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The Grave Keepers: An Atmospheric YA Ghost Story About Sisters Bound by a Cemetery and Dark Secrets
Lately, Athena Windham has been spending all her spare time in her grave.
Her parents—owners of a cemetery in Upstate New York—are proud of her devoutness, but her younger sister, Laurel, would rather spend her time exploring the forest that surrounds the Windham’s’ property than in her own grave.
The Windham girls lead secluded lives—their older sister died in a tragic accident and their parents’ protectiveness has made the family semi-infamous.
As the new school year begins, the outside world comes creeping in through encounters with mean girls, a new friend, and a runaway boy hiding out in the cemetery. Meanwhile, a ghost hangs around the Windham property—the only grave keeper never to cross over—plotting how to keep the sisters close to home and close to her . . . forever.
Her parents—owners of a cemetery in Upstate New York—are proud of her devoutness, but her younger sister, Laurel, would rather spend her time exploring the forest that surrounds the Windham’s’ property than in her own grave.
The Windham girls lead secluded lives—their older sister died in a tragic accident and their parents’ protectiveness has made the family semi-infamous.
As the new school year begins, the outside world comes creeping in through encounters with mean girls, a new friend, and a runaway boy hiding out in the cemetery. Meanwhile, a ghost hangs around the Windham property—the only grave keeper never to cross over—plotting how to keep the sisters close to home and close to her . . . forever.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published September 12, 2017
14 people are currently reading
2702 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
Want to read
February 26, 201722/02/17 — this sounds...strange, and therefore I am interested.
August 31, 2020
This was weird?
September 19, 2017
3.5/5 stars
The Grave Keepers is a standalone Young Adult novel.
I can't exactly say what genre this book is. There is a ghost so it has minor paranormal elements.
At first I could not tell if this was a contemporary novel or if the story was set in some alternate universe. Basically the world is exactly how it is now, except that many people (who are alive) spend time in their graves. They decorate them and think in them. It is a completely original concept. But it's completely bizarre.
The narrators are sisters Athena (in 11th grade) and Laurel (in 8th grade)(both 3rd person POVs). The book goes back and forth between both sisters, which I found a bit confusing (POV changed a lot in the same chapter).
Their parents own a cemetery. But their main business is grave openings and grounds-keeping.
Grave openings are parties thrown when a child turns 13. They are given the key to their grave and they are then supposed to spend time in that grave. I guess they then become grave keepers (keepers of their graves).
I will say that it took me a while to get into this book. The premise was just so odd. And I had a hard time figuring out what was going on. But once I got into the story I started to really like the book. The sisters had people their age who they interacted with and I thought that added a lot to the story.
The book has a bit of a creepy vibe with their being a ghost and with people going in their graves.
Overall, this story has a very unique premise. However, I was confused when I started. I could not tell if the book was a contemporary novel or some weird alternate universe or paranormal. Also at first I thought that everybody in the world was a grave keeper/had a grave, which is not the case. So a bit more explanation of the world would have been great. But it was a very interesting read.
Thanks to edelweiss and HarperTeen for allowing me to read this book.
The Grave Keepers is a standalone Young Adult novel.
I can't exactly say what genre this book is. There is a ghost so it has minor paranormal elements.
At first I could not tell if this was a contemporary novel or if the story was set in some alternate universe. Basically the world is exactly how it is now, except that many people (who are alive) spend time in their graves. They decorate them and think in them. It is a completely original concept. But it's completely bizarre.
The narrators are sisters Athena (in 11th grade) and Laurel (in 8th grade)(both 3rd person POVs). The book goes back and forth between both sisters, which I found a bit confusing (POV changed a lot in the same chapter).
Their parents own a cemetery. But their main business is grave openings and grounds-keeping.
Grave openings are parties thrown when a child turns 13. They are given the key to their grave and they are then supposed to spend time in that grave. I guess they then become grave keepers (keepers of their graves).
I will say that it took me a while to get into this book. The premise was just so odd. And I had a hard time figuring out what was going on. But once I got into the story I started to really like the book. The sisters had people their age who they interacted with and I thought that added a lot to the story.
The book has a bit of a creepy vibe with their being a ghost and with people going in their graves.
Overall, this story has a very unique premise. However, I was confused when I started. I could not tell if the book was a contemporary novel or some weird alternate universe or paranormal. Also at first I thought that everybody in the world was a grave keeper/had a grave, which is not the case. So a bit more explanation of the world would have been great. But it was a very interesting read.
Thanks to edelweiss and HarperTeen for allowing me to read this book.
January 15, 2018
So this will rather be a comment than a real review, because to be honest I have pretty much nothing to say about this book.
It's one of the rare, if not the only time someting like this happens to me. Usually, even if I disliked a book, I have something to say about it: flaws, things that disturbed me and even some good points sometimes! But here, I just don't know... You can't even imagine how frustrating it is. Even with bad books, I have several quotes I picked from the book to at least give the other readers a little glimpse into it. But there, it was just a big, great empty for me, and I still don't know what the point of that book was? I mean, the story was so original and groundbreaking, but literally nothing happens during the entire story? It's just some random, down to earth events happening one after the other, but there's nothing? Like, maybe I felt my heartbeat rose for 1% at ONE scene, but otherwise I was literally close to death. I would have understood the lack of action if maybe the book held a deeper meaning, but either I'm completely dumb, or it didn't have any? All I read was the everyday life of teenage girls and the ghost I was promised in the summary was almost nowhere to be seen? Plus, it's not explained why people have graves before they die and why they just find it normal to get inside them to think and relax? There's just no world-building or history?
So yeah, I'm just so disappointed, because it sounded so fresh and great and just so original, but it was just shallow and not really interesting in my opinion? I really don't know, this book truly left me confused, I'm still wondering about its purpose...
