Never Nap in a Casket

by J.W. Hodge

TBA

Genres: Audiobook

Audible Audio

Published January 7, 2025

Reviews

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good addition to a new series. The mystery was fascinating and had so many different layers that you never really knew if it had finally been solved. There’s a lot of characters to keep track of and, as always, the dogs were my favorites. The audiobook was well done with the exception of the Australian accent, that alternated between passable to comical at times. Despite this, I will continue with the series.

I received a copy from #NetGalley for an honest review.

[Victoria ~ Tea with a Book Dragon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you so much to Netgalley and J.W. Hodge for this ARC of Never Nap in a Casket. This was not what I expected! This is a fun and witty murder mystery with both predictable and unforeseen elements. I did not expect that ending!

My one issue with this book is that our main character. For the most part she seems to be the only person who really has things put together. However, it really bothered me how she over sexualizes both Killian and Axel. They are humans and not all men are looking at her with lust in their eyes. I choose to believe that she is this way due to her mother who is rather vapid.

Over all this was definitely a fun read and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a cozy mystery!

[Megan Rang · Rating 4 out of 5]

*****I received this free audiobook from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

A cozy mystery where a family who run a mortuary is tossed into a murder mystery. When her brother goes missing and his new fiancée is found dead there is definitely a mystery to be solved. I love the 3 cute dogs who play a minor role in this book

[Raylene Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

The cover of this book immediately caught my attention. While this is a solid murder mystery, I found it hard to fully connect with the story. Unfortunately, I didn’t really care for any of the characters, which made it difficult to get invested.

That said, I listened to the audiobook and really enjoyed the narrator’s voice.

Thank you to RBmedia and NetGalley for providing me with this ALC in exchange for my honest review.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book #2 in the Never Series!

Cute. Fun. Fast paced. A little raunchy. A little romance-y. And overall, had me giggling… 🤭

Mercedes Harrigan (Sadie) is in for a treat as her brother (Cary Grant Harrigan) comes to her small Idahoan town for a visit! Unfortunately he shows up with his girlfriend/fiancée who Sadie does not care for at all!

But, he promises to take Sadie and Grandma (Gram) out for a nice dinner…and so, they go! But in the middle, dinner is interrupted, by the police…and it all seems to go downhill from here… 😮

Once again, Sadie and Rebbie (Reb, her bff) are looking to get to the bottom of this…but they are met with obstacles at every step!

And then, when Sadie has to get her mother (Willie) involved, well, the laughs just keep coming…. 🤣

And now, for book #2 we have Hot Cop as #1 and Hot Aussie Guy Axel as the #2 love interest/sexy guy in town.

Add to that Gram (the mortician) and her assistant (who I can’t remember the name…but a strange one…) and you are in for a real treat!!

Murders. Mobsters. Fires. Escapes. I fell like it has a Stephanie Plum type vibe…(IYKYK…😬😉)

Oh…and the two crazy Dachshunds, Bogart and Bacall, (a black and tan and a long haired red…just like mine…) are joined by a psycho Schnauzer who’s being fostered! 🐾❤️🐾❤️🐾❤️

#NeverNapInACasket (Never Series #2) by #JWHodge and narrated sweetly by #MiaBarron.

Thanks so much to #NetGalley and #RBMedia (#RecordedBooksMedia) for an ARC of the audiobook which releases TODAY!! So, look 👀 for it on shelves NOW!!

You can also find my reviews on: Goodreads,
Insta @BookReviews_with_emsr and/or
My Facebook Book Club: Book Reviews With Elaine

Thanks so much for reading! And if you ‘liked’ my review, please share with your friends, & click ‘LIKE’ below… And, let me know YOUR thoughts if you read it!! 📚⭐️

[Cozy Reader Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Never Nap in a Casket" by J.W. Hodge is the 2nd book in this series (I can't find a series name at the time of writing this). It's an interesting take on a cozy-ish mystery. Mercedes (Sadie) Harrigan is a landlord, book writer and animal lover. However, the more interesting take is that this feels like a cozy romance thriller mystery more than just a cozy mystery. Lots of over the top dramatic moments that you'd see in PI thriller mysteries but no romance scenes more than a kiss. Just some of the descriptions seem more romance genre than cozy mystery genre level. Plus some of the names are very old Hollywood.

