PROs:
I loved the storyline in this book. It is set in London. a city I'm familiar with so that added to the reading experience for me. The plot of the book follows Jocasta Lewis, a forensic pathologist who has just been assigned to a police department of "weirdos". She's not happy about this initially, but as she begins to understand more about what is involved in the job, she realises that it is a promotion rather than a demotion. The department itself investigates supernatural crimes and characters that cannot be investigated by the regular police force and Jocasta soon discovers that her new colleagues and the requirements of her new job are like nothing she has dealt with before. It's difficult to give too much detail without spoiling the plot but the characters are interesting and it's an original idea to look at crime from a supernatural, forensic pathology perspective.

CONs:
I think the book would benefit from some strong editing as there were a few typos and phrasing errors. For some reason, these seemed to occur most often at the beginning of chapters. For example, several words were not always capitalised (paris, parisian, brompton cemetery, st katherine). There was a reference to a 'cutlery draw' instead of drawer, Jocasta was described as being 'starving hungry' (same thing, no?), one of the characters was described as being 'wiry, heavy-set' (words which have an opposite meaning surely?), sandals were 'gentile snoring' after eating chocolate buttons. I also found the dialogue used for Sebastian and Heinrich where every 't' was replaced with a 'z' to be jarring (zhis, zhat, zhe, zheir), especially when there were a lot of these words in a sentence. It was much more effective when individual French/German words were used (oui, ja, etc.) to convey the speaker's accent.

VERDICT:
It's important to note that the above minor errors do not take away from the fact that this is a great story. If you enjoy police procedurals with a supernatural element, you will love this book. It reminded me of the Rivers of London series (which I also loved). I would definitely like to read more about this police unit and look forward to the next book in the series.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

Great Book!
Graveyard Watch follows a department that solves unusual cases involving the supernatural. With a great cast of characters it’s easy to fall into this well written world and the relationships in between each character.
I have to say I fell in love with all the characters for different reasons but Sebastien just stood out as my favourite.
This book has everything I want in one. Supernatural, mystery, romance, great friendship and romance.
Can’t wait to read more from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to have an ARC in return for an honest review

This was interesting...
I've never read an urban fantasy like this before. I'm a sucker for vampires and these one delivered. Jocasta wasn't annoying which is such a relief because I usually cannot stand female main characters but she had her conscience in tact. The werewolf was the slayest you can argue with A WALL!
As a debut book this really delivered and I hope to read more of R.J Eason's work

Absolutely Brilliant! R.J. Eason has created a wonderful world. The paranormal world needs this book. Fun, clever, just the right amount of romance, it's a fast paced marathon. Well Done. I'm looking forward to more of these.

Jocastor Lewis thinks her pathology career is going down the drains, nothing could be further from the truth (well, correction, some things do go down the drains and you might not want to follow them). I thought this was a superbly entertaining fantasy book. YA and up. Maybe a little MIB with understated pan-European/New World panache and flair, and no big bug guns (well some bugs and maybe a few guns but, also there are so many other ways to attack monsters including using your brain, charm and science). Throw in amusing characters, some villains with plans to foil, lots of humour, and an all round entertaining story. 5 Stars all day (and night)!! Thank you to Small Bear Books and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

I absolutely loved this book!

It’s a book that really captures you and you won’t want to put it down!

The book follows the team called a graveyard watch, they have case that they need solve by any means necessary. The book follows 2 timelines and switches prospective between the characters.

I enjoyed the different characters and how you got to know them. The accents being used were brilliant, werewolf being French gave me the same vibes as Michel Gerard from Gilmore girls - loved it!!

Overall I would give this book a 5/5, it was witty, funny & I cant wait to read the other books that continue the adventures of this team.

The Graveyard Watch is the first book in an urban fantasy series set in London.