It's one of the rare, if not the only time someting like this happens to me. Usually, even if I disliked a book, I have something to say about it: flaws, things that disturbed me and even some good points sometimes! But here, I just don't know... You can't even imagine how frustrating it is. Even with bad books, I have several quotes I picked from the book to at least give the other readers a little glimpse into it. But there, it was just a big, great empty for me, and I still don't know what the point of that book was? I mean, the story was so original and groundbreaking, but literally nothing happens during the entire story? It's just some random, down to earth events happening one after the other, but there's nothing? Like, maybe I felt my heartbeat rose for 1% at ONE scene, but otherwise I was literally close to death. I would have understood the lack of action if maybe the book held a deeper meaning, but either I'm completely dumb, or it didn't have any? All I read was the everyday life of teenage girls and the ghost I was promised in the summary was almost nowhere to be seen? Plus, it's not explained why people have graves before they die and why they just find it normal to get inside them to think and relax? There's just no world-building or history?
So yeah, I'm just so disappointed, because it sounded so fresh and great and just so original, but it was just shallow and not really interesting in my opinion? I really don't know, this book truly left me confused, I'm still wondering about its purpose...
October 29, 2017
The book wasn't really interesting. It also left a lot of things up to speculating. I thought the ghost would have a huge elaborate plan but he just tried to kill Laurel. I thought it would be more interesting but it wasn't The characters were okay and I was a little confused because they didn't really explain the religion on the graves. I was a little confused until I figured it out on my own. I thought the book was a little disappointing and there wasn't anything super exciting about it. It didn't wow me so I thought i was okay.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2018
I really enjoyed this book a lot. I hadn't heard any buzz about it, but I randomly saw it in the store and decided to give it a chance. Because honestly? A story about a family who lives at a cemetery and takes care of graves? Sign me up.
On top of having a neat concept and a unique world, this book is also full of interesting characters. Laurel is probably my favorite - something about her free spirit really reminded me of my youngest cousin when she was little, so as I read I grew to be extra fond of her.
The writing was excellent and the plot was intriguing, and I flew through it in order to see how it ended. There were a few things that didn't get wrapped up for me , but overall this book was really good, and I'm glad I gave it a chance.
4 stars!
On top of having a neat concept and a unique world, this book is also full of interesting characters. Laurel is probably my favorite - something about her free spirit really reminded me of my youngest cousin when she was little, so as I read I grew to be extra fond of her.
The writing was excellent and the plot was intriguing, and I flew through it in order to see how it ended. There were a few things that didn't get wrapped up for me , but overall this book was really good, and I'm glad I gave it a chance.
4 stars!
January 20, 2018
The Grave Keepers by Elizabeth Byrne is an odd book - a good one, but definitely an odd one. Such a unique book is a bit difficult to review without major spoilers.
Here goes: The story's premise of a religion/cultural tradition of tending to your own grave (with doors, locks, keys, and decorations, etc. from the age of thirteen - beginning with a Quincinera-type coming-of-age party, but totally grave-centered) is bizarre, to say the least. Throw in a supernatural twist (a lone, lonely ghost that haunts the family, the graveyard, and the surrounding area) and a weird story has gotten even weirder.
Most of the storylines are tied up pretty neatly and those threads that are left hanging feel appropriate.
An interesting book and a quick read The Grave Keepers is worth the time.
Here goes: The story's premise of a religion/cultural tradition of tending to your own grave (with doors, locks, keys, and decorations, etc. from the age of thirteen - beginning with a Quincinera-type coming-of-age party, but totally grave-centered) is bizarre, to say the least. Throw in a supernatural twist (a lone, lonely ghost that haunts the family, the graveyard, and the surrounding area) and a weird story has gotten even weirder.
Most of the storylines are tied up pretty neatly and those threads that are left hanging feel appropriate.
An interesting book and a quick read The Grave Keepers is worth the time.
September 16, 2018
As imaginative and atmospheric as this was, it lacked action and direction. I was waiting for something, anything, to happen. I'm still not sure what the point was. I was very intrigued by the writing style, characters and concept so I continued to trudge through, but the plot was severely lacking.
February 13, 2020
The details in this book took my breath away. Portraying two sisters growing up homeschooled on a “farm,” it reminded me of things I had done in my own childhood and forgotten about. I loved the aesthetic and the vulnerability of this novel. One of my new favorites. Beautiful and offbeat.
Wild Beauty + Farewell Summer
Wild Beauty + Farewell Summer
September 10, 2017
The Grave Keepers is a Young Adult book that I would say borders on Middle Grade. I think the topic of death is what makes some people push it over to the YA side of things. I am not really big into the MG book genre so this book was a little slow and hard for me to get into at first but after about thirty pages it picked up the pace for me. This is a great ghost story for younger readers and I highly suggest it. If you are one of those people who get easily scared and keep away from spooky books then this might be something you could actually handle. The best way I can describe it is... it's a light-hearted kind of spooky.
When I first started, I thought the book was going to be slightly historical. Laurel, one of the main characters, just made it seem like she was from an earlier time. I cannot explain is as well I would like to. But then I realized it was a combination of Laurel and the town she was living in. Everything just had this whimsical feel to it for me.
The book has a dual POV narrative. It goes back and forth between Laurel and Athena, the girls are sisters. One is about sixteen and the other is around twelve. We also get another random perspective from a paranormal friend. Sometimes I got a little confused between perspectives but it wasn't enough to deter me from reading it.
Laurel and Athena's family runs a cemetery. But this isn't the normal kind of cemetery, this is a place where you can go to sit in your own grave. Yes, you read that right. You can spent all the time you want in your own grave. You can decorate it however you like. Your grave is your own personal space and no one is allowed to invade is unless invited. So with being cemetery owners, add losing a daughter into the mix and things get pretty weird. Parents become over protective and people in the town look at Laurel and Athena with pity in their eyes even though Laurel wasn't even born when her oldest sister died.
Athena is in high school and it seems like she doesn't fit in. She was the older of the two protagonists but I found myself liking Laurel, the younger sisters, perspective a bit more. Athena takes her grave very seriously and starts spending a lot more time in it. She has it decorated and I think she uses it as a way to escape from everything, her sister included.
In the end, I wasn't entirely sold on the ending but we all have our own endings planned out in our head, right? I would still recommend this book and hope you guys give it a chance! Halloween is coming up. Perfect time for ghost stories!
Overall, I gave the book 4/5 stars.
When I first started, I thought the book was going to be slightly historical. Laurel, one of the main characters, just made it seem like she was from an earlier time. I cannot explain is as well I would like to. But then I realized it was a combination of Laurel and the town she was living in. Everything just had this whimsical feel to it for me.
