🥹 My favorite romances are the ones that surprise you, teach you, and pull at your heart strings — FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL has all of that and more.

Allison a chronic people pleaser suffering with survivors guilt after BRCA gene prompted mastectomy. If that wasn’t enough, her ex has unexpectedly and tragically passed away — but when she gets to the funeral she realizes she’s one of the only people there who knows about the ex in ex-girlfriend. In an attempt to help, she stumbles into a multi-weekend commitment helping to clean out her ex’s apartment with his best friend — Adam the “North Shore Grump.” This romance has some of my favorite tropes — grumpy sunshine, forced proximity, great banter, and HEART.

Yes, this a fun romance, but it also covers some very real topics. Palmer herself is a BRCA “previvor” and her deep, touching exploration of love, sex, guilt, and self-discovery post-mastectomy is so moving. She imbues Ali with complications but surrounds her with a group of amazing friends, a doting mother, and a love interest who see so clearly how truly wonderful she is, as she is, even if she can’t see it herself.

Best read in a beautiful wood rocking chair, this one will stick with me. Pick it up when it releases later this year, you won’t be disappointed.

Thank you to Putmam Books for this Advanced Reader Copy via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own and freely given.

My review will be posted on Goodreads and Social Media by January 24, 2024

Review already posted to Goodreads:

A 3.75/5 contemporary romance! If you love forced proximity, (kind of?) fake dating, right guy wrong time love story, this ones for you. Loved that it had the unique POV from a double-mastectomy BRCA 1 carrier, and I thought overall very creative storytelling. Where it fell off for me a little, was I just didn’t feel a connection with the characters. Overall, I still think it was a very fun read and recommend for anyone who loves a 90s/early 2000s romcom vibe in a book!

I did not know what to expect from this book. The title is what drew me in. I was intrigued from the moment I started the book. This book had some of my favorite tropes: enemies to lovers, forced proximity and grumpy meets sunshine. It made this a quick and easy read for me.

I'd give this book a 3/5 stars. Original but boring.

The concept is very interesting at the beginning. The story follows the ex-girlfriend to the recently deceased and she is invited to his funeral by his family. The family, not knowing that their son and the main character recently broke up, share how much they loved her and were happy to know she was there for him until the end. Sam, the ex, has a protective sister who asks Ali, the main character, to continue to pretend they were still together for the sake of Sam's parents mental health. Knowing he was with a good girlfriend puts them at ease. Ali goes with this to make them feel better, yet feels guilty about lying. At the funeral Ali meets Adam, Sam's best friend and the story main love interest. This spirals into the two of them agreeing to Sam's parents to clear out Sam's condo and prepare to sell. Over those four weekends, Adam and Ali get to know each other and form a sort of trauma bond/relationship.

I think this story had a strong beginning, funny characters, and an interesting plot I never would have thought of as well as a MFC who is an almost cancer survivor dealing with her own guilt. About half way through though, once the main characters formed their relationship, I began to lose interest. At times the plot was hard to follow, their relationship moved really fast to the point where it was almost unbelievable, and then shattered just as fast. Also, with modern romances being so steamy, I was surprised that there was so much build up surrounding their physical romance for it to just fade to black- I felt like the story lead me on only to edge me with no relief.

At the end, the miscommunication between characters was what took away the most from this story and leads me to give it 3/5 stars. It fell into the pattern a lot of miscommunication based romances do and became predictable.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book and review it before the release date.

This book is equal parts funny, sad, emotional, and heartfelt. I really enjoyed following along with a character who was positive for the BRCA 1 gene. I haven't seen this type of representation in books before so it was really interesting to gain this perspective and seeing everything Alison had to go through due to her genetic findings. The relationship between Alison and Adam is very wholesome. All of the characters are very relatable and you find yourself rooting for Alison and Adam from the very beginning. The pacing of the book started out very fast but began to lag a bit towards the end. Overall it was a very cute read that I would highly recommend!

I loved this book! Funny and believable in that 'omg no' sort of way. I loved the mc and the li and were so glad that they worked out in the end.

This book starts out with you following Alison at a funeral. It's a funeral for her ex-boyfriend, problem is, no one, not even Sam (the ex) told his friends and family that he broke up with her. In an attempt to ease the families pain she tries to comfort them and goes along with the lie. Through all of this she ends up being asked to handle Sam's personal belongings alongside his best friend Adam.