It opens with pathologist Jocasta as she starts a new job for a strange law enforcement department, where she is plunged into a supernatural world that includes vampires, werewolves, a gnome and a captain with his own secrets. These shocking new circumstances pull her swiftly along, but it is her methodical scientific mind that keeps her grounded on more than one occasion.

A plot is afoot to sabotage the crowning of the new underworld king, and, as the coronation date draws near, Jocasta and the team must try to thwart the plans. There’s a bit of historical back story and at first the narrative flips back and forth between characters and historical settings, but it soon converges to the modern day timeline.

I enjoyed the London setting for this story and the main characters were quirky and likeable. I was less keen on the dialogue style for the French and German characters which used mostly vernacular speech. I don’t mind a sprinkling of dialect, but here less would have been more as I found it slowed the pace of reading.

The plot moved swiftly and there was enough action to keep me invested in the story. I liked the underlying romantic theme and will be interested to see where the author takes the series in the next book.

If only all famous books were as good as this book.
It takes a huge amount of talent to debut with something so unique and well-written.

This story has everything: myths, supernatural creatures, romance and a great sense of humour.

We follow a police department called the Graveyard Watch that deals with all the “undead” affairs. Our main characters squad is Domingo (the coolest boss ever), Jocasta (a new pathologist, who is a regular human being and knows nothing about what is going on), Will (a charming Captain) and Sebastien (a French bulldog, pardon me, werewolf). As we go through the events of the present, we also get to know the past of Domingo which reveals the complete picture to us.

Throughout the entire book I experienced proper the X-Files vibes. And, as a former biggest fan of the show, I absolutely fell in love with this work. It has it all: a department of “weirdos”, a sceptic who slowly starts to believe in supernatural creatures, ancient secret societies and so on.

I can’t wait to read what is going to happen to characters in the next books.

Special thank you for including so many nationalities in the storyline. It made my little immigrant heart flatter.

Please note: I’ve received ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5
A very solid debut! R.J.Eason has got me with the very first sentence. The book is entertaining, light, and engaging.

Urban fantasy setting where regular-people populated world is also full of vampires, volves, gnomes, ghouls, sylphs and other creatures. We are introduced to a the Graveyard Watch – a certain police force unit where unwanted/more mystical/magical cases are being investigated. A human woman, Jocasta, is a pathologist and has recently been transferred to the Graveyard Watch. That’s where we meet other characters of the book. R.J.Eason introduces us to characters gradually, and that makes a good, comfortable reading experience. A world is full of creatures, but every character is distinctive, has certain character traits, and as we get to know them little by little, we’re getting attached to the characters. Honestly, I liked all of them!

There are two timelines. Past timeline gives insight to present, but everything connects only toward the end. For quite some time, the main notion from the past timeline was that Jocasta is a very new piece in a very old game with experienced players.

Pace is even, a little romance subplot is at hand, it was done perfectly. The tone is light, that is especially felt through the characters: Sebastian is a very mannered french gay guy, Jocasta has entertaining flow of thoughts in her head, Bucky is such a cute gnome, Domingo gets my sympathy, as he‘s very much my type of male character in the book.

The main plot is unfolding a mystery, it was predictable, but in an easy and cozy way- a trait I like in easy reads. To sum up, the whole reading experience was pleasant and enjoyable.

The graveyard watch has a potential to become series, and I hope to see future books written by R.J.Eason!

I received ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Small Bear Books and NetGalley.

My favorite genre is plain urban fantasy or paranormal thriller. It can have romance in it, but I like the mystery to be the main plot. I requested this one because that seemed to fit the bill, and fortunately, I was correct. Now here is where is gets a little complicated. I really enjoyed this book, and I even laughed out loud at the end because of a hugely funny scene towards the end. However, it wasn’t perfect, and I really don’t expect the first book in a series to be because there’s lots of world building. Even with the imperfections, I really hope there will be more in the series. I absolutely love all the characters, including Sebatsian (zhe werewolf iz great! LOL!), the writing is excellent, and it keeps your attention. Give it a try! Recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.