This book is geared toward every Xennial woman. I felt myself capturing each pop culture reference.

It had the lightheartedness of a Nora Ephron movie but so much depth to the story that made it more than just about how and where the main characters fall in love.

There weren't any moments when I felt second hand embarrassment for the character and there was just enough angst throught the book. The witty banter between all characters kept the story flowing at a perfect pace

4.5 out of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! I thought that the premise was unique, like something I hadn't seen before. I thought the execution of the plot could have been awkward but it just wasn't. It was done really well. I enjoyed the way the relationship developed between the two characters. The emotions and relationship was complicated and seemed to develop naturally. Overall, this was an entertaining story that took me less than two days to read because it was so good.

Adam had all of the grumpy Nick Miller vibes which I absolutely love.
Allison's health struggles also brought some introspection to the book.
The banter!! *chef's kiss*
Enemies-to-Lovers which is more like annoyance to lovers and I enjoyed every bit of it.
You get all of the giddy feelings of the start of a relationship and I loved all of it.

The premise of this book was incredibly intriguing! Alison, recently dumped by Sam, attends his funeral where his sister asks her to pretend their relationship was more serious than it was, to give the impression that Sam was settling down. From there, chaos unfolds as Alison and Adam, one of Sam's friends, are left to clean out his apartment and prepare it for sale.

I appreciated the insights into the BRCA1 gene and found Alison and Adam's personal growth to be a highlight. The romance between them was charming and heartfelt. Alison's struggle with guilt and her attempts to be someone she's not were compelling, though sometimes frustrating to witness—clearly, that was part of the narrative’s intention. Overall, this book offered a sweet and engaging read, perfect for fans of heartfelt stories and holiday enthusiasts.

I love a fake dating troupe...but on a dead guy?
It reminds me of a 90s movie i think. Sandra Bullock maybe?

I wanted so bad to like this, but for some reason, I just didn't connect. I had to force myself to finish.
But that doesn't mean it wasn't a well written, well thought out plot and characters. It just wasn't for me.

Thank you to Net Galley for the Arc. All opinions are m own.

Alison attends her ex-boyfriend, Sam’s funeral and discovers that he had not told anyone that they had broken up. His sister is the only one that knows and she asks her to pretend for the sake of the family. They were happy that he had found someone so she agrees to pretend . She gets roped into helping pack up his apartment with his best friend, Alex aka the grump. Over the next 4 weekends the pair navigate awkward conversations, silences and tension as well as some pretty amazing chemistry. A friendship between the two begins and they find themselves looking forward to the weekends spent together more and more.

This was the first time that I have ever read a book with the fake dating trope was used on a dead guy!! I loved this originality of the story and the creativity it took to pull it all together!! It was really sweet and fun. Great pacing, great characters and fresh story. Loved it!!

4 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVED this book so much! It was hilarious and heart warming and so fun to read! Definitely one to read at Christmas time!!!!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I absolutely adored this book. Not only was the romance super cute, but the topic of grief was handled so well and made for a deeper story.
I knew I was going to enjoy this book when it started with a funeral scene. Sounds morbid, but it was kind of refreshing to read a romance book that starts with something so sad and emotional. This book also starts with deception, as Alison pretends she was still dating her ex at the time of his death at the request of his sister. So it's not a very uplifting story at the start. And that theme of underlying grief and sadness lingered throughout the book, and it worked so well.
Alison is a great FMC. I loved her inner monologues and interactions with her friends. I loved that her personality was so distinct. We got to learn of her struggles and experience with grief, and not only grief for her ex boyfriend's death, but grief for her own body after having a preventative double mastectomy after testing positive for the BRCA gene. And the looming fear of knowing she will have to grieve the loss of her ovaries one day, too, is a big character arc for her. It added a layer to the story that really helped me understand why Alison is how she is.
Adam is also the best MMC ever. He starts so grumpy and standoffish towards Alison, but as the story progresses, we get to see his character grow to love Alison. It made me internally say "awww" at every interaction between them.
Every single character in this book was great and added something. I enjoyed Alison's group of friends the most, though.
If you enjoy a deeper romance book, grumpy x sunshine, and forced proximity, I recommend giving this book a try!

