This book was surprisingly hilarious. The characters smarmy comments made my day and I regularly laughed out loud. A fabulous story.

Enemies to lovers fantasy romance. very cute and enjoyable romance story, quite original. Highly recommend.

I went into this book knowing not that much about it and let me tell you that I ADORED this book! The growth that both Hart en Mercy went through was heartwarming to read.
All the characters had such an amazing dynamic!
It made me cry so much!

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen is a tropey, fun fantasy romcom. Hart and Mercy hate each other, but end up unlikely pen pals – and after a true missed connection moment, end up falling for each other. This is a tender, funny novel but also one that will make you cry. It’s absolutely delightful and perfect for this year’s trend of cosy fantasy – I’m here for it! I’ve been really getting into sweet, romancy books lately, and this was exactly what I needed to read this week. It’s got enemies to lovers vibes, banter and so many puns. And if you’ve ever had a conversation with me, you know I love a bad joke and can’t resist a pun. So basically, this was written for me to devour. Some things are quite predictable, but that is part of the fun of this, I think. Vibes and strong characters abound, and that is where Hart and Mercy got me. They snuck their way into my hart. If you need a comfort book, add this to your rotation!

Source of book: NetGalley (thank you)
Relevant disclaimers: The author and I are social media moots and sometimes exchange bants.
Please note: This review may not be reproduced or quoted, in whole or in part, without explicit consent from the author.

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This is a macabre, whimsical, unabashedly soft book. And I adored it.

I guess it’s technically what the industry might be trying to call “romantasy” which is to say a fantasy where the romantic elements are as significant as the fantastical stuff. And I actually thought the way the central relationship was woven around the more conventional plot-like elements (the mystery of Hart’s parentage, where the zombies are coming from, what’s going on with Cunningham, the dodgy owner of a chain of funeral parlours) was pretty damn masterful.

In any case, the basic setup here is … actually, it’s really hard to summarise. But essentially you have Hart, a lonely, zombie-fighter, demigod marshal, and Mercy, who works for her family’s funeral parlour: a mutual failure to understand the other has created an antagonistic dynamic between them that shows no sign of changing, until—each of them, in their own way desperate for emotional connection—they accidentally enter into an anonymous correspondence. Though, honestly, this is one of those attempts at a plot summary that barely touches on what the book is actually about … and that feels sort of right, because while Hart and Mercy is not explicitly a suspenseful read, unravelling its world-building is definitely one of its pleasures.

This may well turn out to be one of those “your mileage may vary” aspects of the story—those accustomed to more traditional fantasy fare, where everything is explained to you the moment it appears, might balk at being thrown into the action like a corpse from the back of an autoduck. For me, though, it really worked. You see, the more you, ahem, scrape the surface of the book, the more you realise that Hart and Mercy inhabit a deeply weird and specific world (the best description I can manage is, a bit wild west, a bit Waterworld, a bit Six Feet Under) but it is also very much their world, one they take for granted as much as we take our own. And there’s a particular sort of immersiveness that comes from only having the details of a setting become relevant to the reader at the point they become relevant to the characters—for example, we learn about the zombies (drudges) and Hart’s work in containing them when he’s mentoring a new apprentice, and the history of the world, with its old and new gods, is only fully explored when Mercy goes to church to pray.

In any case, as much as I came to the love the world-building, and how the book approached it, the true heart (heh) of Hart and Mercy is the characters, particularly Hart and Mercy themselves. I adored both of them, although I did end up feeling that Hart was the character with the greatest emotional depth and greatest emotional journey to, y’know, undertake. Mercy is quirky and charming (and enjoys reading romance novels in the bath—what’s not to love?) but the majority of her problems are external: her family’s funeral home is in crisis, her ex-boyfriend is a dick, etc. Hart, by contrast, has a lot of work to do in terms of understanding himself and his place in the world, and learning how to be open to both loving and living. There’s a lot about him that’s painfully relatable, I suspect even to people who aren’t, cough, profoundly damaged themselves. In fairness, though, I do also think that if both characters had equal degrees of the same sort of baggage to deal with it would have unbalanced the book in a different way and, while it was hard for me personally not to feel more connected to Hart than to Mercy, I deeply appreciated what the book was doing with its themes of love, trust and emotional vulnerability, and the way these are inevitably shaped by gender and gendered expectations.