For the mystery, Sadie's brother and his fiancé are staying in one of her apartments while they work on some possibly iffy get rich sales scheme that ends up with the fiancé dead and her brother in hiding. Sadie jumps right into finding him and trying to prove his innocence. She encounters the detective she has a crush on, and who seems to have an on/off relationship with her bff? Luckily for her he is sending some pretty strong signals back he's at least attracted to her. However, there is another hunky possibility that even has an accent. I just leave it all at that as much more would lead to spoilers.

[Katie Myers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super fun, fast, cozy mystery that follows Sadie and a quirky group of neighbors as they try and solve a murder where Sadie's brother is the prime suspect. The book was fast paced and had included an adorable trio of curious pups to really keep me hooked! This is the second in a cozy mystery series, but you can totally jump in at this book. Thank you to NetGalley for an Audio Arc copy!


I loved the small town setting and the cast of characters. Most of the characters, especially Sadie's family, felt very unique and fleshed out. There were two female characters that felt interchangeable though as they were both town gossips that were placed into certain locations to further the plot.


The humor was hit or miss for me. Some of the jokes felt cringy and a bit dated (not always politically correct), but others I thought were really clever and introspective. For example, one character repeatedly tells Sadie that this is not a one hour crime show and no suspect is going to confess or that labs take days for results to come in, which I thought was funny.


The mystery itself was not the most groundbreaking, but it was twisty enough that I was hooked for the whole time.

Overall, Never Nap in a Casket is a super fast and entertaining read!

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

If the News and life have you down, this book is a guaranteed antidote! The characters are beyond ROFL, and that includes the pet Dachshunds named Bogart and Bacall! There's art theft, murder by gold paint, a teenaged ghostbuster, a dishy local cop, and a family so looney even mine felt normal. A fun read well narrated!
Voice actor Mia Barron has the script well in hand and highlights all the fun stuff well.
*I requested and received a free temporary audio file from RBmedia | Recorded Books via NetGalley. Thank you! Loved it so much that I went and bought book 1 on audio!
#NeverNapInACasket by J.W. Hodge Narrated by Mia Barron #SeriesNeverBk2 #Hilarious
@goodreads @bookbub @librarythingofficial #Mystery @barnesandnoble ***** Review @booksamillion @bookshop_org #Suspense @bookshop_org_uk @kobo @Waterstones

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish this one was getting more attention! If you like light mysteries, this is a fun, funny, and well crafted story.

The bones of this series are similar to other light mystery series, though it stays well away from the irritating, formulaic stuff common to what I would label a true cozy mystery. There’s a lot of comedy to this, and the author keeps you laughing without ever getting obnoxious. There’s some absurdity to both the humor and the mystery itself, but it works well for the story.

I cringed a lot at the interactions between the protagonist and the sorta love interest cop, but that didn’t have a lot of impact on what is overall a well-structured and very enjoyable mystery. This has some complexity to it without getting bogged down in needless overcomplication, and the sense of place is fun and well-drawn.

*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

[ems_booknook · Rating 3 out of 5]

There’s times when you look at a book cover, and instantly think yes, this one is for me.

For me… it had dogs and a title that caught my eye immediately.

I learned a lesson that I should not judge books this way, and at least check the genre before delving in 🤣

This wasn’t a bad book, I’m just not really big into cozy mystery. I think if you do love this genre, you will love this book.

It was a quick and easy read with little pops of humour if that’s your thing! I listened to the audio and I did actually really enjoy the narrator, she was very easy to listen to and brings life into the characters. I can find some narrators monotone and not suitable to the character but this one was a great choice.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this review copy

[Suzi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley for my copy.

Hmm, this was alright but just not gripping.

Some thing(s) I liked:
✅The gagging and pretending to throw up to get out of a dangerous situation made me laugh.
✅Cute cover.

