Graveminder

Get ready for a very interesting take on the almost-dead from the bestselling young adult author of the Wicked Lovely series.

Every town may have a pastor or priest, a funeral home and a cemetery to help the transition of the living into death, but not many have a Graveminder like Claysville. Then again most small towns do not also have a deal with the underworld—regarding its citizens and their mortality, that is.

Lifelong resident, Maylene, is in charge of continuing the Barrow family’s duty of keeping the dead of the town in the ground; however when one of the town’s dead is neglected after a heinous crime everything changes. Teenage girl Daisha is dead. Dead Daisha is also hungry: for both peace and for mortal flesh.

Trying to unlock the key to the town’s secrets and the loss of a loved one, Rebekkah stumbles upon a destiny that will take her and lifelong love interest, Byron, on a journey of unimaginable proportions.

Then, after an unfortunate “accident,” a new Graveminder will have to come forth and be chosen as another chapter in the saga of Claysville and its deal with the devil begins. The successor must rid the town of a creature no longer living but still inflicting death in her search for peace. At her side will be the Undertaker to see her through to a place she could never imagine.

As author Marr conveys: an entire other world exists beyond our own—one that is fanciful, eerie, and perverse all at once.

Secrets are hidden all over the town of Claysville but they are only six feet deep in many places—and some of the dead have trouble “staying where you put them.”

In Melissa Marr’s latest book readers get a peek into the modern world of zombies. The story manages to be a combination of both sophisticated and traditional storytelling plus a zombie twist. The imaginative weaving of folk tale and horror story come together to create a story of uniquely creepy dimensions.

Adult readers will find they are in for a true treat as Melissa Marr steps into the world of adult literature with an unexpectedly unique debut.