To be fair, I don't usually read Christian romances--or any romances. I chose Grandma Ruth Doesn't Go to Funerals because the title amused me--and the e-book was free for reviewing purposes.

The story is told by Grandma's granddaughter. I wouldn't bother to read another book with that character because I couldn't relate to her at all. Grandma was the one I liked! She was smart and gutsy. Her granddaughter was a wimp.

Part of the problem was the stress on Southern manners, another thing I can't relate to. I understand that the author, Sharon J. Mondragon, used them in her story because she enjoyed that environment.

I don't think I'll be reading any more by this author.

I enjoyed this book! It was the perfect light read recently when I was on vacation and wanted something fun and easy. There is a delightful mix of romance and mystery, and a fun, spunky old woman. Sarah started out her investigation just to placate Grandma Ruth—but it quickly became more than that! She was fun, too, and I found myself rooting for her to make the right decisions about her love life. It was also fun to read about life in the South, in a fairly traditional, though modern, community. This is a good read for anyone who loves a mixture of cozy mystery and clean romance.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author, and these are my honest thoughts about it.

Charlotte Harrington’s deceased husband’s last words were “I loved you more than Millie.” And after calling everything she thought she knew about her sweet marriage into question, Grandma Ruth and her granddaughter Sarah decide to get to the bottom of the Millie mystery.

It’s not hard to get an earful of gossip—I mean information—in their small Georgia town, but they have trouble digging to find out just who Millie is. That is, until Millie Holtgrew comes waltzing back to town with her son in tow claiming he’s part heir to the Harrington inheritance.

This book was such a page turner! I felt like I was a member of their little Southern town where secrets ran deep and everyone knew everyone. I was so engrossed in the story unfolding that I wasn’t even trying to figure it out.

This was just a fun read. If you enjoy Southern fiction with intergenerational characters, an element of mystery/suspense, and small town vibes, check this one out.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

I had so much fun reading this story! Following Sarah through all of the drama she has been pushed into the middle of.

Being her grandma Ruth's official stand-in is a lot of work, besides being busy with tax season and other things. Walking with her as she deals with relationship trauma and protective family members.

Life in this small southern town gets very intense when it appears that there's an epic scandal. It's up to Sarah to find the truth, while balancing the on the rules of propriety.

If I had the time, I would have read it cover to cover in one sitting, It kept calling me back, and I'm sad it's over. But I loved the ending!

I received an advance copy of the book from the author and chose to review it here, all thoughts are my own

I'm definitely in the minority here, but I just could not get into this book at all. It is the coziest of cozy mysteries with the sweetest family at the center, and it was just too saccharine for my taste. I am from a small southern town, but this did not feel like home to me. I also cannot wrap my head around the fact that Sarah Elizabeth almost had her head turned again by her lying, cheating ex-fiancé. There is nothing wrong with this book and if you are the target audience, I'm sure you'll love it, it just focused too much on the cozy and not enough on the mystery for my taste.

Thanks to NetGalley, Independent Publishers Group and Kregel Publications for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Grandma Ruth Doesn’t Go to Funerals by Sharon Mondragon is like a warm, buttery biscuit served with a side of Southern sass. This book delivers charm and personality.

From the get-go, we’re introduced to Mary Ruth McCready, a bedridden matriarch with a heart as big as the Georgia sky. She doesn’t just rule the roost—she runs the town, sitting up in her bed like a queen holding court, doling out wisdom, and stirring the pot like nobody’s business. There’s just something about her that you can’t help but love, even when she’s getting herself—along with her ever-patient granddaughter, Sarah Elizabeth—knee-deep in scandal, secrets, and just a little bit of trouble.

Mondragon’s writing style is as smooth as a glass of sweet tea, with a perfect balance of humor, heart, and a sprinkle of mystery. Every page is drenched in that Southern charm we all secretly crave—where gossip is as much a part of life as cornbread and collard greens. You’ll find yourself chuckling at the small-town drama, but also feeling like you’ve just sat down for a long chat with your own grandma. It’s that kind of relatable warmth that sticks with you.

