This has to be one of the best 5 star reads for this year. I absolutely adored reading this. The relationship between the two MC is so enemies to lovers and so cute! I love the pen pal relationship that they have but don't know it's actually each other and then that ending. I was sobbing for the last few chapters, like tears streaming down my face. I love it when a book can make me feel something like that. Definitely a recommendation.

I actually didn't expect to like this as much as I did and only requested it as my friend had it in her book subscription box.
The banter is great and I loved the characters!
Definitely one I would never have thought I'd have liked but did!

The banter in this book was amazing - it kept me going throughout. Mercy and Hart are fun and moody and just kept me wanting to know what would happen. This book was such an unexpected joy and I loved every minute.

Wow! I didn't know I needed to read this book until I read it! The main characters fit the trope of (grumpy/sunshine) perfectly and I couldn't get enough of them together! Someone had told me that it was a take on one of my favourite films growing up of 'You've Got Mail' and the nostalgia and parallels did not disappoint.

Smiled all the way through and could not put it down. In fact, it could have been longer and had a little bit more world building to it to really immerse the reader from the get go! Thankfully i am definitely a Character reader and Hart and Mercy made my own heart warm!

Thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK for providing me with a review copy via NetGalley.

An unforgettable reading experience; with an unassuming start, a budding romance and some deeply effecting character journeys, The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy has already made it into one of my top five reads of the year.

It's difficult to come across a 'fantasy' style novel with such a small setting to get comfortable and familiar in. Bannen manages to create a homely environment that is easy to remember while also dropping in more mystical settings the piqued my interest in this story. The ghostly descriptions and a slightly macabre job for the spritely Mercy was an excellent hook into this world.

I immediately fell in love with the characters - particularly stoic, unable to read the room Hart. Couple this with Mercy and Hart's obvious chemistry and I was absorbed, I just had to know how they would come together. The letter writing added to the sweetness of their story and it was lovely to read a romance that felt realistic in its difficulties.

Likewise, the focus on family was nice to read about as often I feel this element of a character's story is neglected. The novel felt really balanced between Mercy's family, job and romantic struggles as well as Hart's very different family life, self-acceptance and ability to share his feelings. I'm glad that both perspectives were offered across the chapters and it meant you were able to full invest in the characters and feel less annoyed by their miscommunications - as a reader, at least you know what's going on!

Overall, a very fun and sweet story that had a poignant and emotional ending - the redemption arc was everything I could have asked for!

OMG! I loved this book so much! Hart deserves the best, I want keep him by my side forever and ever. It's a fantasy with a touch of romance. It's an enemy to lovers with the best banters ever. I laughed and cried and loved every moment. Highly recommend it. It's definitely one of my favourites of the year, for sure

This is so different to what I usually read, but I thought it was brilliant! It kind of reminded me of Terry Pratchett or Neil Gaimen with its mix of fantasy and dark humour. Hart and Mercy are both great characters that you can’t help but fall in love with. The secondary characters, such as Mercy’s family and Hart’s amusingly named apprentice, just add to the fun and craziness! The world building was great, though I sometimes felt I need a bit more information about some of the elements of Hart and Mercy’s world. This really is the ultimate escapist read and I’m excited to read more about this world.

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy was such a fun time. I don't usually read a lot of "cozy fantasy" books, but I was in the mood and You've Got Mail is one of my favorite movies, so this sounded perfect. Hart (break) and Mercy (less) were such fun characters and they had me equal parts laughing and frustrated with their antics.

I will say that at times the book followed a little too closely to You've Got Mail. There were scenes (especially the cafe) where I knew what was going to happen before it did because it was almost exactly what happened in the movie. I would've preferred a little more originality in those scenes. However the fantasy/magic element really added an extra layer that I enjoyed immensely. And Hart and Mercy's personalities were entirely their own. Oh, and I can't forget Bassareus, the talking bunny mailman.

If you are a fan of cozy fantasy, like The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels, or Howl's Moving Castle, I think you will really love The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy.

