In the town of Claysville, the dead must be scrupulously minded by the Graveminder and the Undertaker... or bad things happen. 
 "Graveminder" really shows that Melissa Marr has left teenage faerie tales far behind her. Her first adult novel is a much darker, stranger story -- a lushly-written American Gothic set in a small town where death is very different from what it is elsewhere. It takes awhile for everything to settle into place, but the suspenseful journey is worth it. 
 When her grandmother Maylene is found murdered, Rebekkah Barrow is called back to the town she hasn't lived in for almost a decade -- ever since her stepsister Ella committed suicide. Claysville has a lot of weird traditions and superstitions, including a mysterious connection between the Barrow women and the local undertakers, including Ella and Rebekkah's onetime boyfriend Byron. 
 But as Rebekkah and Byron try to figure out what happened to Maylene, other people are injured and killed by something roaming through Claysville. The new Graveminder and Undertaker must uncover their connection to the world of the dead, learn why a Hungry Dead girl is roaming through the town -- and stop a horrifying evil that is festering in their town. 
 Out of the books Melissa Marr has written, "Graveminder" is probably her darkest, eeriest and most organic. She doesn't rely on explicit gore to creep us out, instead allowing the horrifying moments to drift down like dead leaves (such as Daisha "accepting help" from people). Yes, it's even creepier than monsters could ever be. 
 And Marr's prose is lushly-described and full of rich, small-town-gothic atmosphere. She builds up the story slowly, carefully laying out clues and hints about Claysville, the Graveminders and their connection to the dead, and letting them gradually settle into place. Think of it as a supernatural murder mystery, entwined with an eerie story about a town's links to the world of the dead. 
 Her characters are equally complex and hauntingly realistic, from the odd old undertaker to the amiable barmaid. Rebekkah is a woman who has run from everything Claysville-related, but now she has to face everything about it -- her love for Byron, her past, her dead sister, and her destiny. At first she seems kind of selfish, but she has a genuinely good heart and strong core. 
 And Byron's conflicted feelings about Rebekkah, Ella and his preordained life are pretty moving. Even the "Hungry Dead" girl Daisha, who is slowly piecing together how she died, is given a fascinating character despite being... well, dead. 
 "Graveminder" is a haunting, fascinatingly complex novel that clings to your mind like a cobweb. Possibly Melissa Marr's greatest work yet.