Hilarity and forced proximity ensue in the most grumpyxsunshine book I have ever read. Alison has taken to trying to be someone she's clearly not due to the fact that she got a preventative double mastectomy. She feels she's not deserving of her life and tries to become deserving by going to extremes, hiking, marathons, mountain climbing. Problem is she hates all of those things. Adam challenges her to simply be herself, while also being known as "The North Shore Grump" in his own rite. He's been in a stasis in his life for seven years with no end in sight.

These two come together under difficult circumstances and against all odds come out the other side better people.

I loved this book. The characters are adorable, they have depth and personality in scads. It's funny and heart wrenching all at once and the story is captivating. What I really loved most about this book is the healthy way in which both main characters find a way to deal with their grief, loss, and personal growth issues. There were so many ways this story could have circled around and tied it's self up but the way Ellie Palmer chose to do things was phenomenal. I was unaware this was a debut novel before reading it and I am absolutely shocked that it is. You'd think she's been writing books for a long time from this book. I will definitely be looking forward to more books from her.

A sweet book that captures your heart from start to finish, absolutely worth the five star rating, especially if you're a fluffy romance reader. Highly recommend this book.

Note for the Author: I adore that you used healthy coping mechanism for both characters toward the end of the book. The writing was lovely and this was such a wonderful cozy read. Produced one of my favorite couples of the year. Can't wait to read more from you!

Recovering from a double mastectomy as a BRCA 1 carrier, Alison Mullally assumes the role of the grieving girlfriend at her ex-boyfriend's funeral. Tasked with packing up Sam's apartment alongside Sam's sharp-tongued best friend, Adam Berg, Alison faces unexpected hurdles and stumbles upon a delicate yet exhilarating friendship filled with undeniable chemistry while she embarks on a mission to redefine herself, aiming to be "worthy" of the second chance life has granted her.

Ellie Palmer skillfully tackled weighty themes like friendship, grief, guilt, and self-acceptance, infusing the narrative with a light-hearted and relatable touch. If you're looking for a nice feel-good book that would take you on a rollers of emotions, this is the story for you.

This was another multi-dimensional story! Ali is pretending to be with her ex-boyfriend at his funeral when she meets his friend, Adam. Together, they set out to clean her ex-boyfriend’s house.

Parts are funny. Others sad but it’s a quick and interesting read. I thought the sorry was unique. It was also interesting to read about a young woman who electively had a double mastectomy. In today’s age, this is a sad reality, and I appreciate the depth it added to the story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this opportunity to read an early arc.

Four Weekends and a Funeral delves into the journey of self-discovery, authenticity, and trust. The protagonist, Alison, grappling with the BRCA-1 gene mutation and its heightened risk of breast cancer, has already undergone a double mastectomy. This barrier for her forces her to shut herself off from potential love and becomes the driving force between her desires for wanting to do "outdoorsy" things like her ex-boyfriend Sam, who died in an accident. Alison has to pretend to be Sam's girlfriend during the funeral. Then the love interest gets introduced, Sam's best friend, Adam.

As Sam's parents assign Alison and Adam the task of clearing out Sam's apartment, a series of four weekends unfolds, sparking a connection between them. While the initial engagement with the book may take a moment, the narrative captivates, holding readers for hours. The representation of the BRCA experience is skillfully woven into Alison's character—a thirty-year-old navigating the aftermath of a mastectomy and potential complications.

The novel offers a blend of witty banter, endearing romance, and tackles weighty themes such as survivor's guilt and the consequences of lies. Despite the overall enjoyment, as a Gen Z reader, I sensed a slight mismatch in target audience, with certain nostalgic elements possibly resonating more strongly with millennials.

Nevertheless, Four Weekends and a Funeral stands as a compelling read, offering a mix of entertainment and exploration of profound subjects.

“Four Weekends and a Funeral” was such a cute book despite the overarching topics of grief and cancer. I loved the realness of the characters and how multidimensional they all were. The author found a unique way that allowed Sam to still be present in the plot and “communicate” despite his funeral being the starting point of the book. While Allison’s obsession with needing to enjoy activities she obviously hated got a little tedious halfway through the book, I couldn’t get enough of her and Adam and I’d definitely recommend this book to any lover of contemporary romance novels.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC!