I just adored the mix of characters. Grandma Ruth is, of course, the star of the show, but the whole cast—Sarah Elizabeth, Charlotte, P.B., and even the newcomers like Camilla “Millie” Holtgrew—come together in a way that makes you feel like you’ve known them all your life. The beauty of it all is that despite the turmoil, the heart of the story remains steady: Faith, family, and the kind of love that we all appreciate.

I'll be re-reading it for the giggles, the wisdom, and the pure Southern goodness of it all. If you’re looking for a book that’ll wrap you up like a warm quilt and leave you wishing you were part of Grandma Ruth’s world, this is your ticket to that perfect escape.

I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher and JustRead Publicity Tours, LLC. I am not required to write a positive review nor paid to do so. This is my honest and unbiased review. My thoughts and opinions expressed in this book review are my own. My review focuses on the writing and story’s content, ensuring transparency and reliability.

“…things are not always, or even often, as they seem.” - Father David

Wow! What a fun ride this book, Grandma Ruth Doesn’t Go to Funerals, is! This is my first novel by Sharon Mondragon, but her others just moved way up my TBR. Grandma Ruth is a bed-ridden Southern matriarch whom no one can deny and whose specialty is “meddling love”…though she would call it staying informed about her friends and loved ones. Grandma Ruth has a great understanding of the human psyche and uses that and her respected age to her advantage.

Her twenty-four year old granddaughter, Sarah, our narrator, finds herself Grandma Ruth’s personal *assistant* and co-conspirator, representing the older lady at social events, esp. funerals. Sarah is caught between showing her grandmother proper respect, obeying her grandmother, and proving she can make her own decisions, including who to date.

I had a perma-smile on my face and often broke out in laughter as I read. Grandma Ruth is such a force to be reckoned with. She refuses to allow her granddaughter to listen to gossip, but is quite willing to “gather information“ by listening to others’ opinions of facts. In this novel, Grandma Ruth wants most to comfort her newly widowed best friend and to set up Sarah with her best friend’s grandson. Cookies and brownies are a sleuth’s best friend, in Grandma Ruth’s case! Plied with enough, a visitor to Grandma Ruth’s room would soon be spilling the beans.

I have to insert… the novel takes a good look at eyes. As in eye crinkles, eye rolls, kind eyes, etc. Obviously Mondragon and Grandma Ruth are firm believers that “eyes are the windows to the soul.”

The novel zigs and zags along as it rollicks towards its rather surprising and totally satisfying conclusion. I personally hope Meredith somehow merits her own story.

Get your copy ASAP! You won’t be sorry!

I received a copy of the book from the author through JustRead via NetGalley. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.

Notable Quotables:

“Miss Charlotte had the right idea, I mused. It was better to know the truth, even if it hurt, than to eat your heart out over suspicions and possibilities.”

“God was indeed too big—too big for me ever to have imagined what he had in store for me.”

“It’s about time you learned that meddling upsets the innocent as well as the guilty.”

“It’s better to leave the past in the past and get on with life.”- Grandma Ruth

Grandma Ruth Doesn’t Go to Funerals is a debut novel written by Sharon Mondragón. This novel was so entertaining, and I look forward to reading more books by Sharon Mondragón. I was caught in from the very beginning. 

The character development was so fun. I had a great time envisioning all the different characters. Grandma Ruth is a hoot. She embodied a Southern Belle Matriarch that is held up at home. I loved getting to know Sarah more and help her solve the great mystery. 

The storyline and setting were perfection. I loved being in a little southern town, running around trying to solve the whole mystery and trying not to break up couples on the side. I totally envisioned Bluebell in the show Hart of Dixie. 

The relationship aspect was sweet and nothing over the top. It was fun watching the different Southern relationships and matchmaking. 

Sharon Mondragón did a great job incorporating faith throughout the book.

*I received a complimentary copy from the author and voluntarily chose to review it. All opinions are my own.

It was a small-town quick read filled with gossiping ladies and a mystery surrounding a recently deceased relative.

