This is a delightful comic caper featuring Nina Sherwood, avant garde  funeral director and proud new owner of her business located in well to do Primrose Hill.
With a wonderful cast of characters, from friends Gloria and Edo, Mr and Mrs Happy to the dastardly duo of Zoé and Barclay Banks, this heartwarming tale should put a smile on your face. 
Brimming full of ideas to breathe life into the funeral business and preferring to think outside the (coffin), Nina is dismayed but not deterred when she receives a less than lukewarm welcome to this exclusive neighbourhood. Quite the opposite in fact as Zoé Banks, beauty salon entrepreneur, with the help of the rest of the traders association has her talons out, making it quite plain she should quit while the going is good. Even brother Barclay seems to be in cahoots with his sister or by getting to know Nina will he swap allegiance and turn out to be her knight in shining armour?? 
I love Nina’s feisty upbeat personality, full of empathy but also possessing an iron will to succeed which is admirable. With the support of her friends Gloria and Edo as well as film star Kelly Shapiro it is impossible to not have faith in Nina’s ability to win over the hearts and minds of her adversaries.
Full of warmth and wit and the necessary amount of romance, Five wakes and a wedding is a sweet if silly tale that is pure escapism and a pleasant way to while away a few hours. My thanks as always to the author and publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read in exchange for an honest review.

This was charming and kept me engrossed throughout. I loved the characters and really enjoyed the setting and plot. A great read for a holiday or train journey!

This book was the first one I have read from this author.  I wasn't sure what to expect and was honestly hesitant in requesting this book due to the storyline, Nina, an undertaker, who gets fired from one job and then opens up her own business. It was an OK read but I won't be running to read more from this author.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

Absolutely loved this book! The fact that it focuses on an undertaker should make this book slightly sad, however it manages to be really uplifting, making you think about funerals in a new way. Our main character is likeable and I really rooted for her throughout the book, finding that I just needed to keep reading to find out what happened to her! This is still definitely a chick lit and like most others of the genre is a happy, feel good read. I’d definitely recommend! Thank you to netgalley for gifting me this book in exchange
For an honest review.

My thanks to the Publishers via NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review. I gave this a 3 stars or 6/10.

Nina is a female undertaker, she enjoys her job as her customers can't talk back to her. However, it would appear that someone has it in for her business and as a series of events begin to happen that look set to put a nail in the coffin for her business, she finds that she has to make some decisions about what to do for the best. 
Not everyone is happy that she is running her business in the area that she is in and she finds that she has some bridges to mend with the local residents.

With the help of an investor she finds herself in a position to move the business forward, but are his intentions as clear cut as she at first believes them to be. With some serious decisions and some misgivings, Nina finds herself in an unenviable position.

This was a light hearted read, despite the fact that the story centres on an undertaker. It did seem to ramble on at certain parts without too much happening, but that didn't detract away from my enjoyment of the story.

If you're looking for something a bit different then why not grab a copy and settle back in a comfy chair to immerse yourself in Nina's world for a few hours.

If you love chick-lit type books, then this is great for you to read. I would definitely recommend it as a great holiday/beach read. I was hooked in straight away and because the book was so easy to read it didn't take me long to finish it either. 

Loved it and even the title sounds ready for a movie!

Loved the title which is what led to the request. 
Really enjoyed the story, great book and good east characters, Easy summer read.

When Nina Sherwood gets fired from her position as an Undertaker in a large chain, she decides to open her own Undertakers in the middle of Primrose Hill.  Unfortunately the locals don't feel that an Undertakers is a suitable addition to the neighborhood. Zoe, the local beautician is especially vocal in her disapproval and won't let Nina join the traders association.
 Her staunchest supporters are Gloria - her flatmate and a lawyer, Edo - an artist come handyman friend, and a large rescue dog Chopper. Plus of course her parents whose life savings are invested in the business.
On the other side are Zoe, Mr Banks, Mrs Happy, and seemingly everyone else in Primrose Hill.
when the dashing Barclay comes crashing into her life she's not sure where he stands.
This book won't win any prizes, and still needs a little editing, but is a fun, summer read.

This book was very dull and there was no real storyline to this book. 
I should have known by the title of the book that it was not for me

Join Nina the undertaker as she sets up her small business in Primrose Hill, much to the consternation of the Traders Association and neighbours. Nina is a fantastic heroine, feisty, vulnerable, funny, determined, passionate and someone for whom you want the world to work out for. Along the way meet Zoe Banks, the wicked witch of Primrose Hill, her flat share lawyer friend Gloria who is into urban gardening to bring vital political messages to the masses and there is Edo, who also ends up living with Gloria and Nina, bringing along a rescue dog Chopper and many brilliant and 'out-there' artistic ideas. The love interest is Barclay, wealthy playboy. Does he have a heart of gold or is there a hidden agenda? Will Happy Endings,  Nina's funeral business thrive or will it be thwarted? 
This is such a funny, laugh out loud book that was a dream to read. Loved the originality, loved Kelli the celebrity and all the people we meet who need Nina's modern day funeral services. Highly recommend you pick up this book to brighten your reading days.!

I could not put down this book. It was so interesting and the writing was great. I will definitely be recommending this to customers at my work!

I was super excited to read this book and it truly did not disappoint and it stood by my expectations. I really enjoyed reading this as it’s such a light hearted contemporary rom com that anyone who’s currently on their summer holiday could easily devour the entire book in one sitting. 

