Alexia Casale

On average, 1 in 4 women will experience domestic abuse in her lifetime, and 2 women a week are killed by a current or former intimate partner in the UK where this book is set. In a note addressed to the reader, Alexia Casale explains that she wrote The Best Way to Bury Your Husband as “…a way to confront a truth that otherwise seems too much to bear”. This black comedy takes place during the Covid Lockdown, a period which saw the femicide rate double in England.

Trapped in their homes with their abusive husbands, four women take desperate measures to defend themselves, and their children, and in doing so are faced with a dilemma. Sally finds a temporary solution using a tarp, kitty litter and gaffer tape, while trying to avoid the prying of her watchful neighbour. Samira tells curious family members her CoVid stricken husband is self- isolating in the garage. Ruth lights a bonfire in her backyard, while Jane makes a desperate phone call to an old friend. Fate brings these women together and The Lockdown Ladies Burial Club is born.

The premise of the story may be (deliberately) absurd but the characters and their emotions as they suffer at the hands of their partners feel all too genuine. The women all effortlessly evoke sympathy and compassion, each are representative of real life circumstances, and Casale provides thoughtful insight into the different dynamics present in relationships marred by domestic violence. Sally, as the primary narrator, and club instigator, is an appealing lead, but I really liked the way in which each woman made a distinct contribution to the story.

There’s some suspense in the novel as the women struggle to keep their secrets, with each coming fairly close to being discovered at different times. I was definitely on their side, and I actually thought their plans to explain their husband’s absence and dispose of their bodies was pretty clever, even if far fetched. While there are not any high stake twists in the novel, there are some surprises including a rather delightful, if somewhat macabre, revelation at the end.

Casale achieves her aim “to make people laugh - and then think”. Written with humour and compassion, The Best Way to Bury Your Husband is an entertaining and thought-provoking novel.… (plus d'informations)

"Sometimes it is no great shame to give in, even to despair, provided that it is just for a little while. Sometimes a little surrender is good for the soul"

An unusual story with the narrator being a 14-year-old girl with an abusive past which is never fully revealed (frustratingly). Evie is young and at times naïve, yet also angry with definite PTSD traits. The story is slowly drip-fed by the protagonist, which at times I found too slow, as not a lot happens.

The adoptive parents were slightly annoying, particularly the helicopter mother who did not notice Evie sneaking out at night, returning with wet/dirty clothes even though she acted like her shadow. The constant darling and sweetheart comments were very OTT and gag worthy.

Clearly the dragon is not real and therefore Evie is potentially a psychopath in the making. Her attitude and actions toward Sonny Rawlins, who was not the evil child he was made out to be, were extreme and the ending was a red-flag event. What I found worrying is that this is a YA and could easily give other impressionable young people the idea that sever revenge is acceptable…… (plus d'informations)

I found this book slightly disturbing - with a few tweaks, you could easily change it into a horror film.
Evie has been abused by her family and adopted into a new home, but she carries scars on her body and her psyche. She says her innocence is damaged, the ability to not know that people carry out wicked actions from hate and not to feel protected. She joins a nice caring family, who have also been devastated by the careless actions of other people and are struggling to retain their compassion and belief in a good world. She receives help at school from her English teacher, but finds expressing how she feels difficult and probably a re-run of the abuse. And a boy at school starts playing practical jokes on her.
I find Sonny Rawlins to be demonised and also left without protection, even though her teacher/counselor is aware that his behaviour is probably immature pig tail pulling. Her perfect Uncle puts slugs on toast to make her adopted mother squeal, yet is seemingly happy to demonise Sonny too. When Sonny brings her flowers on valentines day, she also takes this as an attempt to hurt her, but they are almost certainly not meant that way.
She ends the book with more dark secrets in her soul.… (plus d'informations)