[BOOK The Undertaker's Daughter « Sara Blaedel]
The Undertaker's Daughter
The Undertaker's Daughter Already widowed by the age of forty, Ilka Nichols Jensen, a school portrait photographer, leads a modest, regimented, and uneventful life in Copenhagen Until unexpected news rocks her quiet existence
Already widowed by the age of forty, Ilka Nichols Jensen, a school portrait photographer, leads a modest, regimented, and uneventful life in Copenhagen Until unexpected news rocks her quiet existence Her father who walked out suddenly and inexplicably on the family than three decades ago has died And he s left her something in his will his funeral home In Racine, Already widowed by the age of forty, Ilka Nichols Jensen, a school portrait photographer, leads a modest, regimented, and uneventful life in Copenhagen Until unexpected news rocks her quiet existence Her father who walked out suddenly and inexplicably on the family than three decades ago has died And he s left her something in his will his funeral home In Racine, Wisconsin.Clinging to this last shred of communication from the father she hasn t heard from since childhood, Ilka makes an uncharacteristically rash decision and jumps on a plane to Wisconsin Desperate for a connection to the parent she never really knew, she plans to visit the funeral home and go through her father s things hoping for some insight into his new life in America before preparing the business for a quick sale.But when she stumbles on an unsolved murder, and a killer who seems to still be very much alive, the undertaker s daughter realizes she might be in over her head Get A Copy Kindle Store CAOnline StoresAudibleBarnes NobleWalmart eBooksApple BooksGoogle PlayAbebooksBook DepositoryIndigoAlibrisBetter World BooksIndieBoundLibraries Or buy for Hardcover, 326 pages Published February 6th 2018 by Grand Central Publishing first published June 10th 2016 More Details Original Title The Undertaker s Daughter ISBN 1455541117 ISBN13 9781455541119 Edition Language English Series Ilka 1 Other Editions 16 All Editions Add a New Edition Combine Less Detail edit details Friend Reviews To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up Reader QA To ask other readers questions about The Undertakers Daughter, please sign up Recent Questions This book ends by saying To be continued WTH So when is the next release like 11 months ago Add your answer See 1 question about The Undertakers Daughter Lists with This Book Literary Daughters 141 books 8 voters More lists with this book Community Reviews Showing 1 30 Rating details Sort Default Filter Feb 17, 2018 Diane S rated it liked it A very strange and different read from this Nordic author Ilka leaves Denmark for Racine, Wisconsin, of all places, when she inherits and undertaking business from the father who left her and her mother when she was only seven Hoping to learn about her father and his life, she arrives to find a business seriously in debt and an unsolved murder.Not quite sure what to make of this one, it is very different from her previous books I liked Iklas character but the writing and atmosphere is ve A very strange and different read from this Nordic author Ilka leaves Denmark for Racine, Wisconsin, of all places, when she inherits and undertaking business from the father who left her and her mother when she was only seven Hoping to learn about her father and his life, she arrives to find a business seriously in debt and an unsolved murder.Not quite sure what to make of this one, it is very different from her previous books I liked Iklas character but the writing and atmosphere is very bland The storyline somewhat scattered and at times confusing The setting was novel and certainly leads to new areas of interest, much could have been made from this, but I didn t feel this was taken to advantage Ultimately, I liked it but didn t love it, wanted and found the way it was written confusing.One question.Do they really sell coffins at Costco ARC from Netgalley flag 59 likesLike see review View all 22 comments Feb 03, 2018 Magdalena aka A Bookaholic Swede rated it liked it Shelves read 2018 The Undertaker s Daughter is definitely something completely different from what I had expected when it comes to a Sara Blaedel book For one thing, it did not feel like a thriller, a mystery book And, despite the serious subject did the book feel a lot humorous than I had expected You know the sad kind of humor when everything goes wrong, but in a funny kind of way Like in this book when Ilka is out shopping for a coffin when the coffin that ass ordered wouldn t be delivered becaus The Undertaker s Daughter is definitely something completely different from what I had expected when it comes to a Sara Blaedel book For one thing, it did not feel like a thriller, a mystery book And, despite the serious subject did the book feel a lot humorous than I had expected You know the sad kind of humor when everything goes wrong, but in a funny kind of way Like in this book when Ilka is out shopping for a coffin when the coffin that ass ordered wouldn t be delivered because of debts.The book is, despite the lack of suspense still good I breezed through the book and I found the book fascinating to read when it came to the difference between funerals in the United States and in Scandinavia This is a book that does not answer all the questions, there is a cliffhanger in the end and I will definitely read the next book to know what will happen to the funeral home, and to find out about Sister Eileen who seems very mysterious.As for the unsolved murder, this is actually the books weakest