The book has a dual POV narrative. It goes back and forth between Laurel and Athena, the girls are sisters. One is about sixteen and the other is around twelve. We also get another random perspective from a paranormal friend. Sometimes I got a little confused between perspectives but it wasn't enough to deter me from reading it.
Laurel and Athena's family runs a cemetery. But this isn't the normal kind of cemetery, this is a place where you can go to sit in your own grave. Yes, you read that right. You can spent all the time you want in your own grave. You can decorate it however you like. Your grave is your own personal space and no one is allowed to invade is unless invited. So with being cemetery owners, add losing a daughter into the mix and things get pretty weird. Parents become over protective and people in the town look at Laurel and Athena with pity in their eyes even though Laurel wasn't even born when her oldest sister died.
Athena is in high school and it seems like she doesn't fit in. She was the older of the two protagonists but I found myself liking Laurel, the younger sisters, perspective a bit more. Athena takes her grave very seriously and starts spending a lot more time in it. She has it decorated and I think she uses it as a way to escape from everything, her sister included.
In the end, I wasn't entirely sold on the ending but we all have our own endings planned out in our head, right? I would still recommend this book and hope you guys give it a chance! Halloween is coming up. Perfect time for ghost stories!
Overall, I gave the book 4/5 stars.
dnfs
February 13, 2018Unfortunately, The Grave Keepers felt too flat despite its lyrical and quirky prose. There was also a lot going on and yet it didn't really feel like a lot was happening. The sister relationship wasn't to my liking as well. I really wanted to be closer than they were. There was no love, though. It was all bitterness.
Alas.
Alas.
May 21, 2017
I wish the ending had been a little more solid, but I really liked this. Somewhat strange how it was set in present day because it feels like a book out of time. Mulling it a bit.
June 18, 2017
Interesting read- would have received 5 stars if the ending had just been a bit better ;)
August 12, 2017
Like:
- Concept
- Sibling relationship
- Ghosts
- Setting
- Cover
Dislike:
- Loose ends
- Dull
- Concept
- Sibling relationship
- Ghosts
- Setting
- Cover
Dislike:
- Loose ends
- Dull
dnf
August 28, 2017You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
Maybe this is a situation where it isn't the book, it's me? I was kind of confused about the premise in general- it seemed contemporary, but what is the meaning of the grave keeping? Does everyone in the world do this? What about cremation? I have no idea. And maybe if I had finished it, I'd know those answers. But alas.
I made it to 33% before calling it. And, as you well know, this is not a decision I take lightly. But I was just so bored. I could not. Plus, was there really a point in making myself finish, just to give it a bad rating? Nope, there was not. I liked that there was a big focus on family, but I just couldn't connect to the sisters whose POVs the book alternated between. I felt like nothing at all was happening, and then when I read a few reviews, it said that the ending wasn't great. So I threw in the towel.
*Copy provided for review
Maybe this is a situation where it isn't the book, it's me? I was kind of confused about the premise in general- it seemed contemporary, but what is the meaning of the grave keeping? Does everyone in the world do this? What about cremation? I have no idea. And maybe if I had finished it, I'd know those answers. But alas.
I made it to 33% before calling it. And, as you well know, this is not a decision I take lightly. But I was just so bored. I could not. Plus, was there really a point in making myself finish, just to give it a bad rating? Nope, there was not. I liked that there was a big focus on family, but I just couldn't connect to the sisters whose POVs the book alternated between. I felt like nothing at all was happening, and then when I read a few reviews, it said that the ending wasn't great. So I threw in the towel.
*Copy provided for review
March 2, 2019
I actually really enjoyed this book! It's definitely a bit unusual, so it won't be everyone's cup of tea. But I'm a particular fan of both graveyards and offbeat characters learning how to connect with others, so it was right up my alley. It reminded me of a mix between taphophile-friendly works like Peter Beagle's A Fine and Private Place and Gaiman's The Graveyard Book and older twentieth-century children's books with their romantic emphasis on the connection between youth and the wildness of nature. It's not an especially creepy book, despite its graveyard setting and spectral narrator, though this ghost is not a necessarily benign presence. The driver of the story is really the three main characters and their relationships with one another and how they break free from the isolation they each feel.
September 16, 2017
The Grave Keepers by Elizabeth Byrne has been on my radar for months now. The synopsis was so vague and strange and pretty much instantly caught my attention. I had no idea what this story was going to be about but the unknown is what made me want to read it even more.
In this version of our world, everyone gets access to their grave at the age of 13. Your grave has a door and a key that only you can open. It is encouraged that you go and visit your grave often for the rest of your life because your grave is essentially your everlasting home. People decorate their graves and go in them to think, and thus the phrase “Grave Keeper.” The Grave Keepers follows two sisters, Laurel and Athena, and another mystery narrator. Laurel is a homeschooled middle schooler and Athena is a junior in high school. Their parents own the biggest cemetery in the area and because of it, they are sort of outcasts.
The book was interesting, but sadly, I didn’t think it was wow your socks off great.
The first good, I don’t know, 25% of the book is nothing but info dumping. I understand the need for world building but this just went way too overboard. We were getting details about exactly who was doing what and why, what Laurel heard outside (“carpenter bee helicoptering under the eaves”) and also all the minuscule things she didn’t hear that were going on outside in nature (“leaves sucking in lungfuls of sunlight”). Maybe some people will find this writing style poetic and appreciate it but I got so bogged down I worried I wouldn’t be able to keep going. This world was no different than our own aside from the hanging out in our own grave bit so all the descriptive details were unnecessary I thought. Also, in the beginning, the dialogue was choppy and pointless? Nothing really flowed well and nothing eventful happened. It took until way too long for some action, any action, to take place for my liking. Again, this might not bother people but I’m a hit the ground running and fill in the gaps as we go on type person…sooo yeah.
