This book has a really interesting idea behind it, but I've got to say, it didn't quite hit the mark for me. The story took a bit to grab my attention, and even when it did, the characters didn't pop off the page like I hoped they would. The pacing was kind of uneven throughout the book, which made it tough to get really excited about what was happening. It's a solid first book with a neat concept about a woman falling for a guy who's got a pretty bizarre job with Death, and there's a bit of romance that's not too much, but the whole thing could've used a bit more charm and spark.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book, this review is my objective opinion. I liked this book, and felt it was a solid debut novel with a great premise. Nora is running her family's casket store in small-town Alabama, which she took over after both parents died in a car accident about a year prior to the story. Garrett is a sophisticated and mysterious gentleman who appears in town and is cagey about his job. They meet and grow romantically attached fairly quickly. She's pretty insecure and neurotic, which is consistent throughout the book. His pattern is to keep distance in his relationships because of his job, but maybe Nora is worth changing that pattern for. We know from the description that he works for Death but just what is it that he does? As Nora and Garrett's relationship grows, questions arise and Nora struggles to reconcile what she suspects about Garrett's job with her feelings for him.

So while I liked the book, I didn't love it. I really liked the premise but the pacing felt off for me for almost the whole book, which made it hard for me to want to keep reading. It took awhile for me to get invested in the story and even then there was a flatness to the characters that I struggled with (Garrett especially). The writing seemed most peppy later in the book when Nora was interacting with Johnny (a childhood acquaintance who ran his family's funeral home business). To me, Johnny felt more engaging than Garrett on-page, which seemed a disservice to the character who was supposed to be the male main character. Also, it seemed like it took too long for the story to get into the actual details of Garrett's job. Considering his job was revealed in the book's description I genuinely didn't think it would take as long as it did (about 30-40% of the way in). His job was a central part of the romantic conflict but it didn't take as much of a front seat as I thought it would. Rather, most of the story development focuses on Nora's personal growth and her feelings about living back in her hometown and running her family's business (and on deciding her romantic future). And there's nothing wrong with that, but it's not what I thought I was getting going in.

There was some humorous phrasing that made me laugh out loud, frequently from the way Nora saw the world and her struggles. She had a wry voice at times that I really enjoyed, but I don't think we saw enough of it to make this book really shine. There were some twists that I didn't see coming and I won't spoil for you, which gave the story a much-needed edge. As I said, this was a good debut and I would read further work from this author, but I would love to see a bit better pacing and ability to keep the reader's interest in future books.

While the book's premise was intriguing, I must say that the execution fell short of my expectations. The idea of a woman who sells caskets at her family business falling in love with a man who works for death is unique and has the potential to be a captivating story. However, in my opinion, the book seemed to lack the charm and excitement that I was hoping for.

Nora, our main character, is very one-note and that note is: anxious. She's a chronic overthinker, and the pages read like a stream-of-consciousness panic attack. I don't find an issue with characters who struggle with anxiety, as someone who struggles with it myself, but it's so hard to follow the constant circles Nora talks herself into. This is especially relevant when she finds out what Garrett, our MMC, does for a living. She faults him constantly for working for death despite being in the business of death herself. This is an understandable issue; however, it didn't need to take up as much of the plot as it did.

This is much more of a cracked-door romance. It's not a closed door, but it's not overly indulgent. Sex is mentioned; there's some heavy petting, but nothing explicit.

I really struggled with the love triangle that was introduced way too late. After asking for space from Garrett for working for death, she now forms an attachment to her rival, whose family owns its own funeral home. It's hypocritical and tough to get on Nora's side for this one. It was fun to have Johnny and Nora's banter, which was better than her and Garrett's. Johnny and Nora had more chemistry and spark, but the heart wants what it wants.

I don't want to discount this book, though. Its handling of death and grief was touching, and I really enjoyed Nora's grandpa as a character. He offered sage advice and helped Nora navigate her difficult feelings.

I would give it a 2.5, adjusted to a 3 for Goodreads and NetGalley.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Netgalley, and Lauren Evans for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a cute, fun, lighthearted read! Quite fast paced and gets straight to the point. However, I found the chemistry between the two main characters slightly lacking.

The characters alone were quite fun. The story was fun, had its moments, and was overall enjoyable. I thought I would enjoy this book a little more than I did, however.

I want to personally thank NetGalley, as well as the author, publisher, and anyone else involved in providing copies, for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Reviews will also be submitted to Goodreads when possible.

What a quirky cute little read. Nora is a grieving young adult that took over her parent’s lives after they passed away and Garrett is in logistics. Nora lives in a small town and never seems to get out while Garrett travels for work all the time.
Just when it seems that maybe they’ve got it figured out death gets in the way again.
I wasn’t sure going into this how I was going to feel since the majority of this book deals with death, dying, processing that etc… but it actually surprised me how much I just enjoyed the cute little story and some how at the end of it, I ended up feeling a little better about death and the way I process it.
The story had it all! Laughs, warm fuzzy, eek, sorrow, love, spice, a few surprises, and some crying. I would recommend to anyone looking for a quirky meet cute read, especially around spooky season!

i liked this! it was cute and a little spooky, and the narrative voice is so fun and smart. i really enjoyed the banter, but seeing inside of Nora’s head was my favorite part. i always love a romance that centers around death; however, this book was just way too long and dense. there was so much that could have been cut to make it more readable, and i wouldn’t have missed out. i was also a little disappointed that it wasn’t spicy at all.

