A Field Guide to Burying Your Parents

I just finished this book and had to come write a positive review. This novel is an engrossing and engaging blend of family drama and romance with a bit of a mystery/legal plot thrown in to round things out. It's smoothly written with a lot of humor and emotion that never feels cliched, even if you feel you've read this plot before. Grace, the main character, has been living in a detached fog since her mother's death five years before. She doesn't speak to any of her siblings or her former boyfriend. Instead, she's floating through life without feeling anything. When her father--who left the family when Grace was a teenager--has a stroke, Grace is forced to confront the pain that she's kept buried. I loved all the relationships in this book. John, Grace's former boyfriend, is what you want in a hero--smart, kind, but with an edge. It is perhaps somewhat unrealistic that he'd be available to Grace after five years (throughout, I kept thinking that two to three years would have made more sense), but there's good tension between them and I was invested in their outcome. I also loved Huston, Abigail, and Leo--is it too much to hope that they all get their own books in the future? Pick this up when you want a feel-good read that isn't dumbed down. Grade: A-

I am one of 5 "surviving" children and my mother just had a stroke in November. The hospital dramas (nasty nurses, crowded rooms), family meetings and paperwork zoos were all too familiar but the plot is what really gripped me. My mind raced with all of the possible turns the story might take. I could not stand to be apart from these characters. I'll be grabbing another Liza Palmer novel today.

I read this book throughout the course of a day. The story line was compelling with each character fully described and understood. I would recommend this book to all of my friends as a MUST READ!

I love Liza Palmer- she writes with charm, wit, and real emotion about the lives of families and the difficulties of finally becoming a grown up. She writes with a frankness that you don't often find in women's fiction but it's never bitter. i think that makes her characters very relatable and this is her best book yet... highly recomend for anyone who loves jennifer weiner, jodi piccoult, or laura zigman.

This is a fast paced, great read. I couldn't stop reading since I had to know what happens next. I recommend this book to anyone who loves a quick fast read and look forward to read more by this author.