Because we have two narrators in two very different stages of adolescence, this book fluctuated a bit from being more MG geared and sort of YA. Overall, I think we spent the most time with Laurel (the middle schooler) so I’d say this has more an MG vibe. But surprisingly, I thought Laurel was more mature than her older sister. Athena was kind of whiny and had that poor pitiful me thing going for a bit so I preferred Laurel’s take on life. I’ll also say that the switching narrators was really confusing at times. You have to really pay attention because they don’t switch off each chapter, both voices take turns throughout every chapter. In the beginning, I definitely had the hardest time keeping track of who we were focusing on.
If you take out the whole first 30% of the book, I will say the next 70% was better. The overly detailed descriptions stopped, as a reader you start to get a feel of what narrator we’re on, and an actual plot took place. Given this, that’s why I said I liked it. It was an interesting contemporary (but kind of not) book. This is really vague and I apologize but I’m having a hard time telling you what it’s like without spoiling the whole thing. Basically, Athena is trying to branch out and make friends and Laurel, who is homeschooled, makes a friend but under not so normal circumstances. There’s some mystery surrounding their deceased sister’s death but it’s not the focus or anything. Idk, guys. The Grave Keepers was different and peculiar enough you want to keep reading but it wasn’t all action, thrills, mystery, or romance or anything like that.
TL;DR
Rocky beginning chapters with very detailed descriptions and not a lot of goings on. Tough to keep track of narrators at times. Interesting concept about being in charge of your grave from the age of 13 until death. The second half of the book was better.
This review can be found at: The Bookish Daydreamer
In this version of our world, everyone gets access to their grave at the age of 13. Your grave has a door and a key that only you can open. It is encouraged that you go and visit your grave often for the rest of your life because your grave is essentially your everlasting home. People decorate their graves and go in them to think, and thus the phrase “Grave Keeper.” The Grave Keepers follows two sisters, Laurel and Athena, and another mystery narrator. Laurel is a homeschooled middle schooler and Athena is a junior in high school. Their parents own the biggest cemetery in the area and because of it, they are sort of outcasts.
The book was interesting, but sadly, I didn’t think it was wow your socks off great.
The first good, I don’t know, 25% of the book is nothing but info dumping. I understand the need for world building but this just went way too overboard. We were getting details about exactly who was doing what and why, what Laurel heard outside (“carpenter bee helicoptering under the eaves”) and also all the minuscule things she didn’t hear that were going on outside in nature (“leaves sucking in lungfuls of sunlight”). Maybe some people will find this writing style poetic and appreciate it but I got so bogged down I worried I wouldn’t be able to keep going. This world was no different than our own aside from the hanging out in our own grave bit so all the descriptive details were unnecessary I thought. Also, in the beginning, the dialogue was choppy and pointless? Nothing really flowed well and nothing eventful happened. It took until way too long for some action, any action, to take place for my liking. Again, this might not bother people but I’m a hit the ground running and fill in the gaps as we go on type person…sooo yeah.
Because we have two narrators in two very different stages of adolescence, this book fluctuated a bit from being more MG geared and sort of YA. Overall, I think we spent the most time with Laurel (the middle schooler) so I’d say this has more an MG vibe. But surprisingly, I thought Laurel was more mature than her older sister. Athena was kind of whiny and had that poor pitiful me thing going for a bit so I preferred Laurel’s take on life. I’ll also say that the switching narrators was really confusing at times. You have to really pay attention because they don’t switch off each chapter, both voices take turns throughout every chapter. In the beginning, I definitely had the hardest time keeping track of who we were focusing on.
If you take out the whole first 30% of the book, I will say the next 70% was better. The overly detailed descriptions stopped, as a reader you start to get a feel of what narrator we’re on, and an actual plot took place. Given this, that’s why I said I liked it. It was an interesting contemporary (but kind of not) book. This is really vague and I apologize but I’m having a hard time telling you what it’s like without spoiling the whole thing. Basically, Athena is trying to branch out and make friends and Laurel, who is homeschooled, makes a friend but under not so normal circumstances. There’s some mystery surrounding their deceased sister’s death but it’s not the focus or anything. Idk, guys. The Grave Keepers was different and peculiar enough you want to keep reading but it wasn’t all action, thrills, mystery, or romance or anything like that.
TL;DR
Rocky beginning chapters with very detailed descriptions and not a lot of goings on. Tough to keep track of narrators at times. Interesting concept about being in charge of your grave from the age of 13 until death. The second half of the book was better.
This review can be found at: The Bookish Daydreamer
September 2, 2018
I ended up enjoying the book a lot more than I anticipated that I would when I first started. It took me a while to actually get into the story. I really wished that Laurel hadn’t been so sheltered or at least the author spent more time explaining why they forced her to be so isolated. I understand that it is for a reason but I don’t necessarily think it was validated. I would have also liked more information about grace keeping. I felt like I was thrown in and never truly got my footing, even at the end. Overall the book was decent but it does have some flaws.
December 22, 2017
The Grave Keepers focuses on two sisters, Laurel and Athena Windham. Their parents are the towns town grave keepers; They care for the grounds; make gravestones and provide a sort of wedding type business, they do set up and clean up; and provide a grave cake for individuals at their grave opening ceremony. In this world, at the age of thirteen young people are given the key to their grave. Once they are given the key they are expected to spend time in their grave in contemplation. They may decorate their grave and add comforts to it. Each person’s grave is supposed to be for them and them only. The two sisters are considered odd not only due to their parent’s profession but also because their mother chose to home school them after the death of an older sister.
Athena has finally persuaded her parents to allow her to go to the local high school where she discovers it wasn’t what she expected and she tries desperately to fit in with the popular girls. In order to do so she allows one of them, Roxanna, to see inside her grave. This violates one of the tenets of the grave and Athena is concerned that this will have repercussions not just for her but her parents livelihood. Athena has used her grave very much as a typical teenage girl would use her room. She has cuttings about makeup, clothing etc. However, it turns out Roxanna was just using her just to be able to see what goes on in a grave keepers house and grave. Athena does make a real friend in Maude but this story line is pretty typical coming of age tale of a young woman discovering who her true friends are and how to navigate life. There is one part of the story that doesn’t fit in with the usual trope. Athena eventually finds out some dirt on Roxanna which places Roxanna in a more sympathetic light but Athena publicly displays this knowledge in the form of photographs in order to keep Roxanna quiet about Athena’s transgression. I was a little surprised that Athena didn’t show a little more compassion towards Roxanna.
