Well colour me surprised I was going in thinking this was going to be a fun, light urban paranormal. Yes, Grave Secrets was fun and hilarious, but it was also swoon worthy and bloody. I thoroughly enjoyed our heroine Toni and her train wreck of a life. I did enjoy the murder mystery aspect I just there was more of it in the story hopefully we get a more in-depth mystery in the sequel. Overall Grave Secrets is a fun and quirky paranormal romance with a dash of mystery to keep everyone on their toes.

Grave Secrets was a really difficult book to review, simply because I have so many conflicting emotions about it.


First off, Grave Secrets is a funny book that will definitely lead to you laughing uproariously at least once. Another tick in its box is that this book definitely isn't lacking in the action department. There is rarely a boring moment, which is something I love in books.


Now for the reasons I have conflicting feelings about this book. For starters, it is packed to the brim with Urban fantasy tropes, to such an extent that some elements of the book just don't feel unique, specifically the romance. I would further classify the romance as instalove on steroids and the romantic interest, Oscar, is everything I hate. Secondly, for some reason, I wasn't particularly invested in the book and I didn't really connect deeply with Toni.


All in all, I think I feel pretty neutral about Grave Secrets. It wasn't amazing, but it also wasn't terrible and I can really see that some people will adore this book.

Alice James' Grave Secrets is, for lack of a better word, a charming vampire zombie novel.  Her protagonist is at times both ferocious and endearing, charming and blunt.  James writes action and combat well, with just enough violence to remind the reader of the stakes (pun semi-intended) of dealing with the undead.  She blends in just enough sex and romance to keep the story moving without encumbering the plot with needless erotica.  The supporting cast are fascinating; their motivations and backstories lend to unique voices and desires.  I find myself excited for the next adventure of Toni, and can't wait to see what trouble she lands in next.

This was a meh read for me.  Too much undead nonsense mixed in with Agatha Christie wanna be feel.  I won't be picking up the next installment.

Alice James' "Grave Secrets" was an accidental and amazing find. I can't recommend it enough to fans of urban fantasy with a good helping of mystery, romance, and terribly addictive characters. Thank goodness this is the beginning of a series or else I'd have to beg the author to write more.

By day, Toni Windsor is a real estate agent for humans and supernatural creatures. By night, she raises the dead to follow in her grandfather's footsteps and, with luck solve the mysterious death of a Jane Doe (whom, incidentally, she can't bring back to life). Then a particular vampire comes to town looking for the perfect house, and the real adventures begin.

Honestly, I'm not much of a romance or urban fantasy reader (in that I don't read many books in either genre, not because of any particular aversion), but I found myself hooked by  "Grave Secrets" from the first chapter. Toni's an engaging character who's never perfect and always owns her decisions. I love that she has a passion for her work, a rarity for stories set in sleepy towns. Her relationships with her brother, neighbors, friends, and love interest(s??) are also a huge draw, making Toni instantly feel like a real person who has a life beyond the adventures (and vampire political shenanigans) that scoop her up. It takes a lot of skill to write a gripping story with high stakes and magic while, somehow, making the real estate agent protagonist the principal driver.

(Note: A small trigger warning for an attempted sexual assault.)

Overall, if you want something really fun to read (with characters you'll quickly care about so, so much), you should pick this up. I honestly can't wait for the sequel. Who knew a story with urban (or rural?) vampires could feel so fresh?

I received a free eARC of this book in exchange for a fair, honest review.

Can I just say that this book was such fun!
It really was a welcome relief from other books I had been reading and zipped along through the pages with ease, the writing style, for me, made this happen easily and I seemed to be turning page after page and eating up each chapter with interest, watching to see the charecters flesh out, or not as the case my be ! 
I gues I have to mention that there are alot of Zombies and Vampires in this book, hence the previous joke about flesh.

I have seen a tag line for this book 'Agatha Raisin meets Sookie Stackhouse, with croquet and zombies.' and i have to agree, I read all the Sookie Stackhouse books and Agatha Raisin ones, so I feel confident that I can judge that sentence. 
Toni Windor is our protagonist , who, by day, is an Estate Agent, but by night lives a completely different and eerie night life, she is a Necromancer, she leads us through the story with a first person commentary, Toni is a loveable charecter, I love the fact that she is a redhead, we are so unrepresented and enjoyed getting to know her.
This book is not what i call a classic horror book, it is not spooky, in the 'oh shit, iam going to sleep with my light on' type of book, it is hilarious at times, but please know that we do get our fair share of blood and guts and of course the hot vampire men, one of which our lovely redhead falls for, this is when the story really gets going and oh boy does she get herself into trouble.

If you have not read this, you will not know, of whom i am referring to, but BREDON! he is such a gentleman :)

I am really not sure, how to classify this book, i fear that calling it a 'horror' may have mislabelled it, romance, chicklitty urban fantasy type i guess?
I think this book could actually slip into quite a few catagories, or should i say cataGORIES! * walks away giggling*

Thank you Netgalley and Rebellion Publishing for letting me read this for an unbiased review.
I shall for sure, be reading the next book :)
Review will appear on the blog and my social media' s nearer the publication date)

I would say this is a 3.5 stars.

