Four Weekends and a Funeral is a debut novel touted as romantic comedy, but as someone who doesn't often pick up and read that genre, I was pleasantly surprised that it was so much more than that. Without stating as much, Four Weekends and a Funeral is also a novel about grief.

Set in Minnesota, the book opens up with the main character, Alison Mullally, attending the funeral of her ex-boyfriend, Sam, who didn't tell his family they had broken up. Without giving away any spoilers, the story then takes us through different types of grief and how they are experienced uniquely for many different characters.

I loved the healthy presence of therapists, raw emotions happening in the moment, and the natural flow of pacing while so many heavy things are happening at once.

The banter had me laughing out loud and relating so much to the dialogue! It's witty, fitting, and true to the characters developed on the pages.

The only thing I didn't like were some editing issues needing one more revision in the advanced publication copy I read at the time of my review (expected publication date: Aug 2024). A few intense scenes that were more show than tell were missing showing words in the narration to describe what the characters were doing. Example: oftentimes, bodies would be positioned one way and then the next sentence would describe them positioned differently without explaining how they got there. This did disrupt the flow of the story for me when it happened.

Being enthralled by the plot overall, I still look forward to rereading the final, published copy once these changes are made. And I highly recommend Four Weekends and a Funeral as an anticipated read for next summer!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Putnam Books for an advanced digital copy of this book.

I have to say - I loved it! I love the plot of thought to be enemies to lovers and the characters' processing their grief of losing their friend. I really liked that the story didn't have too many subplots to follow. The end was perfect and just wrapped it up in a perfect bow.

10 out of 10

Thanks to Net Gallery And Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to read this book early

This was such a cute, heartwarming romcom. It gave me major While You Were Sleeping vibes. I loved all the characters. For kind of a dark start, it really is not a dark book. (I do feel like it's worth noting there is a lot of explict cancer/BRCA talk, which I hadn't been expecting to be so front and center, in case that is something you're actively avoiding.) But it was a great book about not only finding yourself, but accepting yourself and falling in love.

I wanted to love it. It started off with great pacing, was super easy to read, and I enjoyed the story. Our main characters were quite fun, despite the book kicking off with a funeral. I really enjoyed their relationship. Then at the 70% mark, the book unfortunately became an uphill slog through a Minnesota blizzard. At that point, the characters were actually sort of mean to each other (to the point that I wasn’t rooting for them anymore) and the pacing just fell apart.

One thing I really appreciated was the handling of grief our main character goes through. That was done well. It felt incredibly authentic.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for the ARC.

THEYRE BRINGING BACK ROMCOMS BABY

this had that beautiful storytelling and laugh-out-loud whit that nora ephron portrayed so well done in the 90s. this story is sexy- adam and alison are exactly my cup of tea and to watch them fall in love was a true honor. i highly recommend checking this one out for a fun romance packed with a punch

A very sweet romance of two people coming together at a difficult time. I found the discussions of navigating health diagnoses and grief very poignant.

This is the story of Adam and Allie. He is the childhood best friend of Sam (they are drifting apart) and she is Sam's recently ex girlfriend. First thing, before the story, Sam dies. Allie goes to the funeral where the family thinks that she is still Sam's girlfriend. She doesn't have the heart to correct them so she goes along with it. So far along with it that she agrees to help Adam clear out Sam's old condo to get it ready for selling.

I loved that it started with the funeral. In that it is a rom com and goin got the funeral meant we could like Sam but weren't devastated by his death. The book does a great job of unfolding Adam and Allie's relationship. They were both relatable (I mean I can understand why neither was in a rush to correct the idea of best friend and girlfriend). My favorite part is the ending, where we find out Sam was going to introduce the two of them, because he knew they would be perfect for each other. It was overall a fun read.

I’m not really a rom-com reader but the title spoke to my GenX heart and I was not disappointed. The author deals with a whole lot of serious issues (grief, imposter syndrome, health issues) in the midst of a slow-burn romance and humor. Well done!

Very cute! I love that this wasn’t the typical romantic comedy (boy meets girl, crisis happens, they find their way back together) but rather it was a story of two people falling for each other under non-traditional (and arguably awkward) circumstances. On top of that, it hits some poignant life lessons about how overcoming adversity/fear doesn’t always fit a set mold. It can mean different things for different people.