CW: cancer, death of a loved one, detailed funeral scene, grief

I cannot believe this was a debut! What a heartwarming one! I loved Alison and found her very relatable. Loved the while you were sleeping and billy crystal nods. This would be a great read leading up to xmas as it has a lot of Christmas vibes and feels like a hallmark movie! Can't wait to see what this author has next!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

I'm not sure why I was so surprised to adore this so much! While it does have a Rom-Com feel (I mean, fake dating your ex who not only dumped you but is dead while falling for his best friend!) there is also a deeper layer with dealing with grief, medical issues, and finding a way to be your true self. I love how Alison got through Adam's grumpy outer side and discovered his sweet inner core. The way these two revealed to each other hidden depths and formed a genuine friendship was fun to watch. Their banter, sweetness, and chemistry...so well done. I am still smiling! I enjoyed the romance, but also appreciated the friendship support of Mara and Chelsea. The characters felt genuine even when some of the situations were a comedy of errors. And the way the book came full circle was perfection!

5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

I normally HATE when authors say *the MC looks like [insert celebrity name here],” but when you say he looks like a young Harrison Ford you have my full, undivided attention.
Onwards to more critical matters, this book had many features that I thoroughly enjoyed. I loved the friendship among the female cast of characters. There were so many cute moments, like “I throw a red M&M at her face, but when she catches it in her mouth, we’re both too impressed to remember what we were arguing about in the first place.” I think these relationships were my favorite part of the book.

This whole book was quite well done. In particularly enjoyed the cold open, “When I learn I’m still dating Sam Lewis, I’m at his funeral.” Bam, what a hook. This book was quite well written, with many quippy one liners and hilarious bits that left me rolling. There were also many sweet and tender moments. Overall, the writing was spot on.

I also liked the rep, the BRCA1 carrier was very interesting to learn about. I understand the author is also a BRCA1 carrier, so major respect for the author for sharing that part of her life.

My chief complaint is that one must suspend a certain level of belief for this to work. Like… Sam’s parents wanted his random girlfriend of a few months to help go through his things? Like… That just didn’t work for me. Clearly Alison and Sam hardly knew each other. I mean, she never stayed over… “I was never ready for that step.” I felt like that was such a strange thing to include. And part of me felt like it was some weird way to make it okay for Adam and Alison to move more quickly in their relationship. This was hammered home by the “I think you’ll always be a little bit Sam’s girlfriend.” Dude, you’re not his brother. It didn’t really seem like either of them liked Sam, or even mourned him very hard. And then, in the end, Sam secretly “approved” of the relationship and had intentions to set them up. I didn’t need that. It’s okay for living adults to consent to relationships after they lose someone without their approval. It was just an easy way to move the plot along to the happy ending without putting in the work. And don’t worry anyways, because they’re all in therapy now!

I think having Alison and Sam not serious in their relationship was such a missed opportunity to discuss more complicated feelings associated with happiness after loss. I think it would have been a way to really hammer home how some of these carriers my grapple with their own mortality in moments like these. It appears that the author was going for more of a light-hearted book though, so I understand the choice.

Furthermore, I would take the trip to Patagonia. Even if I hated hiking. I personally do enjoy hiking and trail running. So, when the author said “going trail running won’t make you better or more deserving” I took that personally.

“𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒂 𝒌𝒊𝒔𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔, 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒗𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒔. 𝑳𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒅𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈.”

💬What a truly wonderful, cozy, and emotionally engaging love story! I laughed out loud (several times), cried, and even felt giddy (no joke). This is exactly what I seek in contemporary romance novels. Though it started off slowly for me, picking up around the 30% mark, I absolutely couldn’t put it down after that.

