Grave Matters

Examines the embalming process and the impact the standard funeral has on the environment while also discussing alternative eco-friendly burials.

A fascinating look at the conflicts arising from reconstructing a native peoples past. Explores the relationship of archeology and the competing interests that color the recovery of Indian remains

Night Owls bookstore always keeps a light on and evil creatures out. But, as Lauren M. Roy's thrilling sequel continues, even its supernatural staff isn’t prepared for the dead to come back to life… Elly grew up training to kill things that go bump in the night, so she’s still getting used to working alongside them. While she’s learned to trust the eclectic group of vampires, Renfields, and succubi at Night Owls bookstore, her new job guarding Boston’s most powerful vampire has her on edge—especially when she realizes something strange is going on with her employer, something even deadlier than usual… Cavale isn’t thrilled that his sister works for vampires, but he’s determined to repair their relationship, and that means trusting her choices—until Elly’s job lands all of the Night Owls in deep trouble with a vengeful necromancer. And even their collective paranormal skills might not be enough to keep them from becoming part of the necromancer’s undead army…

What better way to learn about life than working in a cemetery? This is exactly what happens to the main character, Martin Stevenson, in Grave Matters. Martin alludes to the lost year he has left behind when he stumbles into employment as a grounds-keeper in a cemetery in the middle of Kansas. There, he secretly takes up permanent residence camping in an obscure corner of the cemetery. The reader sees life through Martins eyes as he digs out from his past and interacts with the quirky characters he works with. Martin serves as a muse as the reader learns lessons of life from the stories and experiences told by his co-workers. Through these lessons, Martin comes to find some of the answers about life he has been searching for through the experiences framed by death. Each chapter is an episode that takes place in the cemetery, spotlighting each employee and their unique experiences. In the end, both Martin and the reader come to realize that a persons identity and life are not shaped by what we appear to be nor by the compartments that constrain us, but by how we live our lives.

Examines the different ways people die, the role of the medical examiner, and what happens to the body after death.

A dark YA tale of love, loss and the supernatural from Queen of Teen Juno Dawson, collaborating for the first time with prize-winning illustrator Alex T. Smith. Since the crash, since Eliza died, Samuel can't find a way to go on. His need to see his love again is overwhelming, and so he ventures into the strange, terrifying world of Hoodoo. Samuel is about to make a pact with powers he cannot comprehend, let alone control... A chilling tale of love that reaches beyond the grave.

In the fifteenth-century kingdom of Brittany, seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where she learns that the god of Death has blessed her with dangerous gifts--and a violent destiny.

Lady Kiera Darby and Sebastian Gage investigate a macabre murderer in this historical mystery from the author of Mortal Arts. Scotland, 1830. Following the death of her dear friend, Lady Kiera Darby is in need of a safe haven. Returning to her childhood home, Kiera hopes her beloved brother Trevor and the merriment of the Hogmanay Ball will distract her. But when a caretaker is murdered and a grave is disturbed at nearby Dryburgh Abbey, Kiera is once more thrust into the cold grasp of death. While Kiera knows that aiding in another inquiry will only further tarnish her reputation, her knowledge of anatomy could make the difference in solving the case. But agreeing to investigate means Kiera must deal with the complicated emotions aroused in her by inquiry agent Sebastian Gage. When Gage arrives, he reveals that the incident at the Abbey was not the first—some fiend is digging up old bones and holding them for ransom. Now Kiera and Gage must catch the grave robber and put the case to rest…before another victim winds up six feet under.

"Let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave." These ominous words are the last threat that Sir Edward Grey receives from his killer. Before he can show them to Nicholas Brisbane, the private inquiry agent he has retained for his protection, he collapses and dies at his London home, in the presence of his wife, Julia, and a roomful of dinner guests. Prepared to accept that Edward's death was due to a long-standing physical infirmity, Julia is outraged when Brisbane visits and suggests that her husband was murdered. It is a reaction she comes to regret when she discovers damning evidence for herself, and realizes the truth. Determined to bring the murderer to justice, Julia engages the enigmatic Brisbane to help her investigate Edward's demise. Dismissing his warnings that the investigation will be difficult, if not impossible, Julia presses forward, following a trail of clues that lead her to even more unpleasant truths, and ever closer to a killer who waits expectantly for her arrival.

Amelia Brinton appears to have accidently fallen to her death in Greece. Her friend also meets her death having been pushed down stairs in the British Museum. Dr. Patrick Grant connects the two events and his investigations lead him to a quiet backwater village in Hampshire where yet more mysteries unfold.