This was a great debut! I love the title, but I think it's a little misleading / on the nose, maybe. While the line-level writing was cozy, I found the pacing and placement of plot points to be a bit awkward at times. I really appreciate the author's inclusion of BRCA and thought that was something added depth to the story, but the way it was dealt with sometimes felt a little contrived. While I liked Mara and Chelsea, they also didn't seem to hold on their own, and the trivia plot was a little overdone. All in all, though, this is an excellent debut! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

This is probably the most don't judge a book by its cover moment I've ever had. I did not think I was going to like this book. It did not feel like I was going to be interested, but from the beginning I found Alison endearing, and Adam was a great counterpart to her. I really enjoyed how the story played out, and while the initial situation that the protagonist gets herself into feels kind of contrived, I have a friend that I can absolutely see getting herself into the same place.
One of the best parts of this book is how her relationship with Sam seems to change over time, and how he seemed to know that Adam and Alison would get along. I liked how Alison stood up for herself when everything started to fall apart, and I especially liked that Adam didn't figure out that Alison and Sam broke up beforehand, and that when he did find out, he didn't make a big deal about it. They were able to move on without issue. Perfection.
The side characters were a little generic, and I honestly had a hard time telling Chelsea and Mara apart. But I don't necessarily think that's a bad thing, as so much of the book was contained within Sam's apartment and only consisted of Adam and Alison together.
I really enjoyed this. Much more than I thought I would. I liked the chemistry between Alison and Adam, and felt like they had a real connection, unlike so many of the other romance books I've read lately. This felt like a book about a growing relationship that happened to have 1-2 sex scenes, rather than a collection of sex scenes badly strung together with forced quippy scenes between characters I couldn't care less about.
ALSO
Alison's BRCA was treated so well. I really like when characters have other stuff going on in their lives, and this was weaved in so well with the guilt, and the relationship with Alison's mom. I really liked it. I just liked this book a lot.

thank you to netgalley and the publishers for an e-arc of this book. all thoughts are my own and not influenced in any way.

oh-kay, where do i begin? i definitely think i am not the target audience for this book. this is 100% a book i see a lot of millennials loving. it seems to be very 90's rom-com coded (which also seems to be the general consensus). i unfortunately found it very difficult to connect with the characters and the references just kinda flew over my head. i rlly enjoyed seeing the representation in alison. she finds out that she has the BRCA gene and gets a double mastectomy. seeing her deal with the grief of losing a part of herself and struggling with it happening at the age that it did for her was very interesting for me. i enjoyed how much more this book had to offer in terms of plot and depth. however, i felt the pacing was all over the place. initially, i was having a great time with the humour and the writing but slowly, it started boring me a little. i do think this is a cute read with great representation and lots of laugh-out-loud moments that i see millennials having a great time with. but unfortunately, it was a miss for me. i am excited to see what else the author does in the future though.

This book was a quick, entertaining read that I couldn’t put down! I love creativity of the story, as I could really see something like this happening and how real people might react to it.

Alison’s ex-boyfriend, Sam, passes away and upon attending his funeral, no one in the family seems to know Sam broke up with her six weeks earlier except his sister who asks Alison to play along. So she does, but ends up getting herself roped into helping pack up his apartment and belongings with Sam’s best friend, Adam, for the next four weekends. Adam is grumpy and doesn’t seem to talk much. As they slowly get to know each other, the force proximity turns to more than friendship…but each has different reservations on moving forward.

I really appreciate how the book covered the family dynamics and mental health aspects for each character. The characters were heartfelt and very relatable, but still quirky with funny sarcastic banter. I especially enjoyed the lady trivia trio. Every girl should be lucky to have two best friends like Mara & Chelsea.

A special thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Putnam Group for an advanced digital copy of this book!

I need to lead this review by agreeing with FMC Alison's best friend, Chelsea: Harrison Ford at any age can get it and share that the opening line made my jaw drop.

FW&AF is if While You Were Sleeping (ELITE romcom) and In Five Years by Rebecca Serle had a baby.

Setting: Minnesota; Twin Cities and Duluth
Tropes: Forced Proximity, Grumpy/Sunshine, Fake Dating*, "Forbidden" Love, Enemies to Lovers

FW&AF follows FMC Alison and MMC Adam.
Alison is a train enthusiast and transportation consultant, who is focused on the guilt of who she is supposed to be since she cheated death after testing for the BRCA1 gene by burying herself in self help books and hobbies that do not spark joy. In her journey of being someone she is not, her two best friends (Chelsea and Mara), as well as Adam call her out on it.
Adam, works in construction with a passion for carpentry (OKAY HI HARRISON FORD!!) who knows what he wants, but doesn't have the courage to follow through and execute.

Needs a TW for breast cancer, mastectomy, reconstruction surgery, passing of a loved one off page...
I found it interesting that this is closed door, when the ovarian ultrasound was so incredibly detailed. Like, I still feel it.

It felt more like a medical drama than a romance novel at times. I’m not sure if this is a love story between two people, or more so a love story for yourself, with a side story of two people falling in love.

This is Ellie Palmer's debut novel, and I look forward to reading future works of hers.
Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for the digital ARC!

