Anywhere With You by Ellie Palmer is a heartwarming, and funny friends-to-lovers romance. Charley is desperately trying to rebuild her life, after her husband leaves her after one year of marriage, with her empty home and toxic job when her sister drops a bombshell: she's marrying her childhood sweetheart. Charley's response? A desperate mission to stop the wedding, armed with nothing but determination and an unlikely ally – Ethan, her chronically unreliable childhood best friend.

Palmer has a gift for creating characters that feel like old friends. Charley's mix of wit and vulnerability makes her incredibly real, while Ethan's easy charm masks layers that keep you guessing. Their chemistry simmers beautifully, and their banter ranges from laugh-out-loud funny to surprisingly tender. The road trip itself brings plenty of mishaps and gorgeous scenery, but what really hooks you is watching these two navigate their own emotional baggage while trying to "save" someone else. Palmer tackles the very real pressure of having to heal and let go of childhood wounds, wrapping serious themes in enough humor to keep things from getting heavy. Sure, the story takes a little time to find its groove, and there are moments when you'll want to lock these two in a room until they actually talk to each other. But once it hits its stride, this book is impossible to put down.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an advanced E-ARC of Anywhere With You in exchange for an honest review. Ellie Palmer delivers a heartfelt and emotional story in Anywhere With You. This novel beautifully captures themes of love, loss, and the courage it takes to start over. The characters are well-developed, with relationships that feel authentic and deeply moving. I especially enjoyed how Palmer’s writing effortlessly pulls you into each scene, making you feel like you’re right there with the characters on their journey. The novel is also set in MN so as a Midwest reader, I devoured the humor and setting familiarity! Charley and Ethan were very related characters and the dual timeline adds to the friendship backstory between the two of them. As someone with a type A personality, it really resonated with me to read about a main character who slowly but surely starts to understand that falling out of your usual routine can be worth the risk.

While there were a few slower moments, the emotional depth and unexpected twists kept me turning the pages. If you’re looking for a contemporary friends to lovers romance that tugs at your heartstrings and leaves you feeling hopeful, this is a great pick! Ellie Palmer has very quickly become one of my favorite writers in this genre!

Stop it I loved this book!!! This is for sure the FUNNIEST book I’ve read this year and it’s not easy to make me laugh while reading. I really enjoy Ellie’s writing style and it flows so easily. Charley is such a lovable FMC, I just want to be her friend and have some coffee together. I related to her journey of discovery, leaning into what she really wanted in love and life. She is a recently divorced lawyer who hates her job and is unsure of where to turn. Her childhood best friend, Ethan enters the chat and this book just takes off. Charley and Ethan had tension and chemistry from the start. The tender care and love that was underlying throughout their story just captured me! Ethan was definitely a “he falls first” kind of guy. I loved love loved seeing an MMC not be afraid of his emotions and sharing them openly. I love how the friends to lovers trope is handled in this book, it’s not typically one I enjoy! The way this writing made me emotional but also oddly “light” with its humor is really special. I really think you should read this book when it comes out next week ;)

Thank you to NetGalley, Putnam books and the author for this gifted arc in exchange for my honest review!

Super cute! Loved the sibling dynamics and the self reflection. The relationship between the main characters felt authentic and not some rebound or unhealthy young love obsession. Overall loved the story!

Recently divorced, Charley Beekman is stuck in her legal career and a bit bitter after being left by a man she was sure was too boring to leave her. When her sister announces that she’s going to marry her on-again, off-again childhood sweetheart, Charley decides she must stop her from making the same mistake she did and stop the wedding. Conveniently, her best friend, nomad and musician Ethan Powell, is in the area and willing to give her a ride to the wedding destination in the wilderness of Minnesota. But as they embark on their road trip, Charley starts to feel the sparks she’s been ignoring for years.

This is another great friends-to-lovers romance! I adored it!
I looove a book that makes me laugh, and this one absolutely did! The scene in the woods had me laughing so hard 😂
I’m usually okay with closed door romance, but the tension here was so good (and the scenes leading up to it were written so well) that I found myself wanting it to be open door.
Beyond the central romance, this book explores themes of friendship, sisterhood, dysfunctional families, personal growth, and self-acknowledgment and acceptance.
It was such a heartfelt, fun, funny, and charming romance read!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC!!

This book has such a fun concept with top-tier tropes! Type-A lawyer Charley teams up with her childhood best friend (and ex-best man) to stop her sister’s spontaneous wedding to one of their other childhood best friends!