In the meanwhile Laurel has discovered a runaway in the grave yard and is keeping his presence a secret. She has finally found a friend and she too is learning to interact with a slightly broader world.
The Grave Keepers is certainly unique. I do have to say though that the first couple of chapters were a bit confusing. It took me awhile to understand that the graves were spaces for living people to use. I think a little more explanation about the grave opening ritual up front would have been handy as well as some of the reasons for some of the tenets. It just seemed absolutely unbelievable that no one is ever supposed to go into your grave and that Athena is the first person to violate this rule. I cannot believe that ever thirteen year old ever would kept this particular tenet.
The other problem I have with the story is that I’m not quite sure which audience to “sell” this book to. Most of the time a book comes into the library and I know which patron I can persuade to read it. Laurel’s story feels very middle grade, interspersed with Athena’s more typical YA arc.
I think I would have liked the story more if we concentrated on one or the other of the sisters. There is just too much packed into this story – mourning the loss of a child; runaways; trying to fit in; poverty, etc. It would have been better, I think, to focus on one or two of these themes.
Athena has finally persuaded her parents to allow her to go to the local high school where she discovers it wasn’t what she expected and she tries desperately to fit in with the popular girls. In order to do so she allows one of them, Roxanna, to see inside her grave. This violates one of the tenets of the grave and Athena is concerned that this will have repercussions not just for her but her parents livelihood. Athena has used her grave very much as a typical teenage girl would use her room. She has cuttings about makeup, clothing etc. However, it turns out Roxanna was just using her just to be able to see what goes on in a grave keepers house and grave. Athena does make a real friend in Maude but this story line is pretty typical coming of age tale of a young woman discovering who her true friends are and how to navigate life. There is one part of the story that doesn’t fit in with the usual trope. Athena eventually finds out some dirt on Roxanna which places Roxanna in a more sympathetic light but Athena publicly displays this knowledge in the form of photographs in order to keep Roxanna quiet about Athena’s transgression. I was a little surprised that Athena didn’t show a little more compassion towards Roxanna.
In the meanwhile Laurel has discovered a runaway in the grave yard and is keeping his presence a secret. She has finally found a friend and she too is learning to interact with a slightly broader world.
The Grave Keepers is certainly unique. I do have to say though that the first couple of chapters were a bit confusing. It took me awhile to understand that the graves were spaces for living people to use. I think a little more explanation about the grave opening ritual up front would have been handy as well as some of the reasons for some of the tenets. It just seemed absolutely unbelievable that no one is ever supposed to go into your grave and that Athena is the first person to violate this rule. I cannot believe that ever thirteen year old ever would kept this particular tenet.
The other problem I have with the story is that I’m not quite sure which audience to “sell” this book to. Most of the time a book comes into the library and I know which patron I can persuade to read it. Laurel’s story feels very middle grade, interspersed with Athena’s more typical YA arc.
I think I would have liked the story more if we concentrated on one or the other of the sisters. There is just too much packed into this story – mourning the loss of a child; runaways; trying to fit in; poverty, etc. It would have been better, I think, to focus on one or two of these themes.
October 6, 2017
In an alternate reality where spending time in your grave is just as much a part of your daily life as your afterlife, the two Windham sisters and family own a cemetery, grave keeping is in their blood. Athena spends most of her free time in her grave and her parents are proud. Laurel prefers to spend her hours wandering their family’s estate and woods. The girls lived secluded lives due to a tragic accident that claimed the life of the oldest Windham sister. However, changes are afoot for the Windhams. Their resident ghost, the only grave keeper to never cross over, has decided that it is time for the other Windham sisters to join her… forever.
Byrne’s debut novel presents a fresh new story that breaks away from typical paranormal stories and stereotypes. Readers will be fascinated by the author’s descriptions of grave keeping as a rite of passage as typical in the book’s world as getting your driving permit or registering to vote. Athena and Laurel are relatable characters; they struggle and triumph in daily life in the same ways that we do, but the exception is at the end of the day, they take out the key to their grave and go there to think and de-stress. This is a coming-of-age story paired with a new concept and light paranormal influences.
^ My review for the local paper.
Anyway, it was good. I was really fascinated by the main premise and I would have liked to explore that more in depth rather than balancing way too many storylines that the author started and didn't develop or finish. Because of this , the book felt a little dragged out especially since the reader wasn't getting any closure on the numerous plot lines. Writing was very compelling though so I would try another book by this author someday.
Byrne’s debut novel presents a fresh new story that breaks away from typical paranormal stories and stereotypes. Readers will be fascinated by the author’s descriptions of grave keeping as a rite of passage as typical in the book’s world as getting your driving permit or registering to vote. Athena and Laurel are relatable characters; they struggle and triumph in daily life in the same ways that we do, but the exception is at the end of the day, they take out the key to their grave and go there to think and de-stress. This is a coming-of-age story paired with a new concept and light paranormal influences.
^ My review for the local paper.
Anyway, it was good. I was really fascinated by the main premise and I would have liked to explore that more in depth rather than balancing way too many storylines that the author started and didn't develop or finish. Because of this , the book felt a little dragged out especially since the reader wasn't getting any closure on the numerous plot lines. Writing was very compelling though so I would try another book by this author someday.
November 19, 2017
What I Liked
The concept of one's grave kind of being like your private bedroom where no one can enter and you can spend as much time as you'd like alone, lost in your thoughts, is an intriguing one.
I'm not usually a huge fan of paranormal, but I enjoyed the presence of the ghost in this text. She livened up everything in the story and made it fun and even tense.
I loved Athena's character. Although she also seemed a little aged-down for an 11th grader (read below), her insecurities and struggle to fit in after living a sheltered childhood make sense and are so relatable.
What I Didn't Like
Laurel is in 8th grade, but she's written like an 8 year old. Perhaps being secluded and homeschooled makes her seem younger than she is, but I was homeschooled and pretty sheltered (in some ways even more than Laurel) and it didn't stomp down my overall maturity. Running around with a shirt and no pants and then awkwardly realizing other people can see her, forgetting to bathe or wear deodorant for days, asking very childlike questions - those things made me wish that Laurel and Charlie were eight and nine instead of twelve and thirteen. They were just too old to act so young.
