Reviews with content warning for Grief - The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy

Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen

72 reviews

mk_meow's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious slow-paced

2.75

1.5🌶️
Slow burn = not my fav

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allingoodtime's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I listened to the audiobook version of this book and I feel I have to give two separate reviews here—one for the actual story and writing and one for the narration. In many ways, it wouldn’t be fair to tie them completely together. If you’re coming to this review to try to decide if this book is worth reading, the short answer is yes, but not in audiobook format.

Let’s start with the good…the actual story and writing. This story flowed well and kept me engaged. Mercy and Hart are both lovable characters, even if Hart is a curmudgeon in the beginning. It’s obvious he is a good person even though he’s cranky. Mercy is a caring person who borders on having a sunshine personality, yet I could tell that persona was often a way for her to make it through the day. Poor Mercy had a lot on her shoulders and though her family thought they realized how much they put on her they really didn’t.

This book starts years after Hart and Mercy meet, but their initial contact is shown in a short flashback. These two definitely got off on the wrong foot and have been sniping at one another ever since. While I wouldn’t say they are enemies because there is no central point they argue over, I would still classify this story as enemies to lovers. Once the letter writing started, my heartstrings were tugged. These are two lonely individuals who are so much alike that they cannot see what is in front of their noses. The path from foes to friends to lovers is my favorite part of this book. I am not a fan of big secrets, but the secrets these two keep from each other and their loved ones made sense and weren’t kept from the reader. Every time I would start to think one of the secrets was going on too long, it would come out. Not always in the way I would have liked, but the secrets were revealed no matter what.

Mercy’s family is very loving, but they frustrated me beyond belief. The way these people thought they knew Mercy and knew what she wanted and needed, yet never truly listened to what she was saying. Mercy has been taking care of her father and siblings since she was a teenager so I understand them thinking it was her time to be free and stop holding everything up for everyone else, but they never really asked her what freedom and happiness meant to her. I love that the author included a family blow-up along with some conflict resolution instead of glossing over what happens between them all.

As for the narration, it wasn’t great. The female narrator barely changes her tone of voice for any of the characters, even Mercy’s dad. She did an okay job at portraying Mercy, but her dad and brother should not have sounded the same as Mercy and her sister. It didn’t seem consistent either. The male narrator was much better and I kind of wish he had narrated the whole thing. I honestly think I would have had a different rating for this story had I read the eBook instead of listening to the audio. There were too many times I didn’t know who was supposed to be talking because of how much alike the character’s voices were portrayed.

Overall, the world-building and storyline are spot on. And even when I was annoyed with the things they were doing, the characters were all well-written and fleshed out. This was a very hyped book (and still is) in the book blogging community so I tried to go in with my expectations in check. I’m glad the story lived up to the hype.

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miss_berry315's review against another edition

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slow-paced

2.5

I never could decide how I felt about this book tbh. I originally DNF'd it bc I had been listening to the audiobook and was just irritated the whole time.
I got the ebook to try it again, and it was much easier to digest, though I was not a big fan of the cheesy and confusing world building. I also just didn't really care tbh. The best parts of the book were about the characters and their interpersonal interactions, which we didn't get nearly enough of imo.

Then everything went downhill at the 80% mark. I almost DNF'd there, but skipped that chapter bc I couldn't read it through my sobbing. Honestly, I'm pretty angry that's the direction the author chose to go in. I think most people have some hard limits on what they want to read abut in their books, and there are expectations set prior when it comes to romance novels. I'm not sure how nobody thought it was important to mention what happens at the 80% mark in any content warnings I had read prior (was not on storygraph then, but I should have been!). The 80% mark is one of my hard limits and it completely ruined the book I was already undecided on.
Unfortunately, things just got even more cheesy somehow and I was cringing through the last few pages feeling like I was watching a sitcom. I cringed and rolled my eyes through the entire last chapters.

The letters between the characters, the middle 15% of the book, and the background relationship were the only good parts of the book.

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Medical content, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Misogyny

Minor: Suicide attempt and Pregnancy

The following spoilers are things I wish I knew going into this book, because I probably would not have read the book had I known these things happened.