I really enjoyed Charley and Ethan together. They both had thorough backstories that explain why they don’t think a relationship between then could ever work. Since it’s been years since they’ve been close though, they might not know each other as well as they think they do. I loved watching them rediscover each other in the present timeline while simultaneously reading about how their friendship was built in the past timeline. There are glimpses of their undeniable connection throughout the story, and it’s so satisfying when they finally realize they’re in love with each other. I had such a good time reading this book and I highly recommend it!

Thank you to Ellie Palmer, Putnam, and NetGalley for this gifted e-ARC; all opinions are my own.

Read if you like:
💕 Friends to lovers
💕 Opposites attract
💕 It’s always been you
💕 Road trip romance
💕 Lawyer FMC x musician MMC
💕 Dual timeline
💕 Celiac disease rep

Thank you so much Booked With the Emilys and NetGalley for the advance copy of this hilariously witty book 🫶 I had an absolute blast reading it!

Ellie Palmer, you are an absolute gem. I couldn’t put this book down. Anywhere With You is chaotically funny and heartbreakingly raw at the same time. Charley is such a relatable character - I found myself thinking “oof, me” while reading so many of her self-reflection scenes. And Ethan…oh, Ethan. I love musician MMCs, and this one’s a dream. He and Charley have the best tension right off the bat, and their banter is SO good.

I cannot wait to read more of Palmer’s work - this one was a 5 star read for me!

I was a big fan of Ellie Palmer's previous book, Four Weekends and a Funeral, and this one was just as great! Anywhere with You was a funny and sweet friends to lovers romance. Read this one if you like:

- road trips
- childhood friends to lovers
- second chance
- pining
- not so secret love songs
- pre-wedding streaking
- van life
- it's always been you
- he falls first
- the ups and downs of sisterhood
- found family
- a hilarious and sweet secondary love story

I do wish that Charley and Ethan would have communicated better and not let the elephant in the room linger for so long, but I do understand why Ethan was hesitant given Charley's history. The third act drama was frustrating, but not surprising, and it set up a very sweet grand gesture. The secondary love story of Petey and Laurel was great comic relief and this one had a colorful cast of secondary characters. I'm a sucker for childhood friends to lovers romances, so it was so cute how it all came full circle in the end.

Karissa Vacker continues to be a favorite narrator and her male and female voices are equally wonderful. I thought her performance as Charley was especially fantastic and she captured the vulnerability and emotion so well.

Audiobook Review
Overall 4 stars
Performance 5 stars
Story 4 stars

*I voluntarily read and listened to a review copy of this book*

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC. A quick, easy read with laugh-out-loud dialogue and tons of sharp, modern-day references. It was an entertaining, light read. That said, some plot points do feel a bit farfetched—but if you’re in the mood for something fun and not too serious, it’s an enjoyable ride.

I'm docking a star because of the overused miscommunication trope. Plus, Charley's pessimism about love since her divorce is a bit much, especially since it interferes with her sister’s happiness. Ethan's spontaneity is charming, but he needs to respect his friend's love for planning.

Title: Anywhere With You-a standalone

Author: Ellie Palmer- I read Four Weddings and a Funeral-gave it 4⭐

Publication date: 8-5-25 | Read 8-1-25

Format: eBook 368 pgs.

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Tropes: best friends to lovers, 1 bed, wedding crashing, divorce, road trip, summer, forced proximity, and family drama

POV: 1st person single

TW: parental abandonment

Setting: Minnesota

Summary: Recently divorced Charley reconnects with her BFF Ethan. They were estranged while she was married because Ethan disliked her husband. Charley's sister Laurel calls to tell her she is going to ask Petey (her childhood BFF) to marry her after an on and off relationship for fifteen years. After what Charley's been through, she has to stop Laurel from making a mistake and eloping. Ethan agrees to go with her on a road trip in his van. As they reminisce and have new adventures they become more.

Heroine: Charlotte "Charley/Chuck" Beekman 28, intellectual property lawyer, loves photography.

Hero: Ethan Powell 28, musician and clunker van renovator travelling nomad.

Other Characters:
* Laurel Beekman-Charley's sister, an English teacher
*Peter "Petey" Eriksson-Thao-Laurel's childhood BFF, on again/off again boyfriend, a hockey coach
*Richard Warren-Charley's ex-husband-married 1 year and divorced 1 year later
*Donut Barn-Ethan's family business he doesn't want

My Thoughts: I love a good BFFs romance. Charley and Ethan fit the bill even though their lives were so different. Charley was an overworked lawyer, and Ethan was a musical nomad. I even loved Laurel and Petey's story that paralleled so well with the main couple. There were family issues between Charley, her parents, and her sister. I felt Charley's fear of abandonment because of her father. Her and Laurel hashed out their issues and I loved the epilogue.

