The Funeral Crashers
Joanna Nell
WOW another totally awesome read from Joanna Nell, I fell into this one from page one and did not want to put it down, come along for a funny, emotional and moving story about an older couple who meet at a funeral that will change their lives.
Martin Pottinger is a retired academic, he has never married although it is something that he had planned in his younger days at Oxford but those days are long gone and he is back in Australia and now his mother Edwina and her cat Shirley Temple are living with him and she can be demanding, he does however have romantic hope for his former head of the Archeology department Mary Blake.
Grace Cavendish is a retired primary school teacher, she is still grieving the loss of her dear daughter a few years ago and spends her days not only weeding the local walkway but loves to help out at her church All Souls, sadly the minister, Hot Rod as he is known has the worst singing voice and Grace does what she can to drown him out, she meets a young local boy Hudson and soon his mother as well physic Rhondda does she really believe that Rhondda can speak to her beloved daughter?
When Martin and Grace meet at a funeral at All Souls after Martin takes Edwina along to, their singing brings them together and before long they are meeting at funerals of strangers becoming funeral crashers and using their voices to bring joy not only to themselves but everyone else, this ends up being life changing for them both, with many fabulous characters to meet along the way, their lives are changing fast there are a few ups and downs along the way that will make you laugh and cry.
This is a brilliant story so very well written with awesome characters, who would have thought that becoming funeral crashers would open up a whole new world for Martin and Grace, truly I laughed, I cried and I smiled throughout this one, I loved the cat, Shirley Temple, I loved Edwina and Hudson they are the best. I do highly recommend this one, it was not put downable a must read, heartwarming and fabulous.
Martin Pottinger is a retired academic, he has never married although it is something that he had planned in his younger days at Oxford but those days are long gone and he is back in Australia and now his mother Edwina and her cat Shirley Temple are living with him and she can be demanding, he does however have romantic hope for his former head of the Archeology department Mary Blake.
Grace Cavendish is a retired primary school teacher, she is still grieving the loss of her dear daughter a few years ago and spends her days not only weeding the local walkway but loves to help out at her church All Souls, sadly the minister, Hot Rod as he is known has the worst singing voice and Grace does what she can to drown him out, she meets a young local boy Hudson and soon his mother as well physic Rhondda does she really believe that Rhondda can speak to her beloved daughter?
When Martin and Grace meet at a funeral at All Souls after Martin takes Edwina along to, their singing brings them together and before long they are meeting at funerals of strangers becoming funeral crashers and using their voices to bring joy not only to themselves but everyone else, this ends up being life changing for them both, with many fabulous characters to meet along the way, their lives are changing fast there are a few ups and downs along the way that will make you laugh and cry.
This is a brilliant story so very well written with awesome characters, who would have thought that becoming funeral crashers would open up a whole new world for Martin and Grace, truly I laughed, I cried and I smiled throughout this one, I loved the cat, Shirley Temple, I loved Edwina and Hudson they are the best. I do highly recommend this one, it was not put downable a must read, heartwarming and fabulous.
5 stars
October 28, 2025 by Hachette Australia & New Zealand