point in my opinion It s not like Ilka does much to solve the cold case, it s that everything happens around the dead body that is found Ilka is a bystander than an active solver of the murder.The best part of this book is definitely everything concerning the funeral home, Ilka trying to get to grips with her father s legacy and it will be interesting to read the next book to see what happens next I want to thank Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review flag 20 likesLike see review Nov 05, 2017 Bandit rated it it was ok review of another edition Seriously This is the queen of Danish crime fiction Well, that s hugely disappointing And to think I was so excited to see her new book available on Netgalley, thought finally this is the time I discover Blaedel for myself The book itself is a overwhelmingly underwhelming story of a 40 year old woman who comes from Copenhagen to Racine USA to inherit her estranged and now dead father s funeral business One, that despite not knowing much about and despite being in a severe debt, she decides Seriously This is the queen of Danish crime fiction Well, that s hugely disappointing And to think I was so excited to see her new book available on Netgalley, thought finally this is the time I discover Blaedel for myself The book itself is a overwhelmingly underwhelming story of a 40 year old woman who comes from Copenhagen to Racine USA to inherit her estranged and now dead father s funeral business One, that despite not knowing much about and despite being in a severe debt, she decides to take on anyway One of the bodies found ends up being part of a criminal investigation, but that part of the story is so small, it s barely enough to qualify this as a crime fiction, it s of a drama with some crime The protagonist is not particularly likeable and lacks any sort of charisma, she makes inexplicable decisions, relaxes by casual sex with random men and occasionally ponders how much her native country is sophisticated in so many ways, which, of course, it is But for a reader it s difficult to care about Ilka at all or much of anyone in this book for that matter Scandinavian fiction is known for a sort of understated matter of fact narration, but here it somehow translated into dispassionate and flat Readable enough, but not much to recommend itself Would have been just good enough, but the author felt the need to slap an absolutely ridiculous and completely unnecessary To Be Continued ending on it, literally last minute sort of thing that doesn t add up logistically, not to mention why would you want to spend time with this lackluster bunch Not a complete waste of time, but close to it, mostly just a let down based on any preconceived expectations Nothing regal or royalty worthy about this blandness Thanks Netgalley flag 15 likesLike see review View 1 comment Feb 12, 2018 Chandra Claypool wherethereadergrows rated it liked it Shelves arc Ilka leaves her home country of Denmark and heads to Wisconsin, where the father she never really knew bequeathed her his funeral home She s dumbfounded and overwhelmed as all this new responsibility is laid upon her While trying to make her way through learning about her father, trying to run a business she stupidly takes control over by not reading paperwork she signs arbitrarily and dealing with dead bodies left and right, she could very well lose her sanity in the process.I ve heard S Ilka leaves her home country of Denmark and heads to Wisconsin, where the father she never really knew bequeathed her his funeral home She s dumbfounded and overwhelmed as all this new responsibility is laid upon her While trying to make her way through learning about her father, trying to run a business she stupidly takes control over by not reading paperwork she signs arbitrarily and dealing with dead bodies left and right, she could very well lose her sanity in the process.I ve heard SO much about Sara Blaedel and her ability to draw readers into her dark thrillers so I was beyond excited to receive a copy of the first in her new series She writes in a way that makes it easy for the reader to fly through the pages I think for this particular book I was expecting something darker and thrillery What I got, however, was a small town mystery that seemed a secondary story line to Ilka s character study and background Blaedel takes us on Ilka s journey with a kind of Murphy s law humorous appeal which was the highlight for me Although I never thought I d be interested in the funeral business, it was quite interesting to read about the difference between US and Danish funerals and the processes laid within Although the book didn t put the murder mystery as the front runner of the book and there was a lack of suspense, it was such an easy read that I flew through the pages Once I reconciled the fact that this was about Ilka and setting up for the rest of the books in the series, I found myself enjoying her journey Now that the groundwork has been laid, I look forward to seeing how Ilka transverses her way through future cases and the legacy she has been bestowed The somewhat cliffhanger of an ending to be continued indeed.Thanks so much to Grand Central Publishing for this copy in return for my honest opinion flag 9 likesLike see review Feb 04, 2018 Denise added it The first book in a new series by one of my favorite authors Forty year old Ilka Nichols Jensen travels from Denmark to Racine, Wisconsin, USA, when her estranged father dies and leaves her his business a funeral home Ilka s life as a widow in Copenhagen was nice and peaceful, she took school portraits for