I did enjoy reading this book and loved some of the characters. I thought it was an interesting take on zombies,  vampires and ‘mortals’ and their relationships. 

I thought it was well written and some of the blimps would be ironed out on final version. 

I cared enough about the characters that I wanted to read on and see what would happened.
I loved the setting and was great to have a familiar areas, mentions of places and you could visualise places really clearly. 

Definitely a book I would recommend if your a fan of zombies and vampires and wanting to find a different take.

Grave Secrets is ultimately a paranormal romance, but it also gives fabulous cozy mystery vibes & the atmosphere is painted with the humour and campiness of a small English village. The extremely clever dialogue and ridiculous foibles made me laugh out loud every other page. Hijinks abound, an unsolved murder pull you in, and there’s even some very steamy romance in this very funny book. Problematic issues of fuzzy consent as in many dark romances will ward off some readers. Unlike other cozy mysteries there is a surprising bit of violence, a real gore-fest. These horrors are simply one thread of the story and are written with a casual air but not quite glib. It added to the humour in my opinion. “Oh just another day at the office...” 🧟‍♂️ 

It’s a fun read releasing just in time for Halloween 2020. I’ll be anticipating the next book in the series especially if the series focuses on blending cozy mystery with humour-horror (hopefully at the expense of the misogynistic dark romance elements).

I thought the summary sounded like a fun, cute little novel!! But, unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. I could care less about the characters. Sigh!!!! 

I do believe a lot of people will love this book though!! So, make sure to check it out yourself! It has sim ore and gynornous 

**I would like to thank Nertgalley for the opportunity to read this book. 

Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾

I received an ARC copy of this book via netgalley. 
Toni Lavington is an estate agent with an interesting siedline in Necromancy, a skill she appears to have inherited from her grandfather. Set in a time when Europe has accepted vampires as"people" with the same rights as humanity Toni Lavington's full time job soon brings her hobby and those vampires into close contact.

Packed with incident and enough blood letting to stock a medium sized transfusion centre but not quite as tidily collected Toni finds her life threatened time and again. I enjoyed the characterisation and the narrative certainly entertained, however requires just a little too much suspension of reality for me to put it into my upper echelon of ratings. I would read more from the series which i think could have a very long way to run

Hilarious, steamy, and ... gory. Sign me up.

Zombies, vampires, and a necromancer! Oh yes, all of that blended into a delicious tale, I couldn't put down.

This was totally unexpected. I laughed, cringed, and swooned. What a delicious dark mix that was also somehow light. I was hooked from the start with the fun premise and light feel. I read a lot of genres and love a range of tones and themes, so when heads rolled and guts squished I was all in. Of course add to that a sexy vamp or two and the heated chemistry and really all the things I needed to get done today were going to have to wait while I read, and read, and finished the story.

There is so much character here. Toni is sassy, holding her own with some pretty domineering personalities without being obnoxious. Oscar had me at hello and then Benedict came along, what can I say, I like vamps, the bad-ish ones even more so. Peter was so sweet, making a great contrast to the others. However, my heart belongs to Bredon. That really surprised me, because like I said, I'm usually all in for the naughty vamps, but he was so charming. I just adored every little thing about him.

The pace was zippy, the humor refreshing, and settings easy to imagine as I lost myself to world. I loved that most things were tied up, leaving it a complete and satisfying read, yet there was enough left to make me hungry for more - as if I'd just raised the dead, or been raised from the dead.

I hope there will be more in this series soon. I can't wait to step back into it and have a gory, sexy, laugh with characters who I already feel like are friends.

I requested Grave Secrets by Alice James from NetGalley, with no obligations, as an uncorrected Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) but even without the final polishing, there is no doubt this one is a gem. It’s been an exceptionally long time since I’ve had to stop reading to wipe the tears from my eyes because I was laughing so hard. That’s what happened before I was even a quarter of the way into the book. The protagonist, Lavington (Toni) Windsor, a real estate agent by day and necromancer by night, is delightful as the first-person narrator of this story, a twist on Stephanie Plum with Vampires and Zombies.  With lines like, “What I lack in strategy, I make up for in overkill!” Toni barrels through a fast-paced adventure that is not without its share of blood and guts but is also full of warmth and friendship, romance, and great humor. The setting of rugged rural Britain, with cozy village life, is seamlessly woven into the plot and further reinforced by the British colloquialisms peppered throughout the dialogue. 
Grave Secrets is the first of a series and the author hints in the Acknowledgements that at least nine more are in the pipe. This debut is due out September 1, 2020 (US) and September 3 (UK) and I would suggest that anyone who enjoys Janet Evanovich and Patricia Brigg’s will love this one.
Posted: June 29, 2020
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This was a nice read. I like paranormal books, with witches, Wolfes, Zombies an Ghouls.
Miss James has woven a good and solid plot, with a really sympathetic heroine und some exciting twists and turns in the storyline.