I wish there was a little more world-building. I understand the idea of making it as if grave-keeping is natural to the world, so there is no need to explain... but it isn't, and I actually looked up The Grave Keepers on GoodReads about a third of the way through just to see if I could get any glimmer of what was going on.
The concept of one's grave kind of being like your private bedroom where no one can enter and you can spend as much time as you'd like alone, lost in your thoughts, is an intriguing one.
I'm not usually a huge fan of paranormal, but I enjoyed the presence of the ghost in this text. She livened up everything in the story and made it fun and even tense.
I loved Athena's character. Although she also seemed a little aged-down for an 11th grader (read below), her insecurities and struggle to fit in after living a sheltered childhood make sense and are so relatable.
What I Didn't Like
Laurel is in 8th grade, but she's written like an 8 year old. Perhaps being secluded and homeschooled makes her seem younger than she is, but I was homeschooled and pretty sheltered (in some ways even more than Laurel) and it didn't stomp down my overall maturity. Running around with a shirt and no pants and then awkwardly realizing other people can see her, forgetting to bathe or wear deodorant for days, asking very childlike questions - those things made me wish that Laurel and Charlie were eight and nine instead of twelve and thirteen. They were just too old to act so young.
I wish there was a little more world-building. I understand the idea of making it as if grave-keeping is natural to the world, so there is no need to explain... but it isn't, and I actually looked up The Grave Keepers on GoodReads about a third of the way through just to see if I could get any glimmer of what was going on.
Read
October 16, 2017It took me a while to get into this book as I found the worldbuilding confusing, and to be honest, the worldbuilding was probably also the part I was least keen on. Which was, sadly, most of the book.
The premise revolves around the idea of decorating and maintaining your own grave throughout your lifetime, and the various ceremonies and taboos and things that arise because of that (e.g. not entering other people's graves, the 'opening' ceremonies once people reach a certain age, etc), but there didn't seem to be anything else to it. Beyond that, the rest of the world was the same. And not everybody in this version of the world was a 'gravekeeper', although it took me until fairly near the end to work that out because I found it quite unclear. I mean, that point wasn't essential to understanding things, and I did get to grips with enough to understand what was going on, but...
I don't really know how to explain this. The concept wasn't a gimmick, because it was entirely essential to the plot, but I just... didn't really understand WHY? Beyond "imagine our world but people have graves that they treat like super private garden sheds", I didn't really see what the book was trying to DO, maybe.
I was ill at the time that I read it (and when I wrote the original notes for this review), so maybe that's why I didn't get it, but I don't know. There was something missing for me.
The premise revolves around the idea of decorating and maintaining your own grave throughout your lifetime, and the various ceremonies and taboos and things that arise because of that (e.g. not entering other people's graves, the 'opening' ceremonies once people reach a certain age, etc), but there didn't seem to be anything else to it. Beyond that, the rest of the world was the same. And not everybody in this version of the world was a 'gravekeeper', although it took me until fairly near the end to work that out because I found it quite unclear. I mean, that point wasn't essential to understanding things, and I did get to grips with enough to understand what was going on, but...
I don't really know how to explain this. The concept wasn't a gimmick, because it was entirely essential to the plot, but I just... didn't really understand WHY? Beyond "imagine our world but people have graves that they treat like super private garden sheds", I didn't really see what the book was trying to DO, maybe.
I was ill at the time that I read it (and when I wrote the original notes for this review), so maybe that's why I didn't get it, but I don't know. There was something missing for me.
May 22, 2019
The concept for this book is wonderfully original - I can honestly say I haven't seen anything like it before - the cover is cute, and the writing itself is lovely, but that's about it for this book.
This is one of those books that couldn't quite decide what it wanted to be. Is it a middle grade or a ya? (It's classed under ya, but one of the protagonists reads quite young - and is 13 - which made it feel much younger.) Is it a plot driven story, or is it character focused? (I still don't have an answer for that because most of the characters were pretty flat and the plot was almost non-existent until the end.)
This is a short book - 310 pages with the acknowledgments, I think - and that's probably the lone factor that kept me reading, because let me tell you, this book dragged like crazy. As previously mentioned there was not much plot to speak of, and what was "happening" with the characters - spoiler alert: not a lot - was just meh. That's pretty much how I ended this book: meh. There's supposed to be some big reveal at the end, but there isn't enough emotional buy in through the rest of the book to get me to care. I think my reaction was something like: "Oh yeah. Okay. Whatever."
Not a good sign. And not a good sign to be relieved to be done with a book. (Or for it to take 3 weeks to read a 310 page book.) Which again - such a shame! It's a pretty interesting idea. It just failed in execution.
This is one of those books that couldn't quite decide what it wanted to be. Is it a middle grade or a ya? (It's classed under ya, but one of the protagonists reads quite young - and is 13 - which made it feel much younger.) Is it a plot driven story, or is it character focused? (I still don't have an answer for that because most of the characters were pretty flat and the plot was almost non-existent until the end.)
This is a short book - 310 pages with the acknowledgments, I think - and that's probably the lone factor that kept me reading, because let me tell you, this book dragged like crazy. As previously mentioned there was not much plot to speak of, and what was "happening" with the characters - spoiler alert: not a lot - was just meh. That's pretty much how I ended this book: meh. There's supposed to be some big reveal at the end, but there isn't enough emotional buy in through the rest of the book to get me to care. I think my reaction was something like: "Oh yeah. Okay. Whatever."
Not a good sign. And not a good sign to be relieved to be done with a book. (Or for it to take 3 weeks to read a 310 page book.) Which again - such a shame! It's a pretty interesting idea. It just failed in execution.
January 10, 2018
"Some people, like her mother, believed grave keeping helped a person face her mortality, and thereby live a better life. Death was the permanent thing - life was just a prelude."