a living, and her mom and partner were close by A nice, uncomplicated life She s quite shocked when she finds out that the father who had abandoned them when she was 7 years old had mad The first book in a new series by one of my favorite authors Forty year old Ilka Nichols Jensen travels from Denmark to Racine, Wisconsin, USA, when her estranged father dies and leaves her his business a funeral home Ilka s life as a widow in Copenhagen was nice and peaceful, she took school portraits for a living, and her mom and partner were close by A nice, uncomplicated life She s quite shocked when she finds out that the father who had abandoned them when she was 7 years old had made a new life in Racine So what is she to do She travels to Racine and finds not only a funeral business on the brink of bankruptcy, but a decades old murder mystery The bodies keep on coming to the funeral home and Ilka finds herself in the middle of a huge mess At first just eager to sort things and return home, she comes intent on discovering about her father and the art of undertaking.I really enjoyed this departure from the Louise Rick series for a couple of reasons For one thing, I ve always been secretly fascinated by the whole funeral business and actually considered whether to train in Mortuary Science so that I could work in one before I found out how family controlled that the whole business actually is well, aside from the big conglomerates So I found the details absolutely fascinating as I believe it is both an art and a science to care for the dead and a ministry to attend to the families I found the author s note explaining why she wrote this book quite illuminating and very easy to understand why she decided to write about this topic Secondly, I loved the main character Ilka What an unusual woman and an atypical protagonist She s strong but sensitive, and I can t wait to learn about her Sure she has her personal demons, and coming to the USA where things were so different for her was quite a feat I assume she s staying on at the funeral home and am eager to see how she assimilates in this unfamiliar territory So it is not your typical Blaedel suspense thriller or police procedural, but there is a mystery and lots of intrigue I m sure the secondary characters will be developed further as well And I can t wait to see what happens next as the book ended on a bit of a cliffhanger Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for the e book ARC of this to read and review flag 7 likesLike see review Jan 26, 2018 Cathy Cole rated it did not like it I hadn t read very many pages of The Undertaker s Daughter before I began forming an intense dislike for Ilka, the main character She must be a prime case of arrested development her mother knows Ilka s father better than Ilka ever will, but she hares off to Wisconsin like a bratty teenager because her mother couldn t possibly know anything She s full of plans on what she s going to do once she gets there, but what does she actually do Locks herself in her room, ignoring everyone all the nex I hadn t read very many pages of The Undertaker s Daughter before I began forming an intense dislike for Ilka, the main character She must be a prime case of arrested development her mother knows Ilka s father better than Ilka ever will, but she hares off to Wisconsin like a bratty teenager because her mother couldn t possibly know anything She s full of plans on what she s going to do once she gets there, but what does she actually do Locks herself in her room, ignoring everyone all the next day, and when the person on the other side of the door finally gives up and shoves papers underneath, does she read them Heavens no She just signs them and shoves them back Big mistake for the forty year old teenager.She can t make up her mind what she s going to do Is she going to go back to Copenhagen Is she going to stay Is she going to sell the business Is she going to run it herself I think the final straw for me was when she had a complete mess on her hands yet showed interest in a date with someone she hooked up with on Tinder My list of things that annoyed me about Ilka could go on for a day or two.With my strong adverse reaction to the main character, you d think I wouldn t have enough of my brain cells left to pay attention to the mystery The mystery surrounding the cold case and the corpse in the cooler would have been far engaging if the book hadn t been mired in page after page centering on the whiny Ilka This is the start of a new series and ends on a cliffhanger I don t think I need to tell you whether or not I ll continue with it If you give The Undertaker s Daughter a try, I certainly hope you get much better mileage flag 7 likesLike see review Jun 10, 2017 Crime by the Book added it Rating review to come So so excited about this new series from Blaedel flag 7 likesLike see review Jul 26, 2017 KC rated it did not like it Shelves arc, crime, series I received an advanced readers copy from Grand Central Publishing in exchange for an honest review Ilka Jensen was a Dutch school photographer in Copenhagen when she was summoned to Racine, Wisconsin to deal with her newly deceased father s estate and funeral business, which was in financial shambles When a unidentified body is brought to the funeral home, it appears to the police as an unsolved murder The crime itself was of the back story to this first novel in a series by Blaedel, who I received an advanced readers copy from Grand Central Publishing in exchange for an honest review Ilka Jensen was a Dutch school photographer in Copenhagen when she was summoned to