Graveminder by Melissa Marr

Release Date: 1st July, 2011

Publisher: HarperCollins

Pages: 324pgs

The Story

New York Times bestselling author Melissa Marr returns in July with her spellbinding new novel, Grave Minder. In her new book, Marr continues her flair of exploring dark fantasy, horror and paranormal suspense with a distinct approach that incorporates desire, mystery and spine chilling thrills.

Rebekkah Barrow never forgot the attention her grandmother Maylene bestowed upon the dead of Claysville, the small town where Rebekkah spent her adolescence. There wasn't a funeral that Maylene didn't attend, and at each one Rebekkah watched as Maylene performed the same unusual ritual: She took three sips from a silver flask and spoke the words 'Sleep well, and stay where I put you.'

Now Maylene is dead, and Bek must go back to the place she left a decade earlier. She soon discovers that Claysville is not the sleepy town she remembers, and that Maylene had good reason for her odd traditions. It turns out that in Claysville the worlds of the living and the dead are dangerously connected . . .

The Review

A big thanks to Lara from HarperCollins for sending me a review copy of this book!

As soon as I heard that a new Melissa Marr book was coming out, I knew it was a must read! I knew I had to get my hands on it. It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Melissa Marr's Wicked Lovely young adult series and while this book is an adult read, but anything to do with the paranormal, graves, and some haunting secrets . . . it doesn't matter whether you're a young adult or an adult reader as there's no doubt that Melissa Marr will never disappoint you. You're going to love anything she brings out onto the reading table.

GRAVEMINDER is a mix between a gothic novel and an urban fantasy. For me, Melissa Marr has brought out all her strengths and creativity into this one book and I honestly enjoyed every moment of it. The story setting itself - for some reason - reminded me a lot of Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse series and since Harris herself loved GRAVEMINDER as well, this was pretty much a win-win for me. Unlike Marr's Wicked Lovely series, this book is all about graves and the dead, but it's not the only thing you'll love about it. There's a lot of twisty turns, dark and scary atmospheres, and the characters themselves were very interesting and had there own sets of issues you'll love them for.

Bek, the main heroine of this tale, clearly had the fear of committment and is in denial of her own feelings for Byron. Gorgeous, handsome, and Mr. Hottie Byron was the man she left behind years ago and what complicates things a little more for Bek was that he used to be Bek's older half-sister's boyfriend (wow that's a mouthful) and ever since Ella committed suicide (for reasons we don't know until later in the book) . . . well, even after so many years passing between Bek and Byron, she still feels the guilt of loving her dead sister's boyfriend. Which is understable in this case, but damn you wanted to get these two people together! Even with a complicated relationship being a frustrating one too, but I appreciated the flip of where the hero was more opened with his feelings and the heroine was the one who fled from them. It was a nice change up for me in the romantic department.

Now moving on . . . let's talk about the town of Claysville. Despite it's deadly little secrets, the town alone felt so alive to me and it was the first thing that really invested me in this story of Melissa Marr's. Most of its residents will die in the same town they were born in and well . . . with some zombie-likeness involved . . . it was everything I was hoping for. But what also interested me was the whole duties of being the Graveminder and the Undertaker - a destiny that has been passed down to Bek and Bryon, one they never expected. With the two taking these new responsibilities a little too well, I enjoyed the land of the dead thing that was going on throughout the book and when I heard GRAVEMINDER is suppose to be a standalone novel . . . oh GOD Melissa Marr don't let this be the end of Bek and Bryon's story! I have seen a few articles on the web where Melissa Marr is said to be writing a sequel to this book (which is supposed to come out in 2013), so I hope it's true. I demand more books in the series and perhaps along the same amount of books Charlaine Harris has for Sookie Stackhouse and oh - a tv show perhaps? [Note: I've read somewhere that apparently GRAVEMINDER movie/tv rights have been bought so fingers crossed!]

Overall if you love Melissa Marr or you're looking for a new and interesting read, GRAVEMINDER is exactly what you're looking for!

The Rating 4/5 stars