🖤 Small Town
💀 Insta•Love
🖤 Paranormal Romance
💀 Rom•Com
🖤 Cozy

This was a good small town read that’s fast paced and is an INSTA LOVE type book. I loved that this book was written in third person and the writing style that Lauren Evan’s has is wonderful! I enjoyed watching Nora our FMC and Garrett our MC grow and develop throughout this book. Garrett works for Death 🪦 and of course we all LOVE THAT 🥹…and our Nora works in the field of caskets ⚰️. These two were just too perfect right?!

The storyline was great as well as the backdrop and the feel that give the reader. I enjoyed this book and I enjoyed it much so that I read it in one day. I will surely be on the lookout for more by Lauren in the future. This book will have you feeling all the feels that a cozy paranormal romcom should give you, laughing, some tears, giggles and side eyes haha!!!

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhousepublishing for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.
It may be a bit niche but the morbid rom-com is one of my favorite genres. As such, I was excited to be able to read Casket Case. Although I found the characters to be a bit wooden, I liked the premise of Garrett working for Death. I do wish that particular element of the story had been explored more, but overall I found this to be a solid debut.

Quite honestly, it's boring. How a supposed romance involving a guy who works for Death can be boring I do not know, but it managed. Nora is a whiny, anxious mess, Garrett doesn't seem to have a personality at all. They spend a lot of time talking through Nora being that anxious mess. The concept was interesting, but it didn't really seem to contribute anything more than an excuse for Nora to be angsty.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC, provided in exchange for an honest review.

For me, Casket Case is as much about death itself as it is about Nora and Garrett: how we think about death before it happens and how we process it (and are changed by it) after it does. Nora and Garrett are both intertwined with death in a way most people aren't, and I thought their separate perspectives were really interesting.

Johnny serves as the perfect foil: a cue for Nora to consider whether she might actually want something different, both for her romantic life and her career. (Without spoilers -- Nora, you made the right choice in both areas!)

I enjoyed Nora and Garrett: as a couple, they seemed to just be a very gentle fit -- waves lapping on a beach, rather than fireworks. The book itself was poignant for me, especially the end ... inspiring the kind of reflections that leave a lump in your throat. Any book that brings tears to my eyes is certainly one I'd recommend.

I hoped to enjoy this book, but I did not. As someone who has several family members who are funeral directors, I thought it was be a nice read, but I struggled. The characters had no chemistry or defining characteristics. Nora's main personality trait seems to be being sad and watching TV. There is no build up or romantic tension between her and Garrett, they simply meet and pages later are in a very serious relationship. I wasn't invested in them or rooting for them to be together.

In fact, the few times the book came alive for me was when we're introduced to Johnny, Nora's 'enemy' and potential suitor. It made me wish the story had been about rival funeral directors who become lovers, but alas, that's not this book.

No, this book hinges on what I believe to be the non-existent concept of a free standing brick and mortar casket store in small town Alabama. I know you don't have to buy caskets directly from a funeral and maybe things work differently in the south, but I'm skeptical that a casket store is a thing. But even setting that aside, I was pretty disappointed with this one. It just wasn't for me.

Me gustó hasta que Nora se enteró en que trabajaba Garret y los sucesos posteriores me arruinaron la historia.


A pesar de que el romance se dió muy rápido, me gustó. Me pareció interesante lo de trabajar para la muerte y ver en que consistía sus deberes.


La muerte de sus papas y la manera en como terminó su relación anterior dejaron huella en Nora y ahora es muy insegura al punto de sabotear su relación con Garrett.

Garrett merece algo mejor.


Spoilers ⚠️ ⚠️
Odie lo de Nora y Johnny, al final sentí que solo regresó con Garret porque descubrío que Johnny la estaba utilizando.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for and honest review.

Casket Case is a captivating rom-com that takes readers on a charming journey as Nora navigates love and mystery in her small hometown. With clever twists and endearing characters, it's a delightful read that keeps you entertained until the final page.

I just loved this story. It's romcom, but also has sad bits that will pull at your heart.
After tragedy strikes Nora's family, she is left with her parents' casket business in the town of Rabbittown, AL. Uprooting her life, she takes on the business, while also trying to live life, grieve the death of her parents, and find love. She's surrounded by a very nosey community that reminds me of the show, Gilmore Girls. The town, and all its chaos is comical and adds to the story perfectly. Casket Case is definitely one of those odd reads that you'll remember. It's so different from the typical romcom. The main character owns a casket business, and the male main character works for death. It's got a cute romance, funny characters, and a splash of caskets and death. Thank you NetGalley for giving me a chance to read this book, and thank you to the author for writing such a beautiful debut story. This review will be posted to Goodreads.