Racine, Wisconsin to deal with her newly deceased father s estate and funeral business, which was in financial shambles When a unidentified body is brought to the funeral home, it appears to the police as an unsolved murder The crime itself was of the back story to this first novel in a series by Blaedel, whom I normally love, but I found myself skipping chapters The story focused on how Ilka was dealing with her own demons with her past, her father and his other family, and taking over the new business Unfortunately I was bored to death Sorryuldn t resist flag 6 likesLike see review View 2 comments Dec 16, 2017 Ken Fredette rated it really liked it Racine Wisconsin is very close to where I live, a hop and a throw I was blown away with her story about Ilka and her father hitting the road and divorcing her mother I could see everything that happened and she explained herself pretty well However every time she changed her mind something happened to change it back I was impressed at how well she handled most situations with her, we do it this way in Denmark Everything worked out with finding out who did what to whom except for the last le Racine Wisconsin is very close to where I live, a hop and a throw I was blown away with her story about Ilka and her father hitting the road and divorcing her mother I could see everything that happened and she explained herself pretty well However every time she changed her mind something happened to change it back I was impressed at how well she handled most situations with her, we do it this way in Denmark Everything worked out with finding out who did what to whom except for the last letter Ilka got We will find out in the next book flag 3 likesLike see review View 1 comment Nov 10, 2018 Donna rated it liked it 3.5 stars In Denmark, Ilka is a 40 year old widow who has a dependable job as a school portrait photographer Over 30 years ago, her father ran a funeral home before he up and left the family wallowing in debt She learns he has died in America and she is determined to go through his personal effects So Ilka journeys to Racine, Wisconsin where she finds out he had established another funeral home and left it to her, although it is heavily in debt too One of the bodies at the funeral home is a 3.5 stars In Denmark, Ilka is a 40 year old widow who has a dependable job as a school portrait photographer Over 30 years ago, her father ran a funeral home before he up and left the family wallowing in debt She learns he has died in America and she is determined to go through his personal effects So Ilka journeys to Racine, Wisconsin where she finds out he had established another funeral home and left it to her, although it is heavily in debt too One of the bodies at the funeral home is a young man who was beaten to death and Ilka becomes caught up in his story.I didn t really get into this story until almost half way through the book At that stage, Ilka started to snap out of her disinterest in the funeral home and began taking charge I started to like her This is my first Sara Blaedel novel and I want I know this is the first book in a trilogy and I can see several ways the story can develop How did her father get in such debt Is she going to pursue a relationship with one of the characters we ve already met What is Sister Eileen s story Will Ilka learn about her half sisters My rating could have rounded up or down with this book and I would like to see the characters fleshed out flag 2 likesLike see review Feb 13, 2018 Luanne Ollivier rated it liked it Sara Blaedel has been called Denmark s Queen of Crime I ve enjoyed her Louise Rick mysteries Blaedel herself has moved to the US, and her newest novel mirrors that move.In The Undertaker s Daughter, Dane Ilka Jensen inherits a funeral home from the father she hasn t seen in over thirty years It s in Wisconsin, but she decides to travel to the US perhaps she will learn about her long absent father.The book is set in and around the funeral home and funeral practices This was a decided Sara Blaedel has been called Denmark s Queen of Crime I ve enjoyed her Louise Rick mysteries Blaedel herself has moved to the US, and her newest novel mirrors that move.In The Undertaker s Daughter, Dane Ilka Jensen inherits a funeral home from the father she hasn t seen in over thirty years It s in Wisconsin, but she decides to travel to the US perhaps she will learn about her long absent father.The book is set in and around the funeral home and funeral practices This was a decidedly different setting, one that opens up lots of possible avenues for plotting I was initially drawn to Ilka as she arrived in Wisconsin, but that changed a few chapters in I allowed for cultural shock, but viewed her thoughts, actions and reactions odd in many situations The two employees of the funeral home treat her badly and chastise her for not immediately jumping in and conducting business right away She does, and I found it a bit of a stretch The same with her non reaction to their attitudes I can t believe that the funeral business in Racine would operate in the manner depicted, but hey, who knows Ilka discovers Tinder and finds some sexual outlets, but I found this part of her character felt forced and I never really bought it.There is a murder of course, but I found it weak as was the investigation into it Every supporting character seems quite enigmatic and I found the non answers grew tiresome after awhile.I had not realized that this was the first book in a planned series and found the ending rather abrupt and unsatisfying It literally ends with the words To be continued I m