I recommend the book to anyone who enjoys drama filled stories that will definately make you laugh your heart out

2.5 Stars

What can I say except that I was looking for a cute rom com and I should have known by the title that the novel didn’t fit that bill. 

Nina is an undertaker who starts her own business in Primrose Hill after getting fired.  Little does she know that the residents of Primrose Hill have no interest in funerals and therefore they try and make life very difficult for Nina and the rest of the staff at Happy Endings. 

Unfortunately little went on for much of “Five Wakes and a Wedding” and when it did it made me realize that I was simply the wrong reader for this novel.  That being said the relationships made between Nina and and several others characters were great and I really enjoyed the character development throughout the novel. 

Thank you to Netgalley, Avon Books UK and Karen Ross for an arc of this novel in exchange for an arc.  

Published on Goodreads on 7.25.19.

I really enjoyed the unique premise of Five Wakes and a Wedding - Nina is starting her own business (awesome) as an undertaker (whaaaaat). Most of the book is set in Primrose Hill, which was super cool (I love when an author sets their story in a specific neighborhood, rather than just "New York" or "London").

After a slightly slow start, the plot clips along - this is definitely a book you could devour in a day poolside this summer.

I do wish there had been less discussion of dieting. It felt out of place given that this is a book about a woman who's an entrepreneur (and not a book about a model, or a cookbook). In the same chapter that Nina identifies mansplaining, she thinks to herself about calories (and how she's about to dive in because they don't count in her current situation. I.e. that's the reason she's allowing herself to enjoy a good meal). I get it - I'm a woman raised in the same body-focused, fat-shaming world as the author. But I'm trying not to relate to food like it's the enemy, and so it's jarring when the word "diet" appears 10x in a book not about food. (I imagine the reader is supposed to interpret it as humorous, but I didn't.)

I'll also note that it threw me off a bit when the point of view switched for each wake. I assume these chapters will be formatted differently in the final version, so that won't interpret the flow of other readers.

Overall, I liked it, and would recommend if that premise sounds interesting to you too!

A nice quick read, funny chicklit with interesting characters and a quirky plot, perfect light read with a touch of seriousness about it occasionally 

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

This book was a perfect quick read! I'd consider it a must read for any fans of chick-lit! I really liked Nina's character as well as Barclay, even though he had some rough spots! I thought it was cool how the author tries to portray death in a lighter manner. At parts I found this book kind of gloomy but overall I enjoyed the humour and the romance within the novel~! 
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review. :)

Happy Publication Day!

Thank you Netgalley and Avon Books UK for an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

If you are looking for a book that will make you feel good, want to cheer on the main character, love her supporting cast of characters, and hope that love will win out in the end - this is a book for you.

When I saw it on Netgalley, the description ended with "perfect for fans of ..."Four Weddings and a Funeral" and "The Good Place" - and it's true. 

Nina is a 30- year old who runs her own business - as an undertaker. She takes pride in her ability to meet the needs of mourners - or of individuals who want to plan for the future - by creating funerals that properly represent the person. However, just because she's good at her job, doesn't mean that everyone in her neighbourhood is comfortable with an undertaker in their backyard. 

And so begins the adventures of Nina Sherwood.

This is definitely a romcom - a little romance, big on friendships, overcoming a betrayal and then all is well with the world. Plus a few funerals are thrown in for good measure.

It started off a little slow - honestly - this could have been more of a 3.5 star read if the beginning had been tightened up a bit - get to the backstory a little sooner - but the last 1/3 of the book was cute and I really wanted to keep reading to see how it all ends. 

Not a super lovey type of romantic read - more about friendships and believing in oneself, but a nice little love story (or two... or three) thrown in for good measure.

Enjoyable read.

The book progresses with Nina finally starting to get some funeral traction though there seems to be a lot of “magically everything starts to get better” fairy tale too. The rich and privileged inhabitants of Primrose Hill started to annoy me more and more as the story continued. One thing that delighted me is how Nina handles a man from her past who shows up. Too often, romance heroines go all wobbly when a past love appears but here there’s no weakening on her part. Her new romance throws in what rom-com-ness the book has but sadly also relies on a lot of “wish fulfillment due to money.”

I ended up liking the book though the pace did drag a little at times and I had trouble getting over the business problem contrivances that bedevil Nina along the way. By the end, she’s on top of things but at first, I wasn’t that impressed with her lack of acumen. Everything gets wrapped up in tidy bows maybe just a bit too easily. Still Nina evolves as a businesswoman and shows her personal strength which I appreciated. C+

This book had great writing. It was easy to read and the flow was kept fairly steady. However, I just couldn't get into this book. It was, in my opinion, a bit slow which is why it didn't really capture my interest. This book just didn't reach its potential for me. I wanted to see more funerals and the stories surrounding them. Unfortunately, that didn't happen until about halfway through. What did manage to grab my interest was the story surrounding the death of Nina's husband. Which again, unfortunately, didn't happen until just over halfway through the book. I wish we would have heard more about it though. I did like Barclay. I thought he was an interesting character. Also, I did find some humor in some moments of the book. In particular, some of Nina's observations made me chuckle. Although I didn't enjoy the book, many people did enjoy it so you shouldn't base your opinion about whether to read the book based on my review. 

"I received an advanced copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review."

Such a great book! I loved this one. The characters were great!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.