Making Arrangements

It’s been nearly a year since Luke Madsen died, and now his son Colin has just over a month to decide the fate of the family funeral home. Colin’s father was well-loved and highly respected in the community, and Colin is struggling with how best to preserve his father’s legacy. He doesn’t want to leave his well-paying accounting job, but at the same time, he is unwilling to go to mortuary school in order to be able to continue his father’s work. Adding another complication is the re-acquaintance of Colin’s childhood friend, Ava; they find themselves romantically compatible and have many shared interests, but Ava’s job with a funeral home acquisition company creates strife between them. Should Colin sell the funeral home? Turn it over to the state? Let it close completely?

Author Brent Eliot Parker knows the funeral home industry; he is a fourth-generation mortician, and his intimate knowledge of how the business works shows in his novel Making Arrangements. This book presents an interesting glimpse into how a business that serves families in their times of greatest mourning operates and how a family-operated funeral home is an important community fixture. Parker presents an interesting story, one that is not only a very real issue for many people, but one that is virtually unknown to the rest of the general population. He does a good job weaving a story around Colin’s big decision. While the book could definitely use the services of a good editor, the narrative is well written overall. I found very little to like in the main character, Colin—the way he hid his intentions regarding the funeral home did not set well with me, nor did his romantic indiscretion—but that did not stop me from enjoying Making Arrangements. This novel is a fascinating look into an industry many do not know well.