“Woman help man learn to emotion, man help women find self-agency” is kind of the unquestioned bedrock of a lot of m/f romance dynamics, and I’m certainly not challenging its value. But something I loved about Hart and Mercy is that the characters catalyse these journeys for each other but, ultimately, they sort their own shit out. Mercy does not need Hart to fix her family’s business—the family fix their own business by talking to each other openly about what they all want and need—and Mercy is never expected to perform emotional labour for Hart. Through the act of loving each other they essentially free themselves and that is a beautiful, beautiful thing to watch unfold.

The other thing I found incredibly touching about their relationship is the degree to which communication plays such a significant role. Although, to be honest, there are a very few problems in this book that can’t be solved by a good faith attempt to communicate with someone else—which, again, I found kind of lovely. In any case, it is miscommunication that originally puts Hart and Mercy on the path to mutual hostility, letter-writing that brings them together, a lack of honesty on Hart’s part (he knows his anonymous correspondent is Mercy before she realises he is hers) that brings about their third act reversal, and honesty that brings them together again. Knowing Hart is … not lying exactly … to Mercy is a little difficult read, but it also feels true to where he is, emotionally speaking, at that point in the book. Something I had less patience for personally, though, was when Mercy told Hart she never wanted to see him again and then later complained that he didn’t love her enough to … I don’t even know what? Disregard her? Disrespect her wishes? Compromise her agency? This sudden requirement that Hart be telepathic was an odd note for me in a book that is so otherwise committed to the notion that love, whether it’s love of family, work, strangers, partners, is something you build deliberately and specifically in words and deeds, not something that just happens magically.

I’ve spent most of this rambling excuse for a review talking about Hart and Mercy, but I should also mention how much I enjoyed the side-characters too. From Mercy’s rambunctiously loving if not always entirely helpful family to the extremely camp magic owl who delivers the mail. Hart’s assistant, Penrose Duckers, is also a goofy delight although I wish his relationship with Mercy’s baked-good loving brother had been more fleshed out. Queerness is a very comfortable part of Mercy and Hart’s world, which I appreciated, but Duckers and Zedde basically take one look at each other and are then boyfriends? Obviously, they’re secondary characters (and mostly comedic secondary characters) so it makes sense their relationship wouldn’t / couldn’t have the depth of Hart and Mercy’s but it felt jarringly shallow. Especially, as discussed above, in the context of all the other complicated, messy loving relationships within the book. Of course, it’s totally fine for relationships to be shallow and I can see a reading of Duckers and Penrose as a celebration of connections that are nothing but banging and baked goods … except I also got the sense that I was being asked to take them seriously as long-term romantic partners. Which felt, honestly, unearned. I do half-wonder if they got stuck in a sort of “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” twilight zone, in that if they’d been allowed to be young daft horny fuckbuddies (which is probably a more accurate reflection of their one-page connection—I mean, Zedde picks Duckers up with the line “well hello” like he’s Kenneth Williams or something) it might have looked like the book was implying queer relationships, or mlm relationships, were physically driven and superficial compared to non-queer ones. Although there is a happily married lesbian couple in the book so who knows?

Minor gripes aside, Hart and Mercy really is the most loving book, and its understanding of love so expansive and resilient that I teared up at about the 14% mark and later escalated to bawling on public transport. Given that it’s partially set in a funeral parlour and that Hart kills zombies for a living, death is also a major theme—but even death, in the context of this book, is a soft and loving thing, one that offers continuance, and opportunities for kindness, rather than merely the inevitability of ending. Emotions, in general, are handled with such tenderness here—especially, the unglamorous ones, like fear and, most significantly, loneliness. Not everything is easy in the world of Hart and Mercy, not everything is easy for Hart and Mercy either, but their story still felt like a safe space somehow. Somewhere that I myself could be a little vulnerable the way Hart learns to be. And that is such a gift of a thing for a book to give you.

