"Casket Case" was a sweet and amusing story. Following her parents' unexpected deaths in a car accident, Nora returned to Rabbittown, Alabama, and took over the family business, Rabbittown Casket Company. That was not what she had planned for her life. She has basically been going through the motions. However, everything changes when a mysterious stranger (Garrett) appears in her store asking for directions and returns later asking about her. They quickly progress to a serious relationship, which is not without its tensions. Garrett works in logistics and has to travel a lot. He has been intentionally vague about what exactly he does, for good reason, as his employer is Death. Yes, Death is a corporation. Garrett's role is to be with a person when it is time to transition from life to death, to help answer questions and provide a bit of comfort. This role is of a very personal nature to Garrett, given his own childhood experience with the death of his brother. Nora, understandably, does not take it well when Garrett finally reveals the truth of his job. They might both be in the death business, but Nora does not find their work equivocal, and cannot come to terms with the fact that Garrett knows in advance that a person is going to die but does nothing to intervene.

This premise may make the book seem dismal or sad, but there is actually quite a bit of sweetness and humor in the story, especially as the author gets into the histories of the main characters and details the interactions between Nora and the other residents in Rabbittown, who have known her and her family for many years.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for this ARC. There were so many things that I really enjoyed in this book and some I didn’t.. For example, I really enjoy the premise of the story. It was so unique and had such potential to be Amazing. I loved the representation of death and grief in this book.. Both concepts were well developed and gave me peace and comfort vibes. I loved Norris relationship with her grandfather, and how Garrett was always there for her. I didn’t enjoy the aspect of Nora’s constant overthinking and self sabotage. I was hoping toward the end of the book she would’ve gained the self-confidence that she was lacking, but unfortunately, she did not.. I didn’t think the low triangle gave anything special toward the book and I would’ve loved if the ending would’ve had a little bit more depth. I still think it was a decent book. I’ll continue to read more from this author..

This book had such a unique storyline that sucked me right in. Nora lives in a small town called rabbitown and runs her family’s casket business. She meets a handsome guy and she immediately crushes on him. What she doesn’t know is that his occupation involved death, much like her job. It’s cute and funny but also makes you think about how we deal with grief. Nora’s overthinking did drive me nuts and I thought some parts were too fast paced or rushed like the ending, I found it to be an easy read and a great debut novel from this author.

This had the bones (no pun intended) of such a fan-freaking-tastic book. Unfortunately, I felt Nora was insufferable. Her sheepish and insecurity felt overdone and didn't resolve itself in a way that felt real. The pacing of the book had me close to putting it down but at 50% I GASPED and got so into it once the details of his job were revealed. Such an amazing storyline and idea. For the next 10% I was really into it and thought that the last 50% could truly redeem the slow start (but also the premature I love you after the most boring and lackluster chemistry???). The final chapters just felt bland to me. HOWEVERRRRR, that epilogue had me in TEARS. It was wonderful and beautiful and it pains me that the rest of the book didn't grab me like that final goodbye did. This truly had so many sparks but just fell short of making MAGIC for me. I believe in this author though and will be back for her next books. The unique idea and boldness of this story has me convinced Lauren Evans could put out the next big book that grabs BookTok by storm!

I really really really wanted to like this book. I honestly gave it my all because I loved the cover and the premise. However, the execution wasn’t the greatest.

I found the characters to be flat and the chemistry between the MMC and FMC lacking. Garrett asks Nora out right after meeting her, but I couldn’t even tell if he actually liked her. At first I thought he just wanted to get close to her, but then they actually fell in love.

I did enjoy that the novel showed us the MMC and FMC hanging out and falling in love…but it just lacked. I wanted to be in their heads more and the third-person POV really messed with that. It also happened super fast - like I Love You’s by the 30% mark.

I also found Nora to be kind of annoying. I have anxiety too, but it seemed like she was anxious about everything.

I wanted more scenes and info about how this whole Death job works. I found this to be the most interesting part of the synopsis.

I will say that this is a debut novel, so I think that is why this book comes across as a bit flat. I will be giving this author another shot in the future, because I can tell she has great story ideas.

*An ARC was received in exchange for an honest review.

I’m not a huge fan of third person narration but this story drew me in so quickly that I hardly noticed it. Death and living are both things we worry about but honestly it his book, even being a fictional story, has made me less scared of both of them. I loved it and I hope a lot of others will too.

The premise of this book is so intriguing, however that’s where my interest ended. I want to like this book so badly, the the character and relationship development between the FMC & the MMC was really lacking and moved too quickly. I did love the FMC’s relationship with her grandfather, that was lovely.

Interesting concept for a book, but it felt rushed. Really wanted to like it more than I did. I had a hard time connecting to the characters as they weren't given much depth. The ending also felt too abrupt and cheesy.

3.5 ⭐️

I enjoyed this book. The main characters and setting of the story were relatable. There are a few interesting twists throughout the story that kept me wanting more. The author did a good job of moving the timeline along which helped the pacing of the story.

Overall I would recommend this book to others who enjoy romance with quirky twists.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced digital version of this book.

“Casket Case” by Lauren Evans sounded like a book up my alley. A guy who works for Death … a woman working at a casket business … they fall in love. However, beyond the adorable cover and the premise, I found myself struggling with this book. A casket business differs from a funeral home - and while I know that, the business seemed much in the background. Maybe it’s because I recently read a book about a funeral home where a lot more time was spent on the funeral industry (particular caskets, certain rituals, prepping a body) but I found this one a bit feeling like the casket industry was there really in the background. This book has instalove (not my favorite trope) … and really quickly moving in to a relationship (see: instalove) and a “love triangle” that I didn’t really like as it felt like it came out of left field. Granted, I’ve watched a lot of “Supernatural” episodes - so I was expecting the main male character, Garrett, to be more a “representative” of Death - not an actual living human (so that took a few chapters to wrap my brain around). In some ways, I think the idea for this book was decent - but between the main female character’s overwhelming depression (maybe not stated in the book, but she came across as depressed) and the pacing (slow) I found myself losing interest in the two main characters. I so wanted to like this book more than I did, though I will say that the non sugar-coated way of death I found a bit refreshing. I’d give this author another try as I see the potential and really did like the idea of this book.