not sure if this was written in Danish and then translated It just didn t flow and felt very awkward, both in language and plotting Sad to say, but this one was just okay for me flag 2 likesLike see review Dec 07, 2017 Patricia Romero rated it it was amazing Shelves crime thrillers Blaedel introduces us to a new character, Ilke Jensen, living in Denmark, keeping up with her late husband s school photography business A young widow, whose father left for America early on leaving her mother to handle the funeral business he ran.When she must go to America when he dies to handle his affairs, she discovers he was also in the funeral business in Racine, Wisconsin Now she must clear his debts and decide if she will sell or not And it is obvious her step mother and half sisters Blaedel introduces us to a new character, Ilke Jensen, living in Denmark, keeping up with her late husband s school photography business A young widow, whose father left for America early on leaving her mother to handle the funeral business he ran.When she must go to America when he dies to handle his affairs, she discovers he was also in the funeral business in Racine, Wisconsin Now she must clear his debts and decide if she will sell or not And it is obvious her step mother and half sisters want nothing to do with the funeral home or her.And when the dead won t stay where they belong, the mystery deepens With no one to trust or lean on and in a foreign country as well, Ilke is having second thoughts on even being in the U.S.This should be a good new series Ilke is straightforward To the point I like that Now I have to wait for the next one And there most certainly will be a next one Netgalley Grand Central Publishing Feb 06, 2018 flag 2 likesLike see review Nov 19, 2017 Anne Mette M ller rated it really liked it review of another edition Rigtig fin bog skrevet af Danmarks krimidronnoning Det er det f rste, jeg har l st af Sara, og jeg kan godt lide hendes skrivestil og den gode fort lling Jeg var godt underholdt flag 2 likesLike see review Nov 07, 2017 Linda rated it really liked it Sara Blaedel takes a break from her Louise Rick series by bringing Denamrk to the U S and also introduces a new character.Ilka Jensen finds herself the owner of her late father s funeral home in Racine, Wisconsin While trying to decide to keep the business or not, Ilka finds herself pulled into a murder with ties to a long ago tragedy and secrets galore.A character driven story line and an awesome beginning to this promising new series.Must add to your to read list flag 2 likesLike see review View 1 comment Nov 13, 2017 Joyce rated it it was ok review of another edition 2 and 1 2 starsAt age forty, Ilka inherits her father s funeral business in Racine, Wisconsin She travels from Copenhagen to take over the business Although Ilka has some good memories of her childhood and her father when she was a young girl, he did abandon her mother and Ilka when she was seven years old However, Ilka doesn t like herself very well She sleeps around with unknown men to release stress There was too much of this in the book It was a major determent to my liking the boo 2 and 1 2 starsAt age forty, Ilka inherits her father s funeral business in Racine, Wisconsin She travels from Copenhagen to take over the business Although Ilka has some good memories of her childhood and her father when she was a young girl, he did abandon her mother and Ilka when she was seven years old However, Ilka doesn t like herself very well She sleeps around with unknown men to release stress There was too much of this in the book It was a major determent to my liking the book I couldn t get past that It s not a bad mystery but it wasn t my style The writing I felt was uneven, as was the plot It wasn t really a mystery, either I would class the book as adult fiction with a warning label about the gratuitous sex I want to thank NetGalley and Hatchett Book Group Grand Central Publishing for forwarding to me a copy of this book to read flag 2 likesLike see review View all 4 comments Jun 27, 2016 SidseC rated it it was amazing review of another edition Sara Bl del har l nge v ret min yndlingsforfatter fordi Louise Rick b gerne alle har v ret s sp ndende at jeg n sten ikke kunne l gge dem fra mig Jeg m her rligt indr mme at jeg IKKE blev skuffet selvom det er en helt anden type krimi end jeg er vant til Jeg ELSKER at der her er mere fokus p de p r rende og f lelser mere end fokus p decideret opklaring af et mord Elskede bedemandens datter og hold nu OP hvor jeg gl der mig til efterf lgeren og se hvad der sker med Ilka, Artie, S ster o Sara Bl del har l nge v ret min yndlingsforfatter fordi Louise Rick b gerne alle har v ret s sp ndende at jeg n sten ikke kunne l gge dem fra mig Jeg m her rligt indr mme at jeg IKKE blev skuffet selvom det er en helt anden type krimi end jeg er vant til Jeg ELSKER at der her er mere fokus p de p r rende og f lelser mere end fokus p decideret opklaring af et mord Elskede bedemandens datter og hold nu OP hvor jeg gl der mig til efterf lgeren og se hvad der sker med Ilka, Artie, S ster og bedemandsforretningen PS Er der nogen der ved om man seri st laminerer d dsannoncer og bruger som bogm rker i Racine og om de der charms ogs findes flag 2 likesLike see review Aug 02, 2018 Donna Hines rated it liked it Shelves donated to hoyt library Ilka Nichols our main character was going on fine until all hell broke loose when the patriarch of the family dies.Her father walked out three decades earlier yet here she is in his will with his funeral home WTH Oh and did I fail to mention it s nowhere near Copenhagen