Graveminder

By: Melissa Marr

Narrated by: Emma Galvin

Three sips to mind the dead....

Rebekkah Barrow never forgot the attention her grandmother Maylene bestowed upon the dead of Claysville, the small town where Bek 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 just 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; beneath the town lies a shadowy, lawless land ruled by the enigmatic Charles, aka Mr. D. If the dead are not properly cared for, they will come back to satiate themselves with food, drink, and stories from the land of the living. Only the Graveminder, by tradition a Barrow woman, and her Undertaker - in this case Byron Montgomery, with whom Bek shares a complicated past - can set things right once the dead begin to walk.

Although she is still grieving for Maylene, Rebekkah will soon find that she has more than a funeral to attend to in Claysville, and that what awaits her may be far worse: dark secrets, a centuries-old bargain, a romance that still haunts her, and a frightening new responsibility - to stop a monster and put the dead to rest where they belong.

©2011 Melissa Marr (P)2011 HarperCollins Publishers

Gothic Southern Romance meets zombies

Emma Galvin does a fine job in narrating the story, which boasts a pretty interesting beginning and a solid ending. All the self-imposed love-denial stuff in the middle, however, got to me. This read a lot like juvenile lit, so if you are looking for a fun light zombie-read for chicks, go ahead and jump into this one.

Give it a listen...you will be rewarded!

I found this book when I was aimlessly perusing Amazon.com the other day for a new read. I recently listened to The Host by Stephenie Meyer again and Melissa Marr's Graveminder was likened to it: a wonderful adult work written by a successful YA author. Once I started listening I couldn't stop. I finished it in less than a day. This author seamlessly introduced a fantasy world without bogging the book down with boring details. Give it a try, you will be rewarded!

love it

I loved this book and I love Melissa Marr. The narrator was superb, great performance.

Haunting and Strange

I loved this book with all it's differences. It's backwoods Appalachia, mystified with guardians of life and death. It's a mythology I've never run into from Appalachia but it fits much of what is there. It's also very small town. And a lovely read.

A great story with interesting twists

What made the experience of listening to Graveminder the most enjoyable?

Marr spins a compelling tale of people bound to situation not of their making. The story starts strong, and weaves itself around the listener. This one left me disappointed that it ended so soon, and definitely craving more.

Decent Story, Terrible Reader

I actually liked this story overall and would probably have enjoyed it a lot more if there had been a better narrator. Emma Galvin pretty much reads the entire story in a dull monotone voice that at times had my thoughts drifting elsewhere. It was hard to listen to her for extended periods of time since her voice just made me sleepy. A decent story overall though.

A wonderful read!

The story is amazing and brought together well. Melissa Marr is by far my favorite author and I loved this. The way it was read was fantastic!

Rich storyline, annoying main characters

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Sure, it's a decent book, the narration was nice and the idea was a good one. However, I tired of the same back and forth the two main characters went through in regards to their relationship. It seemed as though every time they were alone (which was often), it was the same conversation, over and over. He trying to make her see that they belonged together, she, fighting it. It was too repetitive.

Would you be willing to try another book from Melissa Marr? Why or why not?

Depends on the topic, but I'd try another. She does have good ideas.

Which scene was your favorite?

Rebecca's initial venture into the land of the dead.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Definitely. I think the screen version would handle the relationship differently.

Couldn't decide what it was

Like some of the other reviewers I found this one by accident. Though It was not terrible overall and I did enjoy the narrator, to me there was no one real point of the story. Was this a scary zombie-ish book? One about relationships? Dealing with death? I couldn't figure it out. It went off in so many different directions that the main plot line was often lost. If the author had stuck with the main idea, that the dead must be tended and keeping them in their place, and had not gone off into the whole stupid Mr. Charles and the world of the dead section, it would have been a really good book.

Most original book theme!

What made the experience of listening to Graveminder the most enjoyable?

While listening to this book, I often wondered how Melissa Marr came up with the premise of this novel. Of course, the narrator was so awful that there was many moments of speculation...The entire concept of a Graveminder who minds the dead and lives in two worlds was so original. The hesitation of the main character to admit her feelings toward the male protagonist was frustrating but otherwise this was one of the most unique books I've read in a while. Try it but maybe in print or with a different narrator.

What did you like best about this story?

The idea of the world of the dead versus the town of the living.

How could the performance have been better?

Change the narrator. She was terrible. All the characters sounded like they were 17 years old.