The undertaking of Hart & Mercy, is a love story of you got mail and the tv series six feet under with gods thrown in to vamp it up. one of the main characters is Hart, he is a marshal, that patrols the magical wild of Tanria. A job that's not tasked for the faint hearted he is a complicated character coming across moody and unapproachable, The story unfolds as does hart you realizes that his not all stone and his a loveable demigod. Then you have Mercy, the other main character in this book. She's the heart and sole of her father's family run undertaking business Birdshall & son. Mercy had to take over the business for her father after he had a heart attack the year before. The plan was for her brother to come back and run the business... But he had other ideas. Leaving Mercy with secrets from all family members. Mercy is the undertaking and Hart happened to take a delivery to the company Birdshall & Sons he was not expecting a woman to be the undertaker, This took him by surprise and also leading to the pair to dislike each from the very start. Both Mercy and Hart hating each other giving each other nicknames Hart-ache Hart and Merciless Mercy. Hart been lonely, he decided to send a letter out into the world to anyone and no one, he just needed to get it of his chest about his loneliness. With no address and name it got delivered to Mercy and Mercy been lonely herself decided to send a response. With the letters going back and forth too each other with either of them knowing they was writing to their nemeses'. Then they decided to meet up...

I did struggle to get involved with this book although saying that I did really enjoy the characters and loved, loved ! Mercy's family and its dynamic feeling like a normal big family. I could of read the book purely following them. Hart we eventually got his family story and it was so lovely to read that part explaining him a little more. I felt like there was no time frame in the book I was reading and one minute Mercy's sister was pregnant then she gave birth, I was like oh I thought it was a day to day book not months. As a reader that wants a little love story that's different with a hint of death and family and gods give it ago.

I am predominantly a reader of high fantasy and wasn’t exactly sure what to expect from this book with a heart on the cover that seemed very romance-focused. The few contemporary/romance books I’ve read in the past have never really managed to swoon me, but I am extremely happy that I read this one. I read pretty much all of it in a single day and it has put me through an emotional roller coaster I didn't know I was yearning for.

As I already thought, this book definitely focuses on the romance, more than the fantasy. From the first chapters I was already invested in the main characters Hart and Mercy who are living their day to day lives. Hart as a marshal who hunts for souls who have possessed dead bodies. Mercy as an undertaker who respectfully prepares those dead bodies for their eternal resting place once those lost souls have been banished. They both have their own issues going on with work, their past, their family and friends and are feeling a bit lonely. So when Hart puts his thoughts into a letter he addresses to “a friend” and sends it out into the universe, he and Mercy become anonymous pen pals.

Both Hart and Mercy jump out of the pages. Their surroundings may be fantastical with Nimkilim delivering mail, gods and demigods and portals to a place where restless souls look for dead bodies to inhabit, but Hart and Mercy both feel very real in the midst of all of that. I felt all of their emotions as if they were my own. The happiness, joy, sadness, pain, fear, excitement, yearning, love. This book makes it on my list (I guess it’s officially a list now and not just House of Earth and Blood) of books that have managed to make me ugly cry. I was literally sobbing so hard that I had to take a break because I could no longer read the words through my tears.

This is heartwarming in a lot of ways, but also heart-wrenching in others. The contrast between the open communication through letters and the way we go off of first impressions to characterize a person was really well done. We should always remember that there is more to a person than meets the eye, if we are only willing to scratch the surface. The family dynamics were outstanding. I felt like I got a good impression of every single family member and loved how their interactions with each other made the story complete. I’m just realizing that I really can’t find a single bad thing to say about the story. The romance and other issues in this book were very much balanced out and every aspect of the story managed to grip me.

If anyone has more books like this, please let me know because a whole new world seems to have opened up for me :)

Thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK for providing me with a review copy via NetGalley.

I feel very strongly that you deserve a friend more worthy of you than I am in reality.


Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐,8

Spice Meter: 🌶️🌶️

❗This is a spoiler-free ARC review from NetGalley❗

⚠️Trigger Warning: Various depictions of death⚠️

📍Date Released: August 23, 2022📍


I don't know how I managed to pick three different ARCs, all of them great, and all of them including adorable pet dogs that made the stories 100x better. It feels like a blessing, ngl. Another blessing is that I deeply enjoyed all three of these ARCs even if they weren't all 5 ⭐ reads. The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy may have a pretty simple yet straightforward plot, but its execution was very well done. It was humorous, sweet, emotional, and delightfully romantic in that specific haters-to-lovers trope kind of way. Seriously, this trope is magnificent. Not to mention its additional grumpy x sunshine trope that I also find delightful and have been reading a lot of lately. It's the little things in life, right?? 😍😍 For the most part, I found this story terrific. Excellent romance and world-building, extremely likeable and relatable characters, solid plot and subplots. BUT, there were some minor things that didn't really impress me. For example, while the writing was mostly great and very intelligent, it could be a little cringy at times. Just some romantic parts and dialogue. Also, the male love interest, Hart, was a little too obsessed with his female counterpart's boobs, in my opinion. These are the only reasons this book didn't get 5 ⭐ because other than that it was excellent.

I liked Mercy Birdshall very, very much. Sure she's the protagonist, she's supposed to be lovable, and in this case, cute. Also, she has a dog and I'll love anyone with a dog. I mean, who wouldn't? Even so, Mercy was very well written, she was pretty complex as a character, strong-willed, and I don't know of any other character that could actually make the position of undertaker (mortician) look cool. I loved her compassion, loyalty, and her determination in the face of adversity.

Despite his obsession with Mercy's boobs, Hart was a decent character. As the grumpy one in this relationship, he lived up to his role successfully. He was morose, antisocial, and brooding. It was hard for him to make or maintain friendships which made him a very lonely person. I used to be like that as well, so I was able to connect with him more so than I did with Mercy. He was also kind, sweet, passionate, and hot as fuck. Don't come after me, secretly soft hotties are my catnip. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️His being a demigod was a bonus. 😍😍

The romance between Mercy and Hart was really good. Very entertaining. Not that anyone should expect less from haters-to-lovers, of course. Especially when it's combined with the grumpy x sunshine trope. The banter started IMMEDIATELY and it was so so gooood...and hot. 😝😝 I always love that when it happens. I was deeply invested in their relationship, happiness and well-being, but I will never forgive them for making me cry MULTIPLE TIMES. They scared the crap out of me for a minute there. Although, I do enjoy a good cry from time to time. It can be cathartic.

As for the other characters, I found them all to be absolutely delightful. Sure, I've had a few favourites among them. A certain humanoid rabbit messenger that was a total asshole in the best way possible and cussed at any given moment, for example. (intriguing right?? 🤩🤩) And Hart's apprentice with the best name I've ever seen, Penrose Duckers. WHO NAMES A KID THAT???? 😂😂😂😂 Despite his weird name, he was an awesome character, funny, sweet, and excitable. Pretty much the complete opposite of his mentor. You can guess how amazing the scenes between them were.

You should definitely read this standalone.

This book has the makings of being my favourite book of 2022.

I laughed, I cried and most important of all I could not put it down.

I’d like to say my thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for this copy.

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy is a special little story of the burdened Mercy Birdsall trying to keep her father’s undertaking business afloat and her nemesis Marshal Hart Ralston who’s job it is to keep drudges at bay. It’s a wonderful book with delightful characters and I can honestly say I am devastated that the book is finished, but I’m already looking forward to reading it again.

“Most people start with hello.”

Overview

Hart and Mercy live in a world where trapped souls come back to life by inhabiting the deceased, and can only be removed by destroying the appendix of the person or creature it is inhabiting. Hart is a Marshal, one who patrols the misty world of Tanria where wandering souls are trapped. Mercy is the eldest daughter of one of the border town undertakers, and inheritor of the family business. But ever since their first meeting, Hart and Mercy have been trapped in a mutual hate-hate relationship - with the exception of Mercy’s dog Leonard.

After a mysterious letter - penned but not signed by Hart himself - gets delivered to Mercy, a friendship is struck. But can the budding romance survive the hardest hurdle of any distance relationship - meeting face-to-face?

What I Liked

I absolutely loved both Hart and Mercy! Their characters are fun and relatable, though their actions can be frustrating at times. I loved the dynamic between Mercy and her family, and Hart and Duckers, not to mention Leonard! And the banter, so much banter!

I also really liked the world they were in. I really like Megan’s fantasy worlds and how there is always an element of religion and philosophy. It was really interesting how there were demigod characters (Hart and Alma) but the story focused more on their mortality and human traits while using the concept of immortality as a character development device.