Right around the 80% mark, Hart decides to go check out a mysterious house that only he can see. It is a known dangerous mission that he had attempted when he was new to the job, which is how he lost his mentor. He decides to go on this mission alone, and this chapter is written with heavy implications of it being a suicide attempt. He has been depressed and lonely since the breakup with the woman he loves and suddenly feels like he knows what to do, so he goes about his day saying kind things to the people he interacts with, returning library books without checking out new ones, doesn't tell anyone where he is going with a bunch of weapons, goes alone to a place that he knows he will be overrun by the enemies, and writes one final letter to Mercy, but keeps it in his pocket. As I said above, its not explicitly written as a suicide attempt, but it's so heavily implied, it doesn't need to be stated outright for it to read that way. He does not make it, and sees his heavily injured body as his spirit floats away. Unfortunately for literally everyone involved (including us readers) he had purchased a funeral package at Birdsall and Sons and Mercy is the acting undertaker. Meaning, while these two are in their third act break up, he dies, his body is found, and it is brought to this poor woman who then has to go through the process of preparing his body for burial while processing all the emotions that lead to this point, both related to their relationship and related to the other stressful parts of her situation. The author dedicates an **entire chapter** to Mercy doing the necessary prepping of a body for burial. This is the only time the author chose to drag out this process. Every other time it is mentioned, they are salting the bodies for preservation and following their will for type or burial. With Hart though, the author slows down the process and puts every single bit of emotion into it as this is the climax of the story. I could not read this chapter. I almost DNF'd the book at this point. I skipped the chapter completely to figure out what happened. Mercy finds the letter in Hart's pocket and he's confessing his love for her in what is very clearly meant to be a suicide note. The chapter after this is Hart in a place of limbo where we learn that because of his demigod status, he has two lives to live and gets to go back to his body. Luckily, because Mercy is exhausted and emotionally distraught, she did not get too far in the post-death process. He ends up coming back to life and the ending is horribly cheesy and does not (imo) make up for the absolute heartbreak (no stupid pun intended ugh) of *that* chapter.

imds's review against another edition

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Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.75

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bibliomich's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy is a romantasy adaptation of Norah Ephron's 1998 classic rom-com You've Got Mail (one of my favorites). The references to the film were by far my favorite parts of the book. I loved the back and forth banter in the MMC and FMC’s letters, as well as the enemies-to-lovers arc of their relationship.

The fantasy elements didn’t quite capture my attention in the same way. There wasn’t very much world building, so I didn’t really engage with the fantasy elements of the story; but mostly, I also didn’t really care to understand them. I was much more invested in the relationship plot than the action.

I enjoy reading books that push me out of my genre comfort zone, which Hart + Mercy definitely did. I’d be interested in reading Bannen’s companion novel, The Undermining of Twyla and Frank (a nod to When Harry Met Sally), when it comes out this summer.

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luckykosmos's review against another edition

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emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

They're so stupid and I'm obsessed with them

Bannen did an amazing job setting up a world that felt so plausible without infodumping the worldbuilding at the beginning, and slowly interjecting the characters' interactions with the world to build why they are the way they are. This is very much what I want from 'romantasy', a world that molds the characters instead of just putting them in a situation for the sake of the drama.

(Also worth mentioning, this is very much a zombie book, and while the zombie logistics DID crack me up, that wasn't something I expected from the synopsis! here there be zombies i guess!)

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bidpat's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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scrubsandbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was surprisingly cute as well as funny in some parts. I'm not a big romantasy person but I liked the world-building in this as well as the dynamics between the main characters and watching their relationship grow. Shout out to the bunch of queer side characters whose stories I really want a prequel of and a good dog named Leonard.

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grayb14's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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just_one_more_paige's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Despite having received this audiobook as an ALC from Libro.fm a few months ago, I haven't picked it up yet because I have wanted to have a physical copy as well (it's my preferred "listening" method). My library doesn't have a copy. And if I'm being honest, this sounded so much like a book I would love that I kind of wanted to own a copy anyways. I finally got my hands on one during a quick (extended to involve an extra day of fun) work visit to Asheville, NC a few weeks ago. If you haven't been there, you should definitely go. Asheville is such a cool place - so much nature and great food (and drink!) and overall awesome vibes. Anyways, I stopped in at a local bookstore while there (Malaprop's) and picked it up there.