“I don’t understand why you’d prioritize something you have to remind yourself to tolerate over something you actually love.”

Four Weekends and a Funeral is made up of everything I hope for when I read a romance novel. It not only contains some of my favorite tropes - forced proximity, enemies to lovers, grumpy x sunshine - it has some of the best morbid humor I’ve ever come across.

Alison Mullally (Ali Mullally) has recently had a double mastectomy and is coming to terms with accepting herself for who she is and not who she thinks she’s supposed to be - she thinks she’s boring and doesn’t feel like she’s enough or like she’s deserving of the love she receives. This is a motif that I deeply resonate with. I have never before seen my own feelings written out so clearly and it was staggering, to say the least.

“You have to stop doing things because you think it’s what you should do and silently keeping a scorecard.”

The relationships between every character in this story were so believable. Each person was distinctly their own character, with many flaws and human characteristics among them. I found myself laughing out loud more than I normally would at a book that has such a strong emotional theme - but the morbid humor I mentioned above was so well written that I couldn’t help myself. Never have I laughed so many times at different phrases including the word “nipples”.

“He makes me feel desired and wanted for every odd and boring part of me.”

Amidst the dark humor and self-reflection, there’s a beautifully written man named Adam Berg: a Harrison Ford lookalike that also happens to have some of his grumpy qualities and is secretly a softy. Upon first sight I immediately pictured him as Jack Callaghan in While You Were Sleeping because of his seemingly rough exterior, cinnamon roll interior, and love for carpentry. He has now made the list of my favorite fictional men (my new favorite fictional man, iykyk). I’ll be sitting here waiting for the day that a man like him, a grumpy, soft-hearted, handsome man written by a woman, stumbles into my life.

To sum it up, I loved this. I laughed, I cried, I wanted to throttle Alison a couple times, and I fell in love with every single character. I can’t wait until this is published so I can get my hands on a physical copy and thrust it upon everyone I know.

Thank you to Ellie Palmer for this emotionally and hilariously impactful read and thank you to NetGalley and G. P. Putnam’s Sons for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fast-paced book that kept my attention. A super cute Rom-com where you were rooting for the main characters. I enjoyed this one.

This was a delight. I loved the element of a young woman being the cancer survivor (I too am one and NEVER read about these characters!) and I thought the premise was SO FRESH and fun even while dealing was dark subject matter.

Loved this and look forward to more from Palmer.

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc!
I did enjoy this book, about 75% through, I felt it was a little slow for a bit and I got bored, but then it picked up again. This was a mix of funny and romance. Interesting take with the phone alerts from her ex and how things go with that. Overall, this was a fairly quick read that was pretty lighthearted and funny.

I’ve already added this to my Goodreads. Thank you so much for the advanced copy! This was a fun read from start to finish. I loved the banter between characters - not only between Alison and Adam, but also between their friends and family. There were a few times I genuinely laughed out loud. The general storyline of pretending Alison and Nick’s breakup never happened is a golden (albeit morbid) concept; and the author only made it better with the BRCA1 representation, ongoing trivia theme, and overall reminder that our value as individuals is unconditional and our lives don’t need actualized on top of a mountain and turned into a bestselling memoir.

In short, I loved this book and look forward to recommending it to my peers once it’s published.

I LOVED THIS BOOK! It was the perfect palate cleanser! Ali and the North Shore Grump were adorable. I adored the grumpy Adam from the jump, and Ali's rambling and honesty were adorable. The BCRA gene and post-mastectomy rep was eye-opening and spot on from what I remember of my mother's recovery. I love books that shed light on things we wouldn't know otherwise. Laugh out loud, sweet, angry moments- this book had it all. Ellie Palmer is definitely going on my one-click list!

I really enjoyed this book! I generally save Rom-Coms as my palette-cleansers, and this was exactly what I needed after reading quite heavy titles. It was the perfect amount of grumpy/sunshine without being cliche, and was just a lot of fun.

A cute and funny take on such a unique topic. The characters were the best part. I loved the chemistry and banter between the MC’s! 10/10 would recommend :)

As a MN girl I loved this story from the get-go. Thoughtful, funny, unique. Highly recommend. The romance is delightful but secondary to the careful questions it invites readers to consider how we live and who we live for. Recommend x 10