This was an interesting read.

Nora (FMC) and Garrett (MMC) both have jobs that deal with the dead. Nora works at her family’s casket store while Garret it’s death himself.

I loved Garrett so much he always shows up for Nora. But I disliked how Nora always felt like she wasn’t good enough. She was always self sabotaging. I did enjoy her relationship with her grandfather tho.

Overall it was still an enjoyable read.

Charming..Cozy Rom Com with a side of death! In Casket Case by Lauren Evans we meet Nora. Nora returns to her hometown to run her family’s Casket business and out of nowhere Mr Handsome and mysterious walks in but there’s just one catch he works for death itself!

I really enjoyed this cozy read. It was well written and charming I also think the story could have been more. Everytime I thought it was becoming predictable I quickly was proven otherwise. I was even in tears at the Ending I did not see that coming. I do hope that I have someone like Garrett when it’s my time.

I want to thank Random House Publishing House and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read #CasketCase before it published on September 10, 2024

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

As a debut - this novel has a very fun premise. Reminded me a little of The Dead Romantics by Ashley Posten as far as genre goes.

The spice is very nearly closed door, non-descriptive, only insinuated. I tend to appreciate an open-door medium to slow burn.

This book was sadly, unrealistic insta-love.. they fell in love after what felt like 4 days and very little conversation. The dialogue was forced and they asked very surface level questions. I would have preferred it to have been written more POV style vs “he said, then she said” to get into their heads more so that it felt more cohesive. I couldn’t figure out why they even liked each other.

The breakup was unexpected but I kind of enjoyed the mini love triangle - but sadly almost rooted for the new guy.. they had more chemistry and their night out on the town was far more fun and flirty than anything the main characters had ever done.

Overall I really did think it was cute but I did find myself skimming in portions. Her grandpa having the same job as Garrett felt super left field and I would have loved to have had that alluded to more often, earlier on to really tie it all together.

For a debut, honestly a great general idea - I hope she continues! It’s only going to get better from here. Her world and characters were lovable.

I loved the idea of this story, so I hate to admit that I almost DNF’d it. There is a time and place for flashbacks, but Garrett’s flashbacks seemed out of place and didn’t really flow well with the story. I also really wasn’t a fan of Nora’s monologuing about nearly every resident she brought up. It almost took away from the story. Almost.

What I did like about the story, however, was that it talks about grief and how grief can ruin a relationship when not properly dealt with. Seriously, I loved this couple (even if I didn’t vibe with Nora), and it made me so frustrated to read how Nora was basically sabotaging her relationship.
Of course, things work out, and I definitely cried with that epilogue.

There was a lot of dialogue without much being said in this book. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me an advanced readers copy of this book.

This book was somehow both messy and mundane. I can see what the intent was, a book with the same morbid whimsy of The Dead Romantics. There were multiple things that made this a flop.

1) Insta love - L words exchanged within weeks of knowing each other
2) Random love triangle
3) Miscommunication
4) Bland banter
5) Overly insecure, boarding on whiny FMC

But the most egregious crime was how boring the dialogue is. Especially the main leads. I felt like the awkward third wheel on a date with the two most boring people on earth. Was the chemistry in the same room as us. A lot of reviewers like to bring up phrase "show don't tell". Casket case was a prime example of that.

And to Nora, the main character, I'm gonna hold your hand while I say this. You're not too "quirky" or "messy" to be loved. You're just really boring. Watching Cheers in a dark room and drinking wine isn't a hobby.

A very interesting premise and cast of characters but the romance and pacing fell a bit flat. I think this could of used a few editing nits and reaslly been a gem. Interested in checking out this author in the future!

I took weeks to finish this read, which I rarely ever do, but i really struggled to connect with either character and very much so in their relationship. Their relationship felt rushed, but feelings quickly with little development together and just an overall missing piece of their dynamic together. I really love the creativity around the premise of this book, the way grief was discussed/handled and the small town setting. I wish I could have connected more to the characters and story, but I really struggled through this read.

Debut author Lauren Evans book about Nora & Garrett. Took me about 2 days to finish this. Fast read and really good. Can’t wait to read more by Lauren! Thanks to NetGalley &the publisher for the ARC!

I'll start bluntly...The subject of the story is "death" and, although it is truly handled in a touching and comforting way, positing the theory that we are not alone at the time of death and it isn't the shock to the system to the person who is passing, as we often suspect, but it can still be tough to read about. This story involves the love of family, the love of people we have lost, and how that impacts us now and moving forward, and the future with people we are just learning to love. It is the coming of age story of a young woman, Nora, who experiences a sudden and great loss, which then forces a domino effect of changes in her life, none of which she had anticipated. As a result, she needs to relearn to become comfortable in her new/old life, and relearn how to advocate for her new self. This book evoked so many different reactions as I read...It was fun and funny, at times. It was touching and emotional, at times, and then there were the times where it was downright hard to read, but in an incredibly touching and almost comforting way. Death and loss aren't fun topics, but this book helped me look at the entire situation in a different and more comforting manner. It is a female awakening and empowering story, and one that will resonate with so many women.