What a delightful and entertaining read! It gave me a cozy “Murder She Wrote” vibe, and I was all,for it. Grandma Ruth had me LOL’ing with how she managed her family (and the whole town), while lounging in her bed. All she needed was some homemade cookies & Tea with sugar. This book truly has it all—romance, mystery, humor, and just the right amount of scandal. It’s juicy and fun, yet clean and heartwarming. I didn't want it to end and can only hope there’s a sequel in the works. I’m definitely craving more of Grandma Ruth and Sarah! ALSO, the food & recipes! I will be making that casserole HaHa. If you're a fan of small-town gossip and lovable characters, this one’s for you.

Grandma Ruth Doesn’t Go to Funerals was a delight. I did not realize the author, Sharon Mondragon, also wrote The Unlikely Yarn of the Dragon Lady that was a gem. I love her multiage characters and the Southern customs in this book
Sarah Elizabeth has her hands full with attending funerals for her bedridden grandmother and doing her job as a CPA during tax season. Grandma Ruth’s best friend loses her husband, and his last words are about another woman! Sarah has to add solving a mystery of who this woman could be without gossiping with neighbors to make her grandma happy.
So far, this is going to be a top five of my reads this year. I loved the Southern characters and the humor they brought to the story. Interwoven was a light romance and the mystery was enjoyable. I am looking forward to sharing this book with others as gifts.
I received this book complimentary from Kregel Publishers through JustRead Publicity, but all opinions are my own.

This was a fun, quick read with strong quirky characters. Grandma Ruth is a hoot, sending Sarah around to do her bidding when she is unable to. Sarah attends funerals for Grandma Ruth which is how she ends up in the middle of snooping and meddling to find out what P.B. Harringtons' final words to his wife really meant. Grandma Ruth also set Sarah up with "rules" for dating, for funerals, for life. It is clear that Grandma Ruth would do just about anything for those she loves, and the best way she does that is by telling them what to do (where to go, who to date, how to date). Sarah doesn't always want to follow her grandma's plans, but she usually does--and things usually turn out well becuase of it. This time, Sarah is intrigued by the mystery and wants to get to the bottom of it as well, as long as she can continue to discourage the matchmaking plans of her grandmother and friend.

I really love the characters in this book. They are strongly developed and quirky and real. It is fast-paced and easy to read. It is a fun story with a sweet hope-filled ending. I would recommend!

Although she is bedridden from a fall, Mary Ruth McCready still makes her presence felt in Raeburne's Ferry Georgia, especially to her favorite granddaughter, Sarah Elizabeth. Sarah has been chosen to act as Grandma Ruth's proxy at all Raeburne's Ferry funerals and it is at one of those funerals that Sarah stumbles across the mystery that leads her down a path that includes some not so sneaky meddling, putting an old boyfriend in his place, and maybe even a new love interest. I received an advance reader copy of this book from Publisher's Weekly's Grab a Galley Giveaway, and I enjoyed it immensely. It has an intriguing but gentle mystery, real character growth, and just enough romance. Although listed as a Christian book, the religious elements are not at all heavy=handed and I don't think one would need to be a Christian or even religious at all to enjoy this book. I would recommend Grandma Ruth Doesn't Go to Funerals to anyone who enjoys a lighthearted but not too fluffy story.

When Charlotte Harrington is anything but comforted by her husband’s dying words, her best friend, bedridden Mary Ruth McCready, comes to her rescue. Grandma Ruth and her granddaughter, Sarah Elizabeth, take on the quest to search for the mysterious person PB Harrington referred to and make sense of the long-held secret. Charlotte is too precious a friend to be grieving and trying to bury a secret…alone.

In addition to a great small-town setting, wonderful Southern charm, and a fantastic amateur sleuth, you’ll get reminders about the importance of communication, of loving yourself, and of finding where you truly belong. By the time the sleuths have the mystery figured out, you’ll be smiling.

This new-to-me author surprised me with her pacy book and her ability to keep me interested in her mystery. I’ll be checking out her two previous books!

I was gifted this copy by Kregel Publications and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.