Some thing(s), not so much:
⭕Omg, this is an audio book and I assumed the author was doing the really bad accents (especially the Australian) to make it obvious that the character wasn't who they said they were. But that wasn't it at all, the narrator was just really really bad at Australian accents and whilst it was funny, it really peed me off every time she changed to it.
⭕What's wrong with looking like an eighties rock star? XD

[Myprivatebookclub · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has been more entertaining, funny and interesting than expected.
I enjoyed every minute of this read. Read the book quickly and could not wait to see the ending. It has been interesting, smart, the characters have been funny, humorous, dialogues have been easy to follow up.
The names of the characters have been different, the action was never ending, there was a little bir of almost everything, but all in great quantities, a small town and its inhabitants, the grandma, her assistant, fiancee, my fingers cannot type quick enough to catch up with my mind. I am smiling and giggling while writing this review.
Please give this book a try.

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the audio version. The narrator did a good job. The story itself was okay... this is part of a series but I feel like I didn't really miss anything from previous novels, even though I felt like there was past issues brought up. The plot was a typical murder mystery in a small town but I found all the characters just dull. I only like the Grandma ha. But all in all it was disappointing and won't stand out to me down the road. I do agree with some of the other reviewers that said it felt like the author was trying to be funny at times but it just kind of fell flat in those parts.

[Macy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A small-town, murder mystery/whodunit about family and all the insanity they bring. An interesting, bizarre and not terribly likable cast of characters. I listened to this, but might have enjoyed it more had I read it. The narration for some characters was enjoyable and for others, did not work for me and took from the listening experience. Overacted and exaggerated to the point of annoyance.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

[Kristyn Schrier · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a fun, sort of cozy, mystery. There were lots of twists and turns and a lot of characters to keep up with. I just wasn't really into it. I'm more of a thriller or dark mystery girl so maybe this was just not it for me. Overall I enjoyed it but it was a bit lacking, for me that is.

The Narrator was good other than the Aussie accent that kind of came and went. Otherwise the rest was good.

Thank you to Netgalley for an e-audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Dianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the free ARC I got from #Netgalley, I really enjoyed the main character and it was interesting g that she not only has her own apartment building to run, but her grandmother runs the local funeral home. I’m hoping
g the brother character continues to grow fans not stay the lame guy he kind of starts out as In The beginning of the story.

[Leathie Bickmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

such a cute local "who did it?" mystery with a little pop of longing and romance. love reading local authors, i have a lot of respect for people who take a chance and put their work out there. awesome job!

I would recommend reading her first book, I didn't, I started with this one and felt like I was a little lost with some of the references.

[ASala311 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid 3.5 stars! A murder mystery that gives Stephanie Plum vibes. A cast of wacky characters for sure. I did not read the first book but I don’t think it’s necessary. The storyline is easy to follow with no prior knowledge.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the audiobook ARC!

[JC Brody · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you are looking for a fun mystery with heart this is a great read. I appreciate the lack of explicit language and sexual content. A great bingeable read.

[Dana Douglas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun read! It is reminiscent of the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich with a surprising twist at the end.

[Savannah-Marie ✮❁~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rating - 2.5
A cosy-ish murder mystery with surprises and sausage dogs.

𝐒𝐨 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤?
❤️ I listened to this all in one sitting, which straight away tells you something! It had a lot of characters which added to the ‘whodunit’ feeling, I was constantly switching between who I thought the murderer was right in until the very end. Over all i think this was a really fun, witty, cosy murder mystery with the wonderful addition of the Black and Tan Dachshund(I may be biased here 😉)

💔 Unfortunately I was not a fan of the narration of this audiobook purely due to the character voices. Some of them sounded so similar i did get confused a couple of times on who was talking. I feel like I would have enjoyed this more reading it, rather than listening.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭? ⬇️
Sadie, the owner of an apartment block, finds herself back in the middle of a murder, the brother’s fiancée who has came into town to say hello… but now the brother is also missing…

Follow along with Sadie, her eccentric grandma, two loyal dachshunds and others to try and find the brother and find out who committed the murder and why! 🐾

[Nora Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

As far as cozy mysteries go, this one was okay. I wasn't particularly connected to the characters or invested in the story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the audiobook