The novel was released on May 17, 2011 by William Morrow and Company and follows a young woman that returns to her hometown to discover that she is expected to fill the supernatural shoes of her now-deceased grandmother.

[2] The book follows Rebekkah Barrow, a woman that returns to the small town of Claysville in order to attend the funeral of her grandmother Maylene.

She remembers that Maylene always attended the funerals of each townsperson, always taking three sips from a flask and telling the dead to "sleep well and stay where I put you".

Once back in Claysville, Rebekkah meets up with her old love interest Byron Montgomery and discovers that she is expected to perform the same ritual that her grandmother did for each funeral, as she is the new Graveminder.

Not only is Rebekkah the new Graveminder, but Byron is her Undertaker and her helper in placing the dead back in their grave if the ritual is not performed exactly right.