but rather Wiscounsin Ok, run that by me again Yes, well you see she wants to desperately have that lost connection replaced with anything of value and so what better way than to connect with his past.What could go wrongOk se Ilka Nichols our main character was going on fine until all hell broke loose when the patriarch of the family dies.Her father walked out three decades earlier yet here she is in his will with his funeral home WTH Oh and did I fail to mention it s nowhere near Copenhagen but rather Wiscounsin Ok, run that by me again Yes, well you see she wants to desperately have that lost connection replaced with anything of value and so what better way than to connect with his past.What could go wrongOk seriously a bit weird but you know we can solve a cold case hereYou have to read this if you want to learn flag 2 likesLike see review Jun 04, 2016 Lone Knudsen added it review of another edition du kan l se min anmeldelse p udgivelsesdagen flag 2 likesLike see review Feb 06, 2018 Jessica rated it really liked it Shelves partner read Thanks to Grand Central Pub for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review This was my introduction to Sara Blaedel and I was no disappointed THE UNDERTAKER S DAUGHTER is the start of a new series, and from what I ve heard is a little slower paced than her other books So if you re a Blaedel fan, then keep that in mind going into this one Ilka Nicholas Jensen is a widowed school portrait photographer in her forties She lives a quiet life in Copenhagen, but everything gets disrupted wh Thanks to Grand Central Pub for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review This was my introduction to Sara Blaedel and I was no disappointed THE UNDERTAKER S DAUGHTER is the start of a new series, and from what I ve heard is a little slower paced than her other books So if you re a Blaedel fan, then keep that in mind going into this one Ilka Nicholas Jensen is a widowed school portrait photographer in her forties She lives a quiet life in Copenhagen, but everything gets disrupted when she finds out her father passed away and left her his funeral home in Racine, Wisconsin She has not heard from her father since he unexpectedly left the family over three decades ago, but now she is determined to hold onto this last gesture from him She decides to fly to Wisconsin to see the funeral home he left her.Upon arriving to Wisconsin she wants to go through his belongings and the business before turning it over for a quick sale However, while there, she stumbles upon an unsolved murder case and it appears that the killer is still alive Has Ilka put herself in a situation that is over her head This mystery is definitely focused on the characters with a slow build to them I can see people going into this expecting a fast paced thriller being disappointed I really liked Ilka, she was a very complex character and I found it compelling that she decided to leave instantly for a different country to learn about her estranged father I can t wait to see where Blaedel takes her in future books I loved that it was set in Wisconsin being in Minnesota it was fun seeing a somewhat familiar surrounding.Overall, this was a very character driven and lighter suspense novel that I found incredibly engrossing I can t believe it s taken me so long to finally read a book by Sara Blaedel, but it definitely won t be my last I give this one 4 5 stars flag 1 likeLike see review Mar 14, 2018 Sarah rated it it was amazing This is a new series from Danish crime fiction writer Sara Blaedel which had me very excited I love that it s an entirely different kind of character, a woman who inherits a funeral home I m surprised actually that crime fiction writers don t write about this somewhat creepy and macabre world at least none I m familiar with This new series isn t set in Blaedel s native Denmark but in Racine, Wisconsin so I was eager to see how she tackled the U.S small town setting It s slower paced st This is a new series from Danish crime fiction writer Sara Blaedel which had me very excited I love that it s an entirely different kind of character, a woman who inherits a funeral home I m surprised actually that crime fiction writers don t write about this somewhat creepy and macabre world at least none I m familiar with This new series isn t set in Blaedel s native Denmark but in Racine, Wisconsin so I was eager to see how she tackled the U.S small town setting It s slower paced story than her Louise Rick series but that shouldn t deter anyone Ilka Nichols Jensen is a young widow who works as a school portrait photographer She learns her estranged father has died and left her a funeral home in Racine, a town she s never been to but interestingly, has a big Danish population Despite her mother s misgivings, Ilka goes to Racine She wants closure but she s also curious about the man she barely knew I enjoyed learning about the complexities of running a funeral home alongside Ilka as she found herself thrust into the middle of it with no training whatsoever There is an intriguing twelve year old unsolved murder mystery of a young local woman but it takes a backseat to Ilka s emotional journey She s not only trying to keep a beleaguered funeral home afloat, but she must contend with the fact that her father had an entire life and family she knew nothing about I found myself rooting for Ilka to find her footing in this tight knit community and I m looking forward to the next installment flag 1 likeLike see review Dec 07, 2017 Hannelore Cheney rated it liked it Thank you Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the