Rating: 4/5
Spice level 3/5 off page

Thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons, and Ellie Palmer for this ARC! I voluntarily give my honest review, and all opinions are my own.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗦
Charley Beekman has seen better days. Stuck on a career path that brings her little joy, burdened with a mortgage that leaves her just enough to furnish one room in her house, and a recent divorcee, she won’t let herself break free from the expectations she’s placed on herself. And he’s unhappy.

Growing up, her parents had a strange sort of marriage in which her mom gave up herself to be with her dad, and now Charley has a misguided understanding of love.

Which is why she has to stop her older sister and best friend, Lauren, from marrying Petey, her on again, off again boyfriend. Marriage is a sham!

Enter Ethan Powell, Charley’s lifelong best friend who happens to be both a one hit wonder and somewhat of a musician of repute, and a man with a camper van. He’ll drive Charley to the sure of the elopement so that she can talk to Lo.

But camper vans are notoriously tiny and there might possibly be some unresolved feelings between Charley and Ethan.

𝗙𝗘𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦
I love a second chance, especially between childhood best friends. Ethan is quiet and stoic and knows what he wants. I love this for me.

Charley was difficult to love at times. While I understood her motivations and the issues she brought to relationships from her past, girlfriend needed to unclench and talk.

There were some overly silly scenes that I didn’t love, but there quite a few scenes between Charley and Ethan that were swoony and perfect!

In blurbs, Ethan is labeled as unreliable and I’m here to say that’s patently false and it bothers me because he’s actually like true North.

𝗩𝗜𝗕𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗖𝗞
You with a View (cameras!) and Here We Go Again (but make it hetero) and Take Me Home (with less snow)

𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗗
I think most of my romance friends will eat this up. The writing is fresh and funny and packed with pop cultures references, which I loved.

𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞𝗦
Appreciate the ARC @putnam and @netgalley. This one is ready 8/5.

Sadly falls short as Palmer's follow-up to her stunning debut. I was really looking forward to reading this book, and several aspects here worked in its favor: the friends to lovers arc, the incorporation of an impromptu road trip in a camper van to provide forced proximity, and Palmer's warm sense of humor. However, I just didn't enjoy spending time with these characters as much as I expected to. While I was sympathetic to Charley because of her recent divorce and the unrealistic expectations of her work mentor, she tended to be pessimistic about nearly everything and at times it was tough to root for someone with this mindset. Ethan certainly does and says all the right things throughout this tale, yet is still somewhat of a cipher by the end as there isn't much to him other than the facts that he is a musician, a nomad and has spent years pining for his best friend. Although I liked the occasional flashback to help fill in some blanks regarding the central relationship and its evolution, not all of these felt necessary or added something essential to the story. I also found Laurel and Petey to be far too immature, and a lot of their behavior that was written to come across as fun and quirky felt incredibly irritating to me. Since it is evident that Palmer poured so much of herself into her first book, it was always going to be a tough act to follow; hopefully her next novel be a return to form.

Anywhere With You is a cute and sweet road trip romantic comedy by Ellie Palmer.

Friends to lovers isn't a trope I pick up often, but I really enjoyed how it was used here. I really enjoyed watching Ethan and Charley at various points in their lives on the long road to endgame.

I also really loved the depiction of Charley's relationship with her sister, Lauren. And speaking of Lauren, her side-plot romance was also lovely. Ethan is wonderful, and I kind of wish the book wasn't single POV so I could truly get his side of the equation.

Even so, it's cute and sweet and I was rooting for everyone the whole time. I still consider this a romance, but it does veer a little into women's fiction territory, which is a genre I don't often pick up. Steamy scenes are majority fade-to-black, and I definitely felt the chemistry between our mains.

This would be a great vacation read, especially if you're enjoying the great outdoors.

The author's website links to Ethan and Charley's Van Trip Playlist, which I'm presently listening to as I'm writing this review. I highly recommend you check it out!