What a great debut novel! It reminded me SO much of the movie While You Were Sleeping, which is one of my all-time favorite movies. Alison is a very likeable heroine who has been through a lot (physically and mentally), so you can't help but like her and empathize with her character. And if you love a good enemies-to-lovers or forced proximity trope then you'll get a big kick out of Four Weekends and a Funeral. Normally, I don't care much for secondary characters, but Mara and Chelsea added so much depth to the story and the girl power vibes were awesome. I would recommend this book to everyone, and I look forward to reading more of Ellie Palmer's work in the future.

Highly recommend checking out this debut romance novel when it comes out in August. This book has a super fun premise: Alison shows up to her ex-boyfriend’s funeral but his family thinks she’s still his girlfriend. Not wanting to upset them during this trying time, Alison not only plays along, but also offers to clean out his condo, alongside his best friend Adam. What comes next is a top tier forced proximity, grumpy sunshine romance. I loved Adam, the rugged Minnesota mountain man and Alison, a double mastectomy survivor who feels desperate to change her life after her BRCA diagnosis. I also really appreciated the female friendships in this book (hoping for future books about Chelsea and Patrick and Mara and a rival trivia bro).

Four Weekends and a Funeral

3.25 ⭐️

I picked up this one way earlier that the @netgalley due date because it just sounded so cute and funny! And while it did have funny parts, there was a lot more depth to it than I anticipated.

Alison is at her ex-boyfriend’s funeral when she finds out everyone still thinks they were dating when he died. She’s asked to help clean up his apartment with his best friend. The two end up working together and finding a quick friendship and more. Alison is also dealing with a pre-cancerous prognosis and the grief that comes with losing a part of herself.

I loved the Minnesota setting and all the little Easter eggs from around Duluth and the Twin Cities! The chapter titles and even some of the offhanded comments about Alison’s mastectomy seemed like they went a little too far and were a little too overt. Alison and Adam both showed great character growth and I really enjoyed that!

This book is a highly creative, sexy, and entertaining execution of enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, and grumpy-meets-sunshine tropes. In this rom-com world, thirty-year-old Allison Mullally finds herself in one of the most awkward situations: pretending to be in a relationship with a dead guy! Sam, her adventurous and thrill-seeking ex-boyfriend, dumped her six weeks ago because of their vast differences. Throughout their short relationship, Allison pretended to be happy, prioritizing Sam's needs, even participating in extreme sports activities she despised.

Now, she's attending Sam's funeral in unstylish and uncomfortable clothes, only to discover that Sam's family believes they were still dating at the time of his death. Sam's sister requests her to continue the charade, as the family insisted on Sam settling down when he was alive. Allison reluctantly agrees, thinking she can fake-date a dead guy for the sake of his grieving family. However, her commitment takes an unexpected turn when she is forced to team up with Adam, Sam's uptight, grumpy, and frustrating best friend, to pack up Sam’s belongings in his apartment for four weekends.

Despite initial reservations, Allison finds herself drawn to Adam. Their witty banter and blooming intimacy spark a natural friendship between them. As their chemistry hits the roof, and tensions rise, they realize they need to come clean and give their relationship a chance. However, Allison must confront her own insecurities and decide if she's brave enough to risk her heart.

The book boasts amazing supporting characters, with a special emphasis on the fantastic girl power of Mara and Chelsea. Unlike some romances where secondary characters feel forced, these characters add depth and atmosphere to the story. The witty banter and palpable chemistry between Adam and Allison make for a highly entertaining read. The book expertly balances emotional chapters related to family relationships, providing different perspectives on various situations.

In conclusion, I had an amazing time reading this book and wholeheartedly recommend it to die-hard rom-com lovers.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam/ G. P. Putnam’s Sons for providing me with a digital reviewer copy of this entertaining book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

3.5⭐️

I enjoyed this book. It was a nice romance and I appreciated that the plot did go deeper than your typical rom com. I also enjoyed the theme of learning to love yourself and know I could see some of myself in the main character, Alison.

There were a couple of things that held me back from absolutely loving this book. At times, the pacing felt slow. In addition, despite the depth to the characters I had a hard time really connecting with them.

Overall, this was an enjoyable book and definitely worth a read. Thank you to both NetGalley and Putnam for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Four weekends and a funeral is probably one of the most satisfying and original romances I read this year.
The starting point is Alison who finds herself fake dating her dead ex boyfriend while falling for sad dead ex boyfriend's best friend Adam.

I found this book tender, sweet, important to read. I loved how it dealt with grief and survivor's guilt. They're not easy topics to handle but the author did beautifully.

The romance is absolutely sweet and stunningly written. Alison and Adam have great chemistry and their slowburn was so satisfying to read. Also the characters separately were so well written and felt so real. Again to the author's merit.
And, lastly, a shout out to the friend group which was so fun and entertaining and I hope those same characters get books in the future. I'd be very interested.
I don't think I can recommend this book enough, truly.