This book had a very unique premise: When you turn 13, you celebrate your grave opening where friends and family come and celebrate and gift you with items to decorate your grave, in which you alone may enter and contemplate your life (or death.) In today's culture, eapecially in America, death is something that is taught to be feared and is kept hidden from children which makes it harder to cope when tragedy eventually strikes. Many cultures celebrate death such as Mexico where Dia De Los Muertos is celebrated where they decorate the graves of long lost ancestors and don't mourn them in death but rather celebrate the lives they lived and the prospect of reuniting in the next life. Overall this was a pretty solid book, it had themes of coming of age with subtle amounts of creepiness and whimsy. I did feel like the plot was a bit loose and the ending was rushed. I feel that this author has great potential and I will be on the lookout for future releases. I gave this book 3 stars for originality.
This book had a very unique premise: When you turn 13, you celebrate your grave opening where friends and family come and celebrate and gift you with items to decorate your grave, in which you alone may enter and contemplate your life (or death.) In today's culture, eapecially in America, death is something that is taught to be feared and is kept hidden from children which makes it harder to cope when tragedy eventually strikes. Many cultures celebrate death such as Mexico where Dia De Los Muertos is celebrated where they decorate the graves of long lost ancestors and don't mourn them in death but rather celebrate the lives they lived and the prospect of reuniting in the next life. Overall this was a pretty solid book, it had themes of coming of age with subtle amounts of creepiness and whimsy. I did feel like the plot was a bit loose and the ending was rushed. I feel that this author has great potential and I will be on the lookout for future releases. I gave this book 3 stars for originality.
May 17, 2018
9/20
If this book had been mostly, or only, Laurel's story, it would have been a solid three stars. It wasn't particularly fantastic or anything, but Laurel's portion was enjoyable, and whimsical in a nostalgic way. The way the grounds and forest were described made them seem unmoored in any one time period, and it made me want to go out and explore my own woods. The plot was fairly tropey, but I liked the tropes they used, and they didn't negatively impact my enjoyment of the story.
Sadly, the Athena storyline dragged the whole book down. It was classic, high school drama that I've been bored of for years. The people she interacted with were cardboard cutouts, with no personality or apparent motivations. The culture and drama surrounding the graves was kind of cool, admittedly, but it didn't save the rest of it.
If this book had been mostly, or only, Laurel's story, it would have been a solid three stars. It wasn't particularly fantastic or anything, but Laurel's portion was enjoyable, and whimsical in a nostalgic way. The way the grounds and forest were described made them seem unmoored in any one time period, and it made me want to go out and explore my own woods. The plot was fairly tropey, but I liked the tropes they used, and they didn't negatively impact my enjoyment of the story.
Sadly, the Athena storyline dragged the whole book down. It was classic, high school drama that I've been bored of for years. The people she interacted with were cardboard cutouts, with no personality or apparent motivations. The culture and drama surrounding the graves was kind of cool, admittedly, but it didn't save the rest of it.
November 14, 2017
I really enjoyed the concept, but I wish I got more of the “lore” or the background of why people started doing this. I felt like I fully grasped the concept halfway through the book, which I feel is a lot longer than I should have taken.
The characters were a little dull and had nothing special about them..I thought the ghost would pull things though make this book more interesting, but, unfortunately, it did not; it just caused a bit of trouble. I wish there was more written about the ghost.
The characters were a little dull and had nothing special about them..I thought the ghost would pull things though make this book more interesting, but, unfortunately, it did not; it just caused a bit of trouble. I wish there was more written about the ghost.
June 23, 2021
This was an instance of a beautifully written book with appealing characters that just falls flat. It's disappointing that such a fresh and appealing concept came out so under baked and bland.
The main issue with this story is the world building. The world this story is set in is one where death is somewhat revered. Children are encouraged to spend time in their own graves preparing their minds and physical spaces for death. 13 year olds have grave opening ceremonies that can be the social event of the season. I initially passed up this book but came back to get it because this kind of concept was unfamiliar to me, and I thought it would work. Here's how it didn't.
The author took a completely normal society that we all live in, and shoved in the grave thing. Graves being related to death isn't really a good enough explanation for why they are so important in average America, because we already have graves and respect people in death, but we don't open graves for children to sit in. It also makes no sense that grave keeping is such an important role, but everyone seems to hate Athena and Laurel's family. I don't think their older sister dying was a good enough explanation for this dislike; presumably, a tragedy would make the community sympathetic to them.
This bring me to my second point: What happened with Lucy? I can understand that it might be a stylistic decision to skim over that; no one in the family wants to talk about Lucy, so the book won't, either. But it's really hard to get into the story when the whole family believes that the ghost who haunts their house is Lucy, and Lucy is part of the reason the family is ostracized, but we never find out what happened to her. I initially thought she was killed because I assumed that that was what the first part of the book was implying, and when Laurel is injured later in the story, Athena reminds her sister that this is difficult for their parents because police and the hospital remind them of Lucy. But, despite death being so important, we never have an explanation for someone beyond the grave.
Which brings me to the ghost. Someone who is dead and gone- they have a sealed grave that their body doesn't seem to be in, we get a little backstory about them having a family, and how they came to have a connection to Athena and Laurel's family; but once again, we don't know how she died. Why she is the only ghost when so many people are dead. What eventually happens to her. It's another frustrating case of not tying up loose ends.
PART 2: THE CHARACTERS
I do like the characters. I think Laurel is a good representation of a home schooled kid, coming from someone who was home schooled up until the sixth grade. I think her and Athena's differing values and situations make their relationship as sisters interesting. I also think that Maude and Athena's friendship was fun to read, and very average for teenagers.
I also thought Roxanna was an interesting character for a while. It's shown that she is popular without really recognizing it, just because of her effortless coolness. Athena idolizes her from a distance to the point where she takes a photography class just because of her. Roxanna is shown to be secretive, making regular trips to her grave despite pretending that it is weird in the presence of others, her diary shows that her relationship with her friends is not all sunshine and rainbows, and it is alluded to that she is hiding something in her house, between the shut up rooms and her general level of privacy. But it once again loses its thread when we never receive any kind of explanation for these things or what motivates Roxanna. I think she could have been a good morally grey character, but she comes off like a caricature of movie mean girls.