PS - it’s also a genuinely funny book. I should have found a way to work that in earlier, but I was too deep in my feelings. But the levity is the perfect complement to the sweetness and some of the more wrenching moments. For example the phrase “horny illogic” has definitely made its into my personal idiolect.

I'm so glad that I picked this up!

I love boktb with death elements in them and this one didn't disappoint!

I love both Hart and Mercy and found their story to be really endearing and it built in a natural way via thier letters.

I've bought myself a physical copy for my collection and j can't wait to read more from this author!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for providing me with a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Gods, I loved this book.
It was the perfect enemies to lovers, grumpy x sunshine character, the development of the romance was *chefs kiss*.

I love the world Bannen built, the characters all felt real, and their relationships never felt forced or ingenuine.
I genuinely felt terrified everytime the drudges were mentioned, but the fear was well-balanced with some of the humour of the book,

Absolutely 5/5 stars for this masterpiece,

p.s. may we get a Zeddie cookbook please? <3

Fun take on this fantasy story. I had some muddled beginnings as the world building was very obscure to most stories but loved how it developed. Great characters with a terrific use of the enemies-to-lovers trope! I had a really good time reading this story, and also ended up with the Fairyloot edition which includes some really pretty character art which I loved too

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy.
"Dear Friend........."

Demigods, Drudges, portals, undertakers and romance? I was desperate to know how all this could fit together and it did not disappoint!!!

Mercy a overworked undertaker with an instant dislike and hatred for the rude Marshall Ralston who she is forced to do business with. Her family ignore all her wishes and she feels completely alone in the world until she recieves a letter from an anonymous person titled "Dear Friend"
This unique take on You've got mail was the rom com, fantasy mash up I didn't know I needed in my life but one that has found a special place in my heart.
It was so refreshing to get a female protagonist that was so relatable. Lets be real the main premise was kinda predictable but with the twists and turns and everything else that Megan Bannen introduced elevated it from a boring romance to one of the top fantasy romance books I've ever read. I can't quite put my finger on it but this story was so unique it is definitely one that will stay with you through the mundane, on those days where you will find yourself daydreaming about demigods and baked goods
P.s Coffee wins tea any day

Mercy is an undertaker and Hart is a marshal. They have never liked each other, and never will. Ever.

This was a really fun read. I didn't entirely know what to expect, and was very pleasantly surprised. This book did such a good job of balancing its fantasy and romance elements. The world provided a really interesting backdrop to the story, with a history and structure unlike anything I've ever read, but it didn't get bogged down in the details. The world and its magic system drove the characters beliefs and cemented their place in their world. It played into their relationships with family and friends, and made everything about the romance that bit more dynamic.
Hart and Mercy's relationship, aside from a few cliches and some clunky dialogue, was really fun to watch develop (and the twist on the third act break up was very unexpected, I enjoyed it).
The high stakes and added mystery were fun, and the various relationships with supporting characters interesting, both of which added to the character (and romance) development really nicely.
The pacing did fall down a bit around the middle, but nothing that majorly took from the overall story.

Overall, a really fun paranormal romance, would definitely recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Orbit Books for my e-arc of this title, received in exchange for an honest review.

I was offered this book as an ARC by NetGalley. I found this a really enjoyable read and would have happily given it a higher rating however there were very strong similarities to one of my favourite films (I won't specify which as it would be a bit of a spoiler). It could be argued that this is why I enjoyed it so much but there is a particular scene which, to my mind, seemed just shy of being lifted verbatim from the movie and so I don't feel it is right to score it higher. I wish Bannen had changed that section of the book as it would have been a little gem.

As soon as I read the synopsis for this one I knew I wanted to read it as the premise is just so unique! ⁣
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the characters. The tension and banter between Hart and Mercy was just perfect. Both were amazing characters who were relatable and real. I also loved the side characters and how much they played a part in this story!⁣
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The world building is phenomenal and I could honestly read more books set in this world! I also loved the You've Got Mail vibes I got from this one! ⁣
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This was such a fun read that at times left me an emotional mess! I cannot wait to read what Bannen writes next! ⁣
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Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unexpectedly solid magical rom com.

