, this book was easy to read and would consider recommending it to a youth as an ice breaker to encourage an open discussion about life and death.

Funeral Girl is the story of Georgia, a 16-year-old girl dealing with immense anxiety about death--which isn't helped by the fact that she lives in a funeral home and can speak to ghosts.
I read this exactly when I needed it. Like Georgia, I have a constant fear of dying, and her thoughts sometimes reflected my journal entries so much that I had to close the book. I loved how caring and strong she was as a character, and also that Ohland didn't shy away from the hurt her anxiety causes both herself and those close to her. Speaking of which, I loved both Amy and Milo as side characters, though I wish Georgia's friend group had been fleshed out a little more.
Huge thanks to Ohland for leaving content warnings at the beginning as well -- this was much heavier than I expected. I cried while reading, which hasn't happened in years, so Funeral Girl gets huge bonus points for that. Overall a very strong debut that tackles difficult themes but leaves a heartwarming and positive message for its readers.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Now imagine your parents run a funeral home. But you are absolutely afraid of death. Well, that’s what Georgia has to deal with. Not only does she have to deal with her anxiety over death, she also has to deal with her ability to summon ghosts. One touch and she can summon the ghost of the deceased. Another touch and they are gone. Now we are on a journey about grief, death, and friendship.

What I enjoyed:
- Georgia has great character growth. I really liked her character and thought she was relatable. Death is absolutely a scary thing, and I can understand that fear.
- Grief, and death was portrayed in such an excellent way. I felt it was very realistic and truthful.
- Her friendship with a ghost! I like how she really learned a lot from him.
- Even though the book spoke on very serious topics, it was done in an incredible way. Very appropriate.

This was a great YA book to read. I think it is a perfect read for spooky season! I found it to be a smartly written read and I enjoyed it greatly. 4 stars out of 5!

Thank you Netgalley for the advance reader copy of Funeral Girl by Emma K. Ohland in exchange for an honest review. At the beginning of this book there is a statement warning readers that this book is submerged in the topic of death and if that isn't for you to stop reading. I was surprised at the honesty and dealing with the recent death of my mom, I took a moment to consider if I should read it. I went forward and read it and am so glad I did. This book was so beautifully written and exactly what I needed to read. I've never been afraid of death like Georgia, and while I have had people I cared about die, I never lived with it like she does. It's been really hard to grieve though and this book really helped. Death can be so painful for the living, but Georgia's story and everything she went through gave me hope I can make it to finding happy again. Thank you Emma K. Ohland for this book and your amazing timing.

This wasn't for me. I apparently didn't read the blurb closely enough because I must have requested the ARC thinking its was about a girl with the supernatural ability to speak to ghosts who is tasked with solving the death of a classmate. No, that's not this book.

I received this ARC through NetGalley after looking into things that seemed up my alley. If the universe would have it their way, I would be a fifth generation Mortician, a job that I can't say that I would hate as I have always been fascinated by death. Reading this book opened my eyes into realizing that there are some things about it that I possibly would in fact... hate about it (in a good way).

Georgia is the daughter in a funeral home owning/inheriting family. Simultaneously, she often deals with the grief and trauma that a situation like this can cause in someone who is younger and has to be forced into the business head on. After a classmate of hers dies in an accident, Georgia has to navigate that grief and trauma along with the constant anxieties she deals with, broken and struggling friendships and family life as well as being an asexual teen. Oh, did I mention she has this gift where she can communicate with the dead?

For a debut novel, I found this book to be interesting in the sense that there are themes that many people may tread lightly on. Death, trauma, mental health, sexuality, gender roles, religion... there's a LOT going on in here, and I oftentimes felt that there was some rushing through some things, which isn't particularly bad given there is a lot going on with Georgia and what she tries to navigate throughout the book.

Overall, I was impressed with how the grieving process was written. Everyone grieves differently. Not a single person will grieve the same. Some people will cry. Some people will scream. For some people, the hole a loved one leaves lasts a lifetime. You see Georgia's grief and navigation of that in this book and realize that people truly do heal differently (no matter what they are experiencing, be it the death of someone close or unclose or a fight with a friend). No character in this book is "hatable." There is no actual villain. There is no bad person. There doesn't need to be. Just the understanding that grief exists and that it is completely okay to grieve.

I definitely give the book 4/5 stars - if not for understanding and touching on such a sensitive subject, then to at least have a friend like Amy who is just the best, non-binary bees knees.

Thank you, Lerner Publishing Group, for allowing me to read Funeral Girl early!

I'm not quite fond of the cover as I expected something totally different from both the synopsis and title, but the saying "don't a judge by its cover" applies here quite well. The novel was a truly beautiful and emotional one, of which Ohland should be very proud.

I'm no stranger to grief, death, or dying, and so I looked forward to reading this Funeral Girl, aimed at YA audiences. I appreciate that it didn't approach the subject with kid gloves - how could it, with the main protagonist being part of a family who runs a funeral home? Ohland does a great job at tackling a heavy subject while telling a story of a young teenager's resilience during such a challenging time in her life.

This book had a very interesting premise. It was, unfortunately, imho inartfully executed. While the ending was a little heartwarming, the novel felt, overall, rather flat and one dimensional. A solid effort for a debut, I would most likely pick up another book by this author.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with the ARC!

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, Lerner Publishing Group and by #NetGalley. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Extraordinary read with sensitive topics approached appropriately and with mindfulness.