The conflict between Roxanna and Athena doesn't feel particularly genuine, either. It feels like a wasted opportunity, when Athena is shown to idolize Roxanna so much, to have her immediately go from hot to cold instead of having more conflicting feelings and having to challenge her level of self worth and personal values system. I think the scene at Roxanna's sister's grave opening did this very well; the increasing levels of awkwardness; Roxanna going from seeming friendly to pushing and overbearing; Athena casting away her family's decades of values to let someone into her grave: It's uncomfortable to read in a very good way, but it's the only example we get of this kind of thing.
I think Charlie and Laurel were my favorite characters. The debacle with Charlie running away from home and his mother's reasons for wanting him to come home brought up an interesting dilemma relating to life and death, and it gave me a taste of what I was hoping this entire book could be. These kinds of moments were almost frustrating because they proved that the book could do more and do better, and couldn't.
CONCLUSION
This had an interesting premise and a good cast of characters. But the author neglected loose ends, and considering the fairly short length of the book, I felt it really could have been tidied up without making the story exhaustingly long.
Above all, I wanted this book to embrace the macabre and Gothic style it had going for it. You can make average, midwestern America Gothic. It has been done before, and it could probably have been done splendidly by this book with a little more world building. I don't hate this book, but it's not a re-read. I would pick up something else by the same author.
The main issue with this story is the world building. The world this story is set in is one where death is somewhat revered. Children are encouraged to spend time in their own graves preparing their minds and physical spaces for death. 13 year olds have grave opening ceremonies that can be the social event of the season. I initially passed up this book but came back to get it because this kind of concept was unfamiliar to me, and I thought it would work. Here's how it didn't.
The author took a completely normal society that we all live in, and shoved in the grave thing. Graves being related to death isn't really a good enough explanation for why they are so important in average America, because we already have graves and respect people in death, but we don't open graves for children to sit in. It also makes no sense that grave keeping is such an important role, but everyone seems to hate Athena and Laurel's family. I don't think their older sister dying was a good enough explanation for this dislike; presumably, a tragedy would make the community sympathetic to them.
This bring me to my second point: What happened with Lucy? I can understand that it might be a stylistic decision to skim over that; no one in the family wants to talk about Lucy, so the book won't, either. But it's really hard to get into the story when the whole family believes that the ghost who haunts their house is Lucy, and Lucy is part of the reason the family is ostracized, but we never find out what happened to her. I initially thought she was killed because I assumed that that was what the first part of the book was implying, and when Laurel is injured later in the story, Athena reminds her sister that this is difficult for their parents because police and the hospital remind them of Lucy. But, despite death being so important, we never have an explanation for someone beyond the grave.
Which brings me to the ghost. Someone who is dead and gone- they have a sealed grave that their body doesn't seem to be in, we get a little backstory about them having a family, and how they came to have a connection to Athena and Laurel's family; but once again, we don't know how she died. Why she is the only ghost when so many people are dead. What eventually happens to her. It's another frustrating case of not tying up loose ends.
PART 2: THE CHARACTERS
I do like the characters. I think Laurel is a good representation of a home schooled kid, coming from someone who was home schooled up until the sixth grade. I think her and Athena's differing values and situations make their relationship as sisters interesting. I also think that Maude and Athena's friendship was fun to read, and very average for teenagers.
I also thought Roxanna was an interesting character for a while. It's shown that she is popular without really recognizing it, just because of her effortless coolness. Athena idolizes her from a distance to the point where she takes a photography class just because of her. Roxanna is shown to be secretive, making regular trips to her grave despite pretending that it is weird in the presence of others, her diary shows that her relationship with her friends is not all sunshine and rainbows, and it is alluded to that she is hiding something in her house, between the shut up rooms and her general level of privacy. But it once again loses its thread when we never receive any kind of explanation for these things or what motivates Roxanna. I think she could have been a good morally grey character, but she comes off like a caricature of movie mean girls.
The conflict between Roxanna and Athena doesn't feel particularly genuine, either. It feels like a wasted opportunity, when Athena is shown to idolize Roxanna so much, to have her immediately go from hot to cold instead of having more conflicting feelings and having to challenge her level of self worth and personal values system. I think the scene at Roxanna's sister's grave opening did this very well; the increasing levels of awkwardness; Roxanna going from seeming friendly to pushing and overbearing; Athena casting away her family's decades of values to let someone into her grave: It's uncomfortable to read in a very good way, but it's the only example we get of this kind of thing.
I think Charlie and Laurel were my favorite characters. The debacle with Charlie running away from home and his mother's reasons for wanting him to come home brought up an interesting dilemma relating to life and death, and it gave me a taste of what I was hoping this entire book could be. These kinds of moments were almost frustrating because they proved that the book could do more and do better, and couldn't.
CONCLUSION
This had an interesting premise and a good cast of characters. But the author neglected loose ends, and considering the fairly short length of the book, I felt it really could have been tidied up without making the story exhaustingly long.
Above all, I wanted this book to embrace the macabre and Gothic style it had going for it. You can make average, midwestern America Gothic. It has been done before, and it could probably have been done splendidly by this book with a little more world building. I don't hate this book, but it's not a re-read. I would pick up something else by the same author.
September 10, 2017
DNF @20%
This book is written in 3rd person and oscillates between the point of view of two sisters. Sometimes the point of view of the two sisters switches back and forth as often as occurring in the same paragraph. The way this was written was frustrating to read. Confusing and challenging. As much as I liked the cover and the premise it wasn't enough to keep me reading it.
***Advanced copy obtained from Harper Teen via Edelweiss***
This book is written in 3rd person and oscillates between the point of view of two sisters. Sometimes the point of view of the two sisters switches back and forth as often as occurring in the same paragraph. The way this was written was frustrating to read. Confusing and challenging. As much as I liked the cover and the premise it wasn't enough to keep me reading it.
***Advanced copy obtained from Harper Teen via Edelweiss***
January 10, 2018
i think this was just too far out there a concept for me to jump on board with. i couldn't for the life of me visualize the logistics of a grave "door" or hanging out in said grave, plus i found the story to be a little confusing and long-winded and ultimately a tad boring. i gave it a try, but after a few chapters i was done. DNF
February 12, 2024
I feel bad for my professor who assigned this book to our class. Elizabeth Byrne is an alum of my college and my class will be meeting and discussing this book with her in a few days. I can not imagine how this conversation will go as everyone in my class (myself included) absolutely hated this book :)
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