Get Talking: Bookclub Notes for The Funeral Crashers by Joanna Nell