I really enjoyed reading this book.

Thanks a lot for giving me the opportunity to read it.

I enjoyed this book. It's a unique story, a little gory with all the beheading and such. I really liked the main character although I'm not sure about her relationship with Oscar. I hope this will be a series and can't wait to read the next book. #GraveSecrets #NetGalley

I so hope that this is the start of a series!!

This reminded me of the True Blood Series by Charlene Harris and the famous Sookie Stackhouse it was fab!

Full of fun kept me entertained and engaged throughout can't wait to see what Toni gets up to next!

It seems only fair to start this review with the fact that I burned out on urban fantasy (which is the sub-genre this book fits most neatly into, despite being set in rural Staffordshire) a while back and so Grave Secrets was probably up against it with me. Having said that, the book also had a few issues for me and so I guess I just wasn't the right audience after all.

The basic premise of the book is that vampires are known about and, in Europe at least, regarded with some degree of favour - this stems from a feel-good story involving vampires healing children with leukemia in Germany, which had led to pro-vampire legislation. As a result, our protagonist is quite aware of their existence as well as, unusually for some urban fantasy series, her own powers as a necromancer - in fact, we first meet her in the local cemetery where she's managed to work her way through raising all of its inhabitants one after another. This is the first place I butted heads with the story because while she seems to be creating zombies, they just conveniently appear rather than having to actually get out of their graves, yet are physical enough to do damage to people/vampires as needed. 

Anyway, our protagonist (an estate agent who doesn't seem to do very much work at all) gets involved with trying to find the ideal place for a vampire to hang his metaphorical hat, with said vampire being quite hot and someone she's instantly in love with. There we come across issue number 2 for me, which is always how vampires get erections given that they don't have a working circulatory system, but that doesn't seem to stop said vampire from getting it up quite prodigiously. There's also a bit of dubious consent going on, as he doesn't like it when people say 'no' to him and I find that decidedly unsexy. 

Anyway, other than the love interest, there's reasonable development going on with a wide range of supporting characters, all of whom would make much more interesting romantic partners for our protagonist. Even the guy she raises from the dead at the beginning. The plot itself involves quite a bit of driving around the countryside, as well as fussing about clothes and hair, not to mention a lot of those clothes subsequently getting torn off or removed, one way or another. It's also not really a great book for anyone squeamish, though if you're reading urban fantasy regularly then you're probably going to be okay with what's going on here. 

All in all, not really my cup of tea and could have been so much more interesting if it had gone in a number of other directions. In the end, it turns into reasonably-entertaining urban fantasy by the numbers and that, for me at least, was a little disappointing.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a free copy of this book, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

What a fun read! For those that like a supernatural twist to their mystery book, and are fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, zombies and True Blood, here's the perfect book for you. Toni is a necromancer by night and plays at being an estate agent in the daytime. It seems there are vampires and they are popping up all over the English countryside and something needs to be done about it.

The author did a great job with the plot and her characters. They are well developed and interesting. I wasn't a big fan of Oscar, but all the other characters pulled me right in and I look forward to the next book in the series. Kudos to Alice James on book one of her new series.

I would like to thank Alice James, Rebellion/Solaris and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Toni Windsor is a real estate agent during the day and a necromancer during the night. Her favorite hobby: going to the local cemetery at night to raise the dead one by one. This gift of hers comes in handy especially because her brother is a cop and he sometimes needs help finding the murderer. But the actual plot kicks off when a vampire, Oscar, asks Toni to find him a house. They start a passionate romance and Toni's life is turned upside down with all the trouble that brings. 
So, I unexpectedly freaking loved this book. It reminded me a lot of true blood but in a British setting which turned out to be a lot of fun. I loved the main character Toni. She was feisty, fiercely loyal, protective of her loved ones, smart,brave and sarcastic, you got to love a sarcastic character. Actually there was a lot of humor and sarcasm in this book and I found myself smiling and laughing a lot. The pacing was good,was not bored at any point. Pretty much the only thing I didn't love was the romance. And it wasn't even in a bad way,I just hardcore ship Toni with Benedict. Oscar wasn't bad or anything like that but I didn't really feel the chemistry between him and Toni. With Benedict though the sparks were flying. So I hope that my ship will sail in future books. 
Highly recommend this one if you like paranormal romance, it was so much fun,and I can't wait for the next book in the series.
Huge thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was an amusing and entertaining read!  I expected the zombies, but this story had so much more!  The characters draw you in and the scenes are vividly set.  If you are a fan of Christopher Moore than I think this book should definitely be on your to read list!

I liked the cover and the blurb and had to start right away. Toni is a very likeable MC with a big mouth and the urge to raise the dead. Unfortunately she really is a bit naive about "her" Vampire like Sookie Stackhouse, but luckily it doesn't bother me here as much because the story is written in a more funny way. When I read it correct the author hinted at the end, that there will be at least 9 Books in this Series. Let's hope her Lovestory won't become to complicated.