Perfect for fans of Carolyn Haines and Donna Andrews, Lillian Bell makes the return with her second Funeral Parlor mystery featuring funeral director Desiree Turner. When an unnatural cause of death finds one of her clients, Desiree must get to the bottom of the murder before she’s fitted for a coffin, herself. Funeral director Desiree Turner deals with death by natural causes all the time. Death by unnatural causes? Not so much. Yet, she and her boyfriend Nate have heard some not-so-dear things about the recently departed. A suspicious remark by the late Frank Fiore’s daughters sparks some concern. And when Violet Daugherty faints behind the wheel of her car, Desiree suspects she’s got a front seat to murder. Desiree can’t help but look into Violet’s untimely end, but soon after, rumors begin to spread that she’s accusing her clients of murder, which quickly spurs a mass cancellation and Desiree is on the verge of going out of business. What began as an effort to do due diligence for her client turns into a wild goose chase for Violet’s murderer. Desiree must find her proof before everything she works for is lost. But that’s easier said than done, because while everyone else in town is looking to take their business elsewhere, the killer sets sights directly upon Desiree. Now it’s up to Desiree to find the murderer before she becomes the next body her funeral parlor serves in If the Coffin Fits, Lillian Bell’s second charming Funeral Parlor mystery.

Fans of Carolyn Hart and Juliet Blackwell will be charmed by this cozy mystery series debut featuring “quirky characters, a clever plot . . . and enough clues and red herrings to keep the pages turning” (Dawn Eastman, author of the Family Fortune mysteries) Disgraced journalist Desiree Turner gets more than she bargained for when she takes over her family’s funeral home—and winds up at the center of a murder investigation After an on-air gaffe goes viral and jeopardizes her career, journalist Desiree Turner retreats home to Verbena, California for some peace and quiet. She begins working one of the quietest jobs around: presiding over funerals for her great-grandfather’s funeral parlor. But the action seems to follow her as a fistfight breaks out between neighbors Rosemarie Brewer and Lola Hansen at one of the first funerals she’s in charge of running. It exposes a nasty dispute and Rosemarie’s husband, Alan, is found murdered shortly after. Lola’s husband, Kyle, is immediately arrested. Desiree, whose own father’s death was devastating, has always viewed Kyle as a second father. Determined to clear his name, Desiree jumps headfirst into the investigation and quickly discovers that Alan had several unsavory habits at his job and in his personal life, including putting assets into his mistress’s account to hide them from Rosemarie. People murder for money and love all the time, and there’s no telling who he offended just enough to push them over the edge. Desiree is looking in all the right places, but she better catch the killer fast before they come for her next.

When their great Aunt Rebecca Sarah passes away, Jonathan Radburn and his family inherit the great Radburn Hall on the shores of Radburn Bay. But upon inheriting the great Hall, it comes with an ancestor: Thomas Radburn. Thomas Radburn is very much undead and has been sleeping in the wine cellar since the early part of the twentieth century. As everyone else has received an inheritance; Jimmy Wolf has received an old key. With this old key, Jimmy unlocks Thomas's coffin unsuspectingly. Jimmy unleashes Thomas Radburn into an unsuspecting world. The history of Radburn Bay comes alive, regaling how Radburn Bay was settled.

This vintage instructional manual is perfect for the historian of funerary practices or specialist woodwork enthusiast. Illustrated with practical diagrams, it introduces the reader to vessel types, polishing methods, inscriptions, linings and undertaking techniques. Contents include: Woodworking - Special Appliances; Lancashire Coffins - Southern Counties and Other Coffins - Children’s Coffins; Adults’ Covered Coffins- Polishing Coffins - inscription Plates and Coffin Furniture - Trimming or Lining Coffins - Ornamented and Panelled Coffins - Shells and Outer Coffins - Lead Coffins - Undertaking. We are republishing this rare work in a modern, high quality, and affordable edition, complete with a newly written introduction and reproductions of the original illustrations.

A collection of short stories showcases the author's original works of magic realism, fantasy, horror, and science fiction.

James Crissman explores cultural traits related to death and dying in Appalachian sections of Tennessee, Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, and West Virginia, showing how they have changed since the 1600s. Relying on archival materials, almost forty photographs, and interviews with more than 400 mountain dwellers, Crissman focuses on the importance of family and "neighborliness" in mountain society. Written for both scholarly and general audiences, the book contains sections on the death watch, body preparation, selection or construction of a coffin or casket, digging the grave by hand, the wake, the funeral, and other topics. Crissman then demonstrates how technology and the encroachment of American society have turned these vital traditions into the disappearing practices of the past.

It’s the mysterious world of the funeral directors, as they try to kill off burial under trees and oppose DIY funerals. It’s a world of embalming, pink glitzy shrouds, crappy coffins, brawling at funerals and girl power. Nobody’s resting in peace.