eARC.Having read the excellent Louise Rick series, I was really looking forward to this book Unfortunately, it was disappointing Not much of a mystery, the tale of a dysfunctional family, I couldn t really warm up to the protagonist, Ilka Jensen Her father abandoned her and her mother when she was 7, and when he passes away in Wisconsin, she flies there to find out she has inherited his funeral home Yes, she had a sad childhood, b Thank you Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the eARC.Having read the excellent Louise Rick series, I was really looking forward to this book Unfortunately, it was disappointing Not much of a mystery, the tale of a dysfunctional family, I couldn t really warm up to the protagonist, Ilka Jensen Her father abandoned her and her mother when she was 7, and when he passes away in Wisconsin, she flies there to find out she has inherited his funeral home Yes, she had a sad childhood, but she is not a likeable woman The bleak surroundings and the details of the life of a funeral director are well written, but a bit grim and the open ending to set up for the next book was disappointing I will probably not rread it flag 1 likeLike see review Jul 18, 2017 Julie rated it it was ok Shelves fiction, own, vine Ilka s father abandoned her and her mother in Denmark decades ago to start a new life in America When she s notified of his death, Ilka travels to Racine, WI where she learns she has inherited his funeral home business But he left a mess of debt for her to clean up and she has to decide how to proceed Then an unidentified corpse that has been beaten to death turns up and the plot thickens For starters, the mystery aspect of the plot is really secondary to Ilka s own personal struggles with th Ilka s father abandoned her and her mother in Denmark decades ago to start a new life in America When she s notified of his death, Ilka travels to Racine, WI where she learns she has inherited his funeral home business But he left a mess of debt for her to clean up and she has to decide how to proceed Then an unidentified corpse that has been beaten to death turns up and the plot thickens For starters, the mystery aspect of the plot is really secondary to Ilka s own personal struggles with the business and its resolution seemed hasty and too convenient Ilka herself is so indecisive and contradictory She s constantly changing her mind about whether she wants to abandon the whole endeavor or stick with it Her observations seemed inane, the dialogue wasn t natural, and the writing was clunky The open ended conclusion left too many unanswered questions I understand that this is the first book in a series and it s a set up for the next installment, but I certainly won t be reading it.I received a complementary copy of this book via the Vine program flag 1 likeLike see review Oct 24, 2018 Lexi rated it it was ok This is a poorly written book with a somewhat offensive plot that ends on a cliffhanger Most of the book is about how messed up the US funeral system is, which was not a topic that I was that interested in The main character is somewhat cold and takes advantage of others view spoiler The issue of consent with Artie is major in that she is a position of authority over him and should be considered even when the female is the aggressor Also that the murder was some suicidal gay crush is just This is a poorly written book with a somewhat offensive plot that ends on a cliffhanger Most of the book is about how messed up the US funeral system is, which was not a topic that I was that interested in The main character is somewhat cold and takes advantage of others view spoiler The issue of consent with Artie is major in that she is a position of authority over him and should be considered even when the female is the aggressor Also that the murder was some suicidal gay crush is just dated and somewhat offensive as a plot device The funeral mafia was just silly and unnecessary Also, nothing was really solved hide spoiler flag 1 likeLike see review Jan 02, 2019 April rated it it was ok This book was not at all what the back said The murder mystery was like a side story and as far as I can tell after finishing the book, totally unrelated to her dad Maybe it picks up in the second book But basically nothing happened except a woman taking over her as an undertaker, which at times got too detailed The ending was a total piss off to be continued I read 330 pages of blah ho hum life with no interesting discoveries about her father for that I was really hoping I d like it an This book was not at all what the back said The murder mystery was like a side story and as far as I can tell after finishing the book, totally unrelated to her dad Maybe it picks up in the second book But basically nothing happened except a woman taking over her as an undertaker, which at times got too detailed The ending was a total piss off to be continued I read 330 pages of blah ho hum life with no interesting discoveries about her father for that I was really hoping I d like it and read from this authorbut I think not flag 1 likeLike see review Mar 17, 2018 Sheela rated it did not like it This was just not the book for me There was no thrill, no suspense and the mystery wasn t really the focus of the story, it was just playing out in the background I would say this is of a mild drama, maybe even humor I m not sure if its because this is a translated novel but the writing felt very drawn out and unexciting and i rolled my eyes at the main character constantly, she seemed completely preposterous a 40 year old woman, who hasn t seen her