In regards to the sex scenes (yes, there were multiple!), can we please take a moment to appreciate the lack of cruingey euphemisms (Maas I’m looking at you)! Not a single velvet-wrapped steel in sight, thank goodness! Also the face that all throughout the book, *both* Hart and Mercy were ogling the other. We love equal ogling here!

“I notice all boobs, regardless of their owners.”

What I Didn’t Like

The worldbuilding was a bit confusing at the start, with a lot of terminology that was never really explained properly. It wasn’t until there was a description of an “autoduck” driving on an actual road that I realised it was supposed to be a car like vehicle not a boat! And how an equimaris differed from a regular horse wasn’t really clarified until much later in the book.

There were also a few moments as mentioned earlier that I found myself frustrated with both Hart and Mercy. I find the miscommunication trope incredibly irksome and as our protagonists were both prone to jumping to conclusions, I found myself getting a bit frustrated at them. On the whole though, it worked well to help develop their relationship and was used well as a device, so I’m not too bothered by it.

“If people can’t remember gods, think how easily forgotten any of us are.”

Other Impressions

Overall I loved this fun, heartbreaking tale of love, lonliness, friendship and family. Of how hard it can be to do the right thing, and how easy it is to get caught up in our misconceptions of others. I loved that the characters were fully grown adults, showing that it’s okay not to have your life all sorted out by your 30s. But with friends, family, and furbabies, everything will turn out alright.

“For the first time in a long, long while, he wasn’t alone.”

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen was a fantasy romance unlike I’ve ever read before.

Hart patrols the land and protects it from drudges who are beings with a lost soul. The soul is somehow connected to the appendix and that was rather random. In general I felt like the world wasn’t fully explained. His task is rather lonely and dangerous and whenever he brings the dead bodies to Mercy‘s family business, he likes to have a bit of human contact and is very enamored by Mercy and her dog.

Mercy on the other hand doesn’t need her life to be more complicated than it already is. She works way too hard to keep the family business Birdsall & Son Undertakers, a funeral business, up and running. I honestly didn’t understand why she even does that as it’s more of an obligation to her and in return she doesn’t have a life or freedom of her own.

My favorite part of this book were the letters they wrote to each other. Those were very soulful and I wished to see more of that in their actual romance.

Overall, if you are looking for a unique fantasy story that is equally macabre as well as whimsical, this might be for you. 3 stars.

(ARC kindly provided in exchange for a review.)

Firstly I’d like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC 🥰❤️

From the first time Hart drops off a body to Mercy they rub each other up the wrong way. They loathe each other, cannot stand the sight of each other. When Marshal Hart decides that to write a letter to ‘A Friend’ it finds its way to Undertaker Mercy and, when she decides to write back the pair end up nameless pen pals. They share their worries, lives and bare their souls. It’s only when the pair decide to meet that Hart realises his ‘friend’ is Mercy and, though their feelings have grown on paper, she doesn’t care to meet Hart in real life instead waiting for her anonymous friend to arrive. However after saving her life from a druge, Mercy lets Hart into her life not knowing he is her paper pal and Hart is afraid that if he tells the truth he might loose her forever…

(I don’t want to go any further as I want to keep this spoiler free ❤️❤️)

Marcy and Hart’s grumpy/grumpy, enemies to lovers and slow burn relationship drove me wild!! I wanted them together the minute I started reading the book and the wait was so worth it!! The hate flirting was magic!! They’re both beautifully written, both strong, gifted and venerable. Absolutely perfect for each other (the Lizzie and Darcy vibes are the one!!) 🥰🥰 I’m also pretty obsessed with Pen. He’s a brilliantly written character who really shows Hart’s heart. Their relationship is almost a slow burn of it’s own.

There’s a lot of love in The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy. On both MC’s sides there’s lots of love ❤️❤️ It gave me THAT feeling in my chest that you get when you know your reading a great romance novel and, yes, I did cry. More than once 🥹❤️

I LOVED this book. More than loved to be honest, it has so much I love. Demi Gods, zombies and undertakers. Kinda fantasy cowboys that are super sexy as well (Harts my new love 🥵❤️). The constant talk of delicious baked goods made me hungry the whole time as well 😂😍 The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy is one of the easiest ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I’ve ever given. This book is beyond perfect.