It is not the most romantic, nor the most fantastical. It's a great compromise between the two that resulted in a fun light hearted read.

Extra points because there is a disgruntled postal worker who is a rabbit with a New York accent.

Wow! What is not to love about this novel? The cover? Excellent! The storyline? Brilliant! The whole execution of it? Fabulous!
It’s weird, it’s unique, it’s quirky. It’s absolutely everything I want and desire in a fantasy book.
Really enjoyed this one, it starts off well and just keeps getting better. I found myself smiling whilst reading this and that’s when I know it’s got me hooked and engrossed. Perfect!
Thank you so much for allowing me the arc. I will, without a doubt, be recommending this book.

I liked this, but I didn't love it - which seems to be the story of my life at the moment. I'm not sure if it was the lack of chemistry I felt between the two love interests or the fact that most of the plot is developed through letters between the two that stopped me from really getting into this, but I will say that I did enjoy Mercy's relationship with her family. I guess everything was just... OK. Nothing really stirred any great emotion in me, I wasn't blown away by the world or plot. It was just... fine. And perhaps that's the biggest problem.

Part weird western, part enemies to lovers romance, part zombie apocalypse story, this was sweet and unique. The humour was very warm and I really enjoyed the world building. This was a charming light read.

3.5/5

I did not know what to fully expect going into this book, but I had heard great reviews of it. I really enjoyed the world building and the character descriptions. I loved the interactions of Mercy and her family. I did feel like it was two different books though, with the first half having a completely different vibe to the second.

Aaah this book was soooo good. I loved this reimagining of You’ve got mail in a fantasy world with zombies and zombie hunter mashalls. You would imagine the setting of an undertaker’s office in a fantasy world with zombies would be depressing but Megan Bannen manages to fill the book with so much life! I enjoyed the correspondence between Hart and Mercy and the unique, highly entertaining mail delivery system, their chemistry in the second half of the book and all the side characters (I could read about their shenanigans all day long and never get bored). It gave me a very found family sorta feel even though half the characters were actual family members 😂. If there’s one thing I did not like in this book, it’s how the physical relationship started between the two characters. From one character’s pov it was understandable but from the other character it seemed abrupt and did not really make sense. Other than this one factor bugging me, the rest of the book was absolute perfection. I definitely cried at the end and ended up realising that cozy fantasies are my newest favourite genre in fiction. Would definitely recommend!!

3.5/5

Thanks to Orbit and the author for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I did not expect to like this as much as I did. I will admit that it took me at least 25% to not be continuously frustrated with the world, and 50% to be truly invested - but this may be because I tend to struggle with fantasy standalones. Having said that, this is unlike anything I’ve ever read. It’s a fantasy romance with light-hearted vibes and cosy family gatherings, juxtaposed with the macabre nature of being an undertaker; the dangers of a world determined by multiple gods; and heavy topics of grief, guilt and loss.

For a good chunk of this book I was frustrated with the world building and I just couldn’t get on board. It all felt a bit too whimsical for me (which isn't an objective flaw, it's just not really my thing) and at times it felt explained in rushed way. However, the characters really got me invested in this story. Not just the love interests, but Mercy’s family and Hart’s friends were all a joy to spend time with. I loved the interactions between all the characters and the budding romance so much that I began to appreciate the unique world more, and really imagine it from their perspective, even if it isn’t my preferred type of fantasy setting. I even shed a few tears towards the end which was totally UNEXPECTED.

I don’t ultimately know how to rate this. At the start it was a two star, then it became a solid three, but ultimate enjoyment makes me feel like this should be a four. In the end I have gone with 3.5 stars as I think that accurately reflects the fun I had with this book, but also the drawbacks for me.

3.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ rounded down

Thank you so much to Little Brown Book Group/Orbit and NetGalley for an e-arc of this book.

I did really enjoy this book, the premise was interesting and I did really like both MCs.

I suppose what didn’t make it an outstanding read for me was that the world building wasn’t as full as it could have been to fully immerse me in the world. I do realise however that this was a character driven rather than plot driven book, and I would definitely recommend it to