Rep: MMC with celiac disease

Tropes: friends to lovers, road trip, opposites attract, forced proximity, dual timeline, only one bed

CW: parental abandonment, alcohol abuse

This was a really fun summer romance. If you like camping, it will make you want to pack up your car and get out there. As someone who just moved to Minnesota, it was fun having my new landscape as the setting for the story. I really related to Charley as the main character. She has that opinion of putting what she is "supposed" to do/want over what she actually wants to do. Or putting comfort over happiness, which is something I have struggled with as well. Ethan is also such a swoony hero. He falls into the classic "he falls first" trope, which I love so much! The yearning! The tension is palpable. But besides this swoony closed-door romance, there's a great secondary plot around Charley and her sister's relationship and their trauma bond over their parents, who never quite got it together. Add in a ton of quirky side characters who keep you laughing through the whole book. 'Anywhere With You' ended up being a joyful read and I will definitely be keeping an eye out for what's to come next from this author!

Read if you like a friends-to-lovers second chance romance with a ton of forced proximity. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review. This book releases 8/5

Ellie Palmer writes novels that take the voices in your head, puts them in a quirky FMC and forces her to confront them.

They're cathartic, emotional, and rewarding reads.

Anywhere with You introduces us to Charley Beekman. She's got a terrible job and a husband (who is also terrible) who is leaving her. Amid her spiral, her longtime platonic male best friend re-enters her life, her sister makes some big moves, and Charley is forced to confront her past, herself, and her future.

I loved this book. Palmer deftly creates a FMC who we see is flawed, she sees her flaws, but we're still rooting for her and supporting her as we read. by going back and forth in time in the relationships between the two leads, and Charley and her sister, Palmer allows readers to easily see how Charley got to the place she is in now.

I found it emotional and cathartic to read as Charley works through things and comes to realizations about herself.

I laughed, I cried, I swooned. Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam, and Ellie Palmer for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I enjoyed this contemporary, friends to lovers, road trip, romance. The romance between Ethan and Charley was a wonderful focal point for the plot and I loved their journey. But I'd be remiss to not comment on the importance of the subplot of Laurel & Charley's sisterhood and personal growth. So well done. Not to give too much away- but this is one of those stories where we have toxic parents- and they WON'T be forgiven. Good for them.

I LOVED ALL OF PETEY'S NICKNAMES FOR CHARLEY. Charmander, Charles in Charge, and so many more!

I haven't read Ellie's debut novel- but after reading this, I certainly will.

I loved the van life, wedding crashers, adventure vibes this book brought! One of the sweetest friends to lovers romance I’ve ever read.

Recently divorced Charley is such a relatable character. Her whole demeanor on life is exactly what you’d expect after calling it a “quarter life catastrophe.” 🤭 Her mix of intelligence and humor are what made her my favorite. She has such a way about her when dealing with the challenges along the way. Similar to how I think I’d deal with them too. 🤣

Ethan, Charley’s unreliable, type b personality to her type a, best friend, really adds such a charm to the story. Their chemistry and laugh out loud banter throughout their forced proximity van travels really made for a good time while reading. I loved the flashbacks to their friendship throughout the years. It really added a nice depth to the story that helped you understand more of what the two had been through together.

I do have to make note on how much I admired Charley and her sister Laurel’s relationship. It is your typical polar opposite sister love/hate that at times was hilarious and other times serious and eye opening. The two of them really learned to lean on each other but also give each other the space they very well deserved.

Karissa Vacker did such a great job narrating this. I found her pacing easy to follow and her individual voices for the characters performed in a way that had me fully immersed!

I would highly recommend to all my besties who love adventure romances with the friends to lovers trope executed to perfection!

I loved this one. Singular point of view and I think it truly carries the book because the instability thoughts of Charley and missing her best friend. I loved it. Charley's constant heartbreak and lack of feeling like she's enough was HURTING ME. And then her current relationship with Ethan was incredible. Buddy wanted her so bad. I loved it. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to read it and a thanks for Ellie and Putnam to send me a physical Coopy. I finished it in less than 24 hours

Anywhere With You by Ellie Palmer
Romance
Pub Date: August 5, 2025

Thank you @bookedwithemilys @putnambooks and @elliepalmerwrites for the gifted copy! I read Ellie’s first book Four Weekends and a Funeral last year which helped me go through some similar stuff, so I was so excited for this one.

Charley is the epitome of type A, on top of everything work related, future planned out perfectly. What she didn’t expect was getting a divorce 1 year after getting married, house poor and only living for work.
When her best friend Ethan shows up after a drunken night, and she realizes she drunk texted….a lot and he shows up, she finally starts feeling comfortable.
Then her sister calls and says she’s getting married right now, she talks Ethan to take her to stop the wedding. Along the way Charley starts realizing her best friend Ethan and her are getting closer to uncharted territory. She’s always had hidden thoughts but nothing she would have ever acted on. Will Charley start taking chances she never would have before?