As I am still woefully behind on reviews, I'll be borrowing from Goodreads again for this summary... Hart is a marshal, tasked with patrolling the strange and magical wilds of Tanria. It’s an unforgiving job, and Hart’s got nothing but time to ponder his loneliness. Mercy never has a moment to herself. She’s been single-handedly keeping Birdsall & Son Undertakers afloat in defiance of sullen jerks like Hart, who seems to have a gift for showing up right when her patience is thinnest. After yet another exasperating run-in with Mercy, Hart finds himself penning a letter addressed simply to “A Friend”. Much to his surprise, an anonymous letter comes back in return, and a tentative friendship is born. If only Hart knew he’s been baring his soul to the person who infuriates him most: Mercy. As the dangers from Tanria grow closer, so do the unlikely correspondents. But can their blossoming romance survive the fated discovery that their pen pals are their worst nightmares – each other?

I don't think I have ever used the following phrase to describe anything before, but it turns out, it's perfect for this book (and, not really a surprise, but a new aesthetic I'm going to be leaning into personally): this book was wonderfully, whimsically macabre. There were many notes of the paranormal and supernatural throughout: low key zombies, floating souls, ancient magical creatures (that talk, and deliver mail!), gods that still exist and can walk the earth, and other small magical touches. And central to the character development and the plot is the Birdsall family business of, essentially, running a funeral home, and Mercy's burgeoning role at the primary undertaker. All of which could have led this to being a really dark read. And yet. It was surprisingly sweetly morbid, if you're willing to believe that can be done. I mean yes, beware, there is quite a bit of death and violence and resurrection (and mostly not in a "good" way). But at the same time, the way Mercy sees, and puts effort into, caring for the dead and their families and the comfort she can give in her position is simply beautiful. It's exactly the kind of hopeful and fulfilling perspective that I could imagine wanting for myself or a close loved one during such a grief-filled time.

There are other aspects of the book that help balance out the more grim pieces, to create that more offbeat and fanciful vibe, as well. First, the little things, like cafes and libraries and letter writing, that are reminiscent of our “real world,” were grounding touches. Also, the relationships, across the board, really took the edge off. Mercy's entire family (and especially her brother who'd rather become a baker than run the family business) were so recognizable. The care they all had for each other, even while arguing or at odds, was touching. And despite Hart's work-focus and intensity and gruff exterior, what he builds with his new apprentice, Pen, and how that relationship pulls him even farther into Mercy's family (and their drama), was so well developed. I also want to mention that there was a mystery subplot that called for some amateur sleuthing that was just plain fun!

Plus, of course, there is Hart and Mercy themselves. Let me take a minute to focus on them, as they are central to the novel overall (obviously). Look. What an unbelievably sweet enemies-to-lovers secret pen pals romance. Ugh. I cannot even. They were both so stubbornly sure they hated each other, when everything (and everyone around them) knew and pointed to the opposite. But it never reached the point of annoyance that could have happened, when miscommunication takes over as a plot device. This was just good old "human" stubbornness and, in that "can't see what's under my own nose," was so relatable. I'm always a softie for a grumpy and sunshine romance trope too, especially when said grump falls first and harder - oh my heart! Oh! And the narrators for the audiobook that voiced Hart and Mercy were fantastic.

I have to be honest here, and say that there were a few things that I wish could have been better or gone differently. The biggest thing is that some of the dialogue felt slightly clunky. I hate that that happened, because for me, it's such a deal breaker when the dialogue rings awkward, but it is what it is. The other thing is, whoa beware of a very upsetting death situation (emotionally, my goodness, the wreckage). Slight spoiler alert in this additional comment: "coming back from the dead" is one of my least favorite fantasy romance (or any genre, really) and I wish that hadn’t been the choice here. I would rather have a grave injury or, better, a conversation through the tough topics (even a fight). It's just...death allows each to "figure out" feelings too easily or with too much grief clouding the picture, which sounds terrible cause it’s a horrible situation but for a writer/plot, it just feels like too easy a solution.

So, here's the thing, other than those two critiques, I absolutely loved this quirky and high-chemistry romance and its sides of magic and mystery. It was everything I wanted it to be and I'm going to rate and recommend it as such. It's one of those books that has all the same comfort read vibes like The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, McGuire's Every Heart a Doorway series, On a Sunbeam, or Heartstopper. At least for me. And that feels more important than anything else, in this case.

“…but an arrogant man apologized to obtain absolution. A good man admitted his errors and expected nothing in return.”

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