This is the story of how one simple mistake alters the lives of a handful of residents in the small village of Bideford. They clean up afterwards to allow the families to believe that death was peaceful and came naturally. But on an outing with new partner Amanda, a normally smooth operation quickly turns disastrous when the duo accidentally helps the wrong patient to die. Awkward, but a potential learning mistake, until they discover the real client is still alive, and they’ve assisted his ailing, deadbeat son into the hereafter. The other storyline features the detective Calvin and some of his police work in this case and a few others.

This review was written voluntarily and my rating was in no way influenced by the fact that I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel at my request from Atlantic Monthly Press via NetGalley.This group consists of a pair of individuals who will go and sit with someone and comfort them in their final moments/hours. There was a particularly hilarious scene between Felix and a police officer, which had me waking my poor husband, in the middle of the night, with my giggles. The topics discussed in this book were death, euthanasia, loneliness, being old, terminal illness, friendships, etc.

Full of warmth and charm, Bauer has created some memorable, characters (including Mabel, Felix's dog) and a plot that is humorous and quirky as well as a gentle and respectful commentary on living and dying well.They are always careful to do nothing that actually helps in the suicide, they simply sit and wait and then clean up the evidence. The sick individuals must assemble the materials and administer the gas themselves, while the Exiteers - who work in pairs - merely sit by the bedside. I really thought the book would delve more into the topic, and expected some insight, but I felt like the tone didn't match the subject matter. But at their last exit operation, his follow exiteer doesn’t follow the protocol and things get out of control. Throw in some wonderful pets, a friendly neighbor who likes to rate the neighborhood gardens and this one is a gem!

Overall, a first class read which is hard to put down and is without doubt another winner from this outstanding author who has a unique ability to blend crime with humour while presenting us with believable characters and plots.Something goes wrong, she makes a mistake, and what seemed like it was going to be a slow, straight-forward story about an old guy in a new situation changes entirely. While you are awaiting the publication of this novel on February 2nd, I can highly recommend both “Snap” and “Rubbernecker” by this author. You see, I worked for a number of years as a hospice nurse, and for my entire nursing career as a cancer nurse, so I’ve seen many manifestations of both life and death at the end of the human lifespan. The narrator, soon established as Elliot Chase, then zooms out to address the reader directly, introducing the players—most importantly movie star Lana Farrar. I know it can be a contentious topic, which is why I was so looking forward to seeing how it would be explored in this story.