I really enjoyed Casket Case! The premise is entirely unique, the characters feel true to life (as true to life as a corporate employee of Death cam feel!), and the small-town setting was picture perfect.

I can't believe this was Evans' debut! Really looking forward to reading whatever she writes next!

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the ARC.

The Casket Case had a promising premise. A seemingly normal guy who works for Death gets together with a girl who sells caskets sound like a match made in heaven. But I really struggled to finish this book, almost didn't get past 60% but decided to see how they ended.

A character I really like was her grandpa, he was supportive but at the same time talked to her like it is. The way grief is talked about was done very well since it's a prominent theme to the story. Also the sense of community that comes from living in a small town came through showing how everyone helps each other in times of need.

The relationship between Nora and Garret started right away it was very insta love, but I didn't feel like they had much chemistry. Their conversations felt awkward and stilted. Nora was still mourning her parents and the live she had so it made her question and overthink everything with Garret from the begging, almost waiting for something to go wrong. Even though Garret was hiding what he did for work he seemed to be putting more effort in making their relationship work.

Slight Spoilers Ahead!
There was a scene that made me very frustrated and was what almost made me put it down where Nora asked Garret for space. When they were talking about it later Nora said it was her prerogative to be pathetic because she spent that time were they were apart basically sulking and waiting for him to call. He responded that she was not pathetic and it was her who asked for time and that is what he did. Her response was "You caused this whole situation, Garret. Don't come at me with that shit." And that made me not like her much because make up your mind, he did what you asked and why is she also putting everything on him. For a character that kept reminding everyone that she was thirty, she acted a bit immature at times.

Last thing I want to mention is the love triangle should have not happened so late in the book. Specially with Johnny, a character we were told initially had never been that kind to her. It made no sense for her to suddenly find him attractive after he was nice to her for a couple of days. Overall this story had great potential but for me personally it fell a bit short with the storytelling.

Thank You to NetGalley, Random House Publishing - Ballantine for the opportunity to read this ARC and share my honest opinion.

The concept of this book was incredibly interesting. I have never read a book that explored the concept of death in this way before. Our FMC owns a casket store that she inherited from her parents after they died. She has been struggling with her purpose since they passed. She meets our MMC and falls in insta love. Their romance moves very quickly and they both fall fast. This leads to the biggest problem with this book. Our MMC has been lying about his job and when the FMC finds out she wants to take a break to figure out her feelings. They then take two more breaks before they breakup. They spend the second half of the book broken up. They also "talk" about this issue three separate times without ever coming to a conclusion about his job.
She then tried to date other people which feels like an entire section of the book that could have been skipped. She ultimately decided she is going to ignore his job and be with him anyway. The ending felt very rushed after several sections of the book where nothing happened. The pacing of the book really struggled due to the consistent breakups. I liked the idea of this book but in the end it felt a bit flat.

Between the stiff (no pun intended) dialogue and lack of chemistry between the main characters, I found myself wanting more from this book. I did enjoy the small-town setting, but unfortunately this one was just not for me.

3/5 overall book rating
1/5 spice
If you want Gilmore Girls meets The Dead Romantics, then this is for you. I was immediately intrigued by the description of this book. Nora returns home after her parents’ deaths to run their casket business, only to fall in love with a stranger who works for Death.
I wanted more development of their relationship to make everything they were going through to feel more substantial, but it was a cute and cozy read.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC and the opportunity to compete a review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing group for giving me the opportunity to read this arc.

Casket Case is about small town girlie Nora, who is running a casket business that was passed down to her after the unexpected loss of both of her parents. Nora falls for Garrett, the new hot mystery man in town who happens to work for Death. The story follows Nora and her personal journey and struggle with Garrett’s job and how death seems to follow her and surround her entire life.

This is a very unique plot for me and I think Lauren did a great job at giving us something eccentric with this small town romance. I will say as much as I enjoyed it, Nora really was getting on my nerves. She was very self-destructive when it came to her relationship with Garrett when the man was really trying his best! I think her character development was stunted, I would have liked to see more self-awareness sooner. Garrett was 10/10, we love to see a man who is showing up, and ugh the way he is so proud of what he does for a career (and why) really made me like him more.

I DID love the relationship that was highlighted between Nora and her grandpa, as someone who has a soft spot for grandparents, I really enjoyed this aspect of him being her best friend and confidant. The relationship they had till the last page really yanked at my heartstrings.

There were some moments that fell a little flat for me as far as the general pace of this book, I feel like there could have been a little more drama but when I got to the last 3 chapters my rating went from a 3.5 to a 4.0. I really was surprised with the twist at the end and how it hit me emotionally, a tear was shed.

I think for a debut novel, Lauren has a great recipe and I look forward to reading her work in the future.