Can I start by saying that this book was the breath of fresh air I needed this month!
I didn’t know what I was expecting going into it but I was hooked instantly,
The witty back and forth, the puns, I’m just a sucker for enemies to lovers and this is the epitome of that.

I’ve read a lot of books this year and this book was the perfect book palette cleanser.

Mercy is the gentle, clever, soulful female lead we all needed and hart the perfect opposition for her, harsh and cold but with an underlying need for love and affection.

Perfect for those fans who want a quirky (often steamy) romance which is a bit spooky, I would strongly recommend this book!

I received an electronic advanced reader copy of this book In exchange for my honest opinions. Thank you to Megan Bannen and Little Brown books for letting me read this before it’s release.

I’m not going to lie, I requested this book solely based on that gorgeous cover, so I went in blind. I try not to judge a book based purely on a glance, but in this case I’m SO glad I did.

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy is a book that any fantasy lover should give a try. As it stands, I can’t say I’ve read many books that involve undertakers, but after this I’d give any in future a shot.

Bannen addresses the often undesirable nature of this job while still making it full of respect and dare I say beauty. From reading her do her job alone I felt a strong desire to root for Mercy, made even stronger by the pressures surrounding her.

I absolutely loved Hart as well; seeing his progress with his apprentice and his own struggles was heartwarming and I couldn’t wait to see what happened next with everyone.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Orbit for letting me read an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts!

3.5 stars

I am not a romance girly, however, I am very much a fan-of-dead-bodies (in an anatomical way!!!) girly, so I was obviously intrigued by this book. I decided to give it a go since grumpy/sunshine also happens to be one of my favorite tropes and I've been reading more fantasy romance as of late.

Let's start with the things I loved: the world this is set in is absolutely amazing. It's built with a lot of care and holds so much detail and promise. Even when the romance plot wasn't moving ahead, I was incredibly invested in learning more about the setting. The mythology was very intriguing and the concept of an ethereal place suspended in time suddenly being accessible to humans was great and executed well.

Also, I liked how queer-normative this world was. Even when the main couple doesn't fall under the queer umbrella, it's something I always love seeing.

I obviously also really enjoyed the fact that Mercy is an undertaker and absolutely adores her job. It's a rather odd profession for the lead of a romance novel, but it worked so well with her character, and the way she approached and appreciated her job was so fun to read.

The romance was okay in my book. I did enjoy their dynamic, but the way Hart described his attraction to Mercy in the beginning did definitely kinda rub me the wrong way. Then again, perhaps that's pretty standard in the romance genre - I wouldn't know, so take this with a grain of salt! I just didn't love it.
I thought their secret pen-pal situation was such a sweet way for them to grow closer, and I did really enjoy how their relationship progressed.
The obligatory third act breakup due to miscommunication and them being dumb was, as anticipated, super infuriating, and I could have done without.

Altogether, I still enjoyed this much more than I anticipated, although there were some minor issues I had! I'd definitely recommend it to people looking for fantasy romance with creative settings, incredibly tall, demigod men and a twinge of angst,

This is quite honestly the most bonkers, entertaining, and pleasantly surprising book I’ve read yet in 2022. I loved every page! It’s part romance, part mystery, part fantasy, part… I don’t even know. It’s just great.

We’ve got a fantastic cast of characters, particularly Hart, Mercy and Duckers who who give the book its heart and soul. We’ve got a very small amount of world building, but this somehow works and every so often the author gives us a new, totally random nugget of information to help with this and that just made me laugh.
The writing flows beautifully, it’s easy to read, it’s full of humour too as well as being totally emotion inducing.

I’d never heard of this author before but so many people raving about this book that I just had to request it! I’m so glad I did, I think it will make a great comfort read in the future.

If I’m being picky, I’d have really liked to have seen a map for this world just to help me visualise a bit better, but as the book progressed I found myself needing one less and less.

All in all a totally surprising read that I’m really glad to have read.

I read this as a buddy read with my sister and even though romance isn't a thing I pick up in fantasy, this was enemy to lovers done well.
Not quite my cup of tea but I have plenty of people I know who would absolutely love this book!