Four Weekends and A Funeral is a closed-door, cute romcom. Allison attends her ex’s funeral, pretending they’re still together, and ends up packing his condo with his grumpy best friend, Adam.

As they navigate their personal struggles, this grumpy/sunshine story touches on deeper themes, including Allison's BRCA gene diagnosis.

This book felt like a warm hug. It explored grief, fear of the unknown, and our complex vision of self while also navigating the excitement of falling in love, the warmth of a friend, and self actualisation. Adam and Alison felt like complex characters who understood each other to their core and helped each to navigate the tricky feelings and emotions that arise while grieving. I love this story and I find myself wanting to know what is next for them!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Four Weekends and A Funeral is a closed door, super cute romcom.

Allison is attending the funeral of her ex-boyfriend, Sam, except no one knows they broke up. Allison is a people pleaser so she goes along with the story of grieving gf and ends up having to pack up his condo with Sam's grumpy best friend, Adam.

This is the classic story of grumpy/sunshine with forced proximity.

But this story goes deeper while telling us Allison's story with the BRCA gene. Allison is finding herself while dealing with her internal emotions towards having the gene mutation. Adam is also dealing with his own internal struggles. The two have found each other at the wrong time, but somehow at the perfect time.

Thank you Netgalley, Author, and publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review.

An unexpectedly delightful and entertaining contemporary romance. With dialogue and a storyline that struck me as Emily Henry - esque, I happily cruised through this tale in a day. But for the ending seeming rushed, this was a great read!

Recommended to fans of Emily Henry and Christina Lauren.

Many thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the complimentary ARC. Opinions are my own.

This was a heart warming debut. This book starts with a big misunderstanding. Alison’s ex, Sam passes away but his family thinks they were still together so she goes along with it. I love how Alison wrestled with her complicated feelings about the lies, who she really is, her growing feelings for Sam’s best friend, and how her life was complicated by her recent mastectomy. There was a lot of heart in this book.

The book started off in such an interesting way that I was hooked and had to finish. I found the characters to be relatable. Adam is the perfect grump in this slow burn, grumpy meets sunshine story. Allison and Adam on the four weekends of packing up the house was interesting. Loved the supporting cast of characters. I liked the trivia competitions - I love trivia competitions. I really enjoyed the good banter in this book. Thank you to NETGALLEY and the publisher for this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

What a lovely debut! Allison and Adam’s chemistry and sexual tension were so good. The book did a great job highlighting friendship. I loved how female friendship was portrayed in this book, it was so refreshing to read about.

There is definitely an Emily Henry vibe to this book. Despite this being a romcom, it touches on heavy topics like mental health, dealing with grief, self-acceptance and much more. Overall this was an excellent read!

5 stars! This is more than just another fluffy romance novel that follows the same formula. The characters have real struggles and depth and they help each other come out of their shells and discover themselves. Loved the grumpy (Adam) vs sunshine (Allison) characters AND the fun side characters who are found family! The banter, the yearning, the pining, the growth, it’s all chef’s kiss! The spice is fade to black which is a bummer but I still loved it!
I’m so impressed this was a debut novel and can’t wait to see what else Ellie Palmer does!


THANK YOU net galley and penguin random house for the arc in exchange of my honest review.

Alison attended the funeral of her ex-boyfriend but apparently no one knew that they already broke up 6 weeks prior. the whole time at the funeral, everyone assumed that she's Sam's girlfriend. especially his family. when Sam's parents were debating on who should handle Sam's condo and stuffs, without thinking, Alison volunteered. along his best friend, Adam so it's settled. for the next 4 weeks, Alison & Adam spent their weekend sorting through Sam's stuffs and preparing the condo for sale.

of course with this arrangement, the plot was predictable from a mile away. unfortunately i didn't connect with the MC, and I didn't get the couple's chemistry. I know that the topic of this book is survivor's guilt but i found Alison's mindset annoying sometimes. she literally gaslit herself and hurt people who cared about her in the process. good thing it's all solved by the end of the book, tho.