I chose this book because it sounded an amusing title - I was expecting some sort of lighthearted farce. Instead I got a really serious and thought-provoking book dealing with spousal abuse and pulling no punches, but presented in an easy to read and interesting story.

Sally has suffered abuse from her husband for years, from which she has carefully shielded her children. However, he pushes once too often and suddenly she has a body to deal with. And she's not the only one. The author herself admits it was 'laughably implausible' that four women in one neighbourhood, even during lockdown, should kill their husbands in the same week, albeit in self defence. However, by using humour she allows the reader to engage with a scenario that just would not work in the 'real world'.

I could not put down the book, reeling with horror and sadness at how abusive these men were, and then chuckling as the women find each other and start to plan to get rid of the bodies and explain their husband's disappearances. The support from Sally's children, and lack of support from other family members was a great backdrop to their efforts. Edwina's role was interesting, and I was not surprised by her final reveal, but she provided a grounding to the story.

Overall its a great read; I was desperate to find out if the women would manage to 'get away' with the murders and concealment and what they would do if they were successful. Its a brave topic to write as fiction and the author should be commended for bringing the topic of abuse to the forefront and via a very readable story, she has brought it to many readers who might not otherwise have engaged with a book with this subject matter.

I thoroughly enjoyed this well-written and fascinating book. If only it were only fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin General UK for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The beginning of this book really drew me in. As much as I am not a fan of a narrative writing style I actually was enjoying this until we start to get into the storyline of the other ladies. I hate first person to third person point of view and wish this had all been in third person. I felt like even just putting the character POV in the chapter title would have been helpful. The more I read the more confusing and the clunky the story became as I wasn't always sure whose POV it was and we don't build the other characters like the main character.

For me it just fell flat which is disappointing as I thought this would be like the tv why women kill but it was not as interesting.

An amusing look at the very serious topic of domestic violence. Four women going through lockdown with abusive spouses all fight back and accidentally kill their husbands. What follows is the story of trying to rid their lives of these men and live on.
I loved the characters in this story, especially Leila, so strong and fiery.
The ending had me cheering!

Although I can appreciate the importance of the storylines in this book I found them difficult to read and therefore was unable to read all of the book in its entirety. I believe this book should have come with content warnings when listed on Netgalley.

The book had an interesting premise and a very important story to tell, it highlighted a very emotional and powerful topic and showed how the lockdown exasperated this. I didn't really enjoy the lockdown aspect of what I read but was able to overlook it for the sake of the narrative. I enjoyed the elements of influence from Shirley Valentine on Sally's character, this brought a lighthearted aspect to her situation and it was nice to read those moments between Sally and Petunia and Rosemary.

Overall, I feel that this book has a lot of potential however I was not able to finish it due to it's content and the slow pace which enforced the topic even more.

Sally kills her husband, however she isn’t that upset as he is not a nice man. Soon she finds herself leading a group of women in similar situations and they find themselves having to bury four husbands. Will they succeed?

I liked the premise of this novel and thought it would be something I would be intrigued by. The subject matter, around domestic abuse, is emotive and the author highlights this issue well. This book is penned as dark humour, however I found this all fell a bit flat and I didn’t fully connect with the writing style or the characters. I found the story quite slow and long overall. Although I didn’t fully connect with this story at this time, I definitely appreciate the authors reasons for writing this story. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this copy in return for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I just flew through the pages, couldn’t put it down. I look forward to reading more from this author @AlexiaCasale
It’s poignant, sad and darkly funny.
The story is about four women who accidentally murder their violent husbands and the attempts they go to to cover up their crimes. This all takes place during Covid 19 lockdown.
A story about friendship, hope and second chances. It’s hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time as it highlights the struggles of domestic abuse.
The female characters are brilliant. I particularly liked Edwina, the nosy neighbour and her snooping. The ending with the tree is definitely a laugh out loud moment with Edwina’s character. Just brilliant. I also liked the relationship that develops between Sally and Edwina.
The book is well written and I liked the story being told through the multiple POV’s from the different women. It made me laugh and made me cry.
Overall, a fun fast paced enjoyable book. Highly recommend. It’s definitely worth the read.
With thanks to #NetGallery @VikingBooksUK #PenguinUKBooks for an arc of #TheBestWaytoBuryYourHusband in exchange for a honest review.
Book publishes 14 March 2024.

This one didn’t quite hit the spot for me - whilst I appreciated the friendship and the characters, the plot just seemed too farfetched for me.
3 stars.

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book ahead of its release.

This was way darker than I was expecting! I don't know why I went into this expecting it to be a light-hearted, funny book and it is definitely not that at all. There is humour, of course, but it is very dark and deals with domestic abuse, so please be aware. I did overall enjoy this book, but I would have liked a deeper exploration of each of the characters and their friendship as I felt this was lacking strength. I did also guess the twists and the ending, so that is a little disappointing too.

The best way to bury your husband focuses around a group women who have experienced domestic abuse at the hands of their partners, as well as the sobering reality that during lockdown, domestic violence reached an all time high.

This book explores the events leading up to their husbands deaths, including childhood trauma from abusive parents, then follows onto the female friendships that are formed from this.

I did enjoy this book - however I think I would have liked a bit more from the characters and a bit more development on the friendships. I found I had guessed the ending about 60% of the way through the book and I also would have maybe liked there to be an epilogue to help conclude the story of these women and what they had achieved with their freedom. However, there were definitely some page turning moments that had me gripping the end of my seat - I found myself wanting them to get away with it!