dad in 30 years comes to America fr This was just not the book for me There was no thrill, no suspense and the mystery wasn t really the focus of the story, it was just playing out in the background I would say this is of a mild drama, maybe even humor I m not sure if its because this is a translated novel but the writing felt very drawn out and unexciting and i rolled my eyes at the main character constantly, she seemed completely preposterous a 40 year old woman, who hasn t seen her dad in 30 years comes to America from Denmark to go through his things and ends up owning his funeral home business because she signed paperwork without reading it or asking questionsally lady So she is thrown into this business with no real experience and chaos ensues She spends the whole time comparing how odd funerals are in America as opposed to Denmark but all i can wonder is how she s so completely comfortable driving around, trying to run this business and sleeping with strangers for stress relief when this is her first time ever in Americashe doesn t feel like a foreigner at all, nor does she act like a grown woman She was seemingly in a constant struggle with everything but we never get any real answers as to what the problems with the business are and why everyone is so shady To make this even difficult the author abruptly ends the story with a to be continuedyup Luckily this was a very quick read so i guess i didnt waste too much time flag 1 likeLike see review Nov 24, 2017 Jean Martin rated it it was ok review of another edition Shelves did not finish Okay, I REALLY hate to not finish a book Especially a book by an author that I really like I love Sara s Louise Rick series and was excited for a new book by her I made it about 40% through this book before giving up I didn t have any problems with the main character, I just didn t see the mystery and thriller that this book was supposed to be I can t give a better review on this book since I didn t finish it Thank you to NetGalley for the copy flag 1 likeLike see review Mar 09, 2018 sslyb rated it it was ok Shelves nordic, first reads I enjoyed the Blaedel books I ve read previously, so I was pleased to win the Giveaway for The Undertaker s Daughter I didn t much care for this first of a new series This was a mystery writer leaving the genre behind There was a cold case and a new murder victim in this book but they were on the fringes of the story, the solving took place by the police while Ilka s tale took place Not a very likable character surrounded by other not very likable characters, meh flag 1 likeLike see review May 27, 2018 Torey rated it liked it Not a thriller by any means Irish woman abandoned by her father as a young girl discovers upon his death that she has been willled his Funeral home business in America As she heads to tie up loose ends she discovers a bit than expectedhalf sisters, small town love triangles, unsolved murder Not incredibly captivating, kinda slow at points, but I stuck with it I love a good ending, this one was just alright flag 1 likeLike see review Sep 03, 2018 Jenna rated it did not like it too slow.i couldn t get into it so i stopped reading it halfway thrue mystery takes too long to get thered when i peeked at the ending, the last page had the last words that said to be cont i m sorry but you don t end books with that you end them with a cliffhanger that makes people want to read the next one see what happens with the characters in the future flag 1 likeLike see review Jan 02, 2019 Amanda rated it it was ok Shelves own and completed I m not sure if this was supposed to be for adults or young adults I think it was meant for adults, but, it read like a YA book I did not like this Without giving anything awaythe ending annoyed me After finishing, I discussed with another person that had recently finished it, and she also had the same complaints as I did about the characters and the plot flag 1 likeLike see review previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 next new topicDiscuss This Book topics posts views last activity Ticket to Read Bo The Undertakers Daughter by Sara Bl del 4 4 Mar 12, 2018 02 39PM More topics Share Recommend It Stats Recent Status Updates Readers Also Enjoyed
[BOOK The Undertaker's Daughter « Sara Blaedel]
Sara Blaedel
About Author
Sara Blaedel is the author of the 1 international bestselling series featuring Detective Louise Rick Her books are published in thirty seven countries In 2014 Sara was voted Denmark s most popular novelist for the fourth time She is also a recipient of the Golden Laurel, Denmark s most prestigious literary award In 2016 she published the first book The Undertakers Daughter in a new trilogy Sara Blaedel is the author of the 1 international bestselling series featuring Detective Louise Rick Her books are published in thirty seven countries In 2014 Sara was voted Denmark s most popular novelist for the fourth time She is also a recipient of the Golden Laurel, Denmark s most prestigious literary award In 2016 she published the first book The Undertakers Daughter in a new trilogy set in Racine, Wisconsin Already widowed by the age of forty, Ilka Nichols Jensen, a school portrait photographer, leads a modest, regimented, and uneventful life in Copenhagen Until unexpected news rocks her quiet existence Her father who walked out suddenly and inexplicably on the family than three decades ago has died And he s left her something in his will his funeral home In Racine, Wisconsin
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Sara Blaedel
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