On average, 1 in 4 women will experience domestic abuse in her lifetime, and 2 women a week are killed by a current or former intimate partner in the UK where this book is set. In a note addressed to the reader, Alexia Casale explains that she wrote The Best Way to Bury Your Husband as “…a way to confront a truth that otherwise seems too much to bear”. This black comedy takes place during the Covid Lockdown, a period which saw the femicide rate double in England.

Trapped in their homes with their abusive husbands, four women take desperate measures to defend themselves, and their children, and in doing so are faced with a dilemma. Sally finds a temporary solution using a tarp, kitty litter and gaffer tape, while trying to avoid the prying of her watchful neighbour. Samira tells curious family members her CoVid stricken husband is self- isolating in the garage. Ruth lights a bonfire in her backyard, while Jane makes a desperate phone call to an old friend. Fate brings these women together and The Lockdown Ladies Burial Club is born.

The premise of the story may be (deliberately) absurd but the characters and their emotions as they suffer at the hands of their partners feel all too genuine. The women all effortlessly evoke sympathy and compassion, each are representative of real life circumstances, and Casale provides thoughtful insight into the different dynamics present in relationships marred by domestic violence. Sally, as the primary narrator, and club instigator, is an appealing lead, but I really liked the way in which each woman made a distinct contribution to the story.

There’s some suspense in the novel as the women struggle to keep their secrets, with each coming fairly close to being discovered at different times. I was definitely on their side, and I actually thought their plans to explain their husband’s absence and dispose of their bodies was pretty clever, even if far fetched. While there are not any high stake twists in the novel, there are some surprises including a rather delightful, if somewhat macabre, revelation at the end.

Casale achieves her aim “to make people laugh - and then think”. Written with humour and compassion, The Best Way to Bury Your Husband is an entertaining and thought-provoking novel.

The Best Way to Bury Your Husband by Alexia Casale. This is a very funny book about a very unfunny subject. 4 women murder their dickhead husbands and come together to make sure none of them get caught for it. I think this was wonderfully written and more people should write funny books on not funny subject. Obviously it can be quite heavy going but Alexia has highlighted domestic abuse in such a positive light. I loved all 4 of the women and my take away from this is don’t ignore it.

Loved this one. The pacing is brisk, with twists and turns that will keep readers guessing until the very end. Yet amidst the suspense, and laughs the author never loses sight of the emotional core of the story, crafting moments of genuine tenderness and vulnerability that resonate long after the final page is turned. A great all rounder.

Written by an expert in domestic violence, this was a humorous story about four women who managed to kill their husbands in self defence all in the same week. The women’s stories are all a bit different, but ultimately they need to get rid of their husband’s bodies!.
Team leader and the first to have this problem Sally, has to come up with ideas and they all discuss it. Ruth, Samira and Janey are all great characters in themselves! I think my favourite would have to be Edwina, the very stern neighbour, who could freeze you with a look!! A stippler for the lock down rules, her curtains constantly twitched as she policed the nearest houses!! She certainly made me laugh, but the situation the ladies found themselves in, brought out lots of funny moments and very funny comments!!
This is a must read!!
Many thanks to Penguin Uk, for the opportunity to read this arc copy via Netgalley. My opinion is my own.

A hard hitting but heartbreaking read side to side with some comedy moments.
The story as a whole as mentioned above is traumatic and needs trigger warnings, unfortunately in real life, victims can’t escape, but a fantastic story with character development and a feeling deeply for their plight. I just reviewed The Best Way to Bury Your Husband by Alexia Casale. #BuryYourHusband #NetGalley

An unusual but enjoyable read about friendship, revenge and problem solving. Funny, heartbreaking and thoughtful, a group of women support each other after finding each other after dealing the ultimate revenge on their violent husbands.

I really enjoyed this dark comedy about 4 very different women who inexplicably come together during COVID times to work out how to bury their abusive husbands after they are driven to the brink. Although it was written in a funny style, there was a very serious message behind the book. There were a couple of little twists in the story which I did guess quite early on, but this did not spoil my enjoyment of the book.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Four women in abusive relationships bond over the plan to bury their dead husbands while in lockdown. Sally and the gang are a great bunch of ladies who bring light to what is a very dark subject. The storyline is far fetched, but only so as it is women (as the author points out!) But it is entertaining and the characterisation is on point. You feel for their plight and it is heart warming. I felt it got a little slow in the middle, but I'm glad I stuck out to the end.

3.5 stars,

This read can be very triggering in the beginning, it is SO relatable in so many ways especially if you've grown up with an abusive parent, it's insane. I would check trigger warnings before reading this one 100%, I did enjoy this though and I enjoyed how the main characters became better versions of themselves throughout due to no longer being held down by people that were no good for them :)

I really enjoyed reading this book. Despite it being quite dark it had a numerous side ro it aswell and it did identify some real issues!
The friendship of the wives and their friendships keep you going throughout this story!

Fabulous from beginning to very end!!

Sally didn't mean to kill her husband but she did. To her amazement, she's not the only one with the problem of how to get rid of a body during lockdown, and a group will definitely come up with more options that a single person!

I have to say that the title of this one was the first thing to draw me in but the writing kept me there. What a read! So much going on and, although there are lots of giggles along the way it raises awareness of some serious issues and the author's words at the end are very readable. Just as I thought it was all done and dusted, along came something else which made my jaw drop! A terrific book about life during lockdown and one which will keep you glued to the pages until the very last page and also give much food for thought.. Five stars, no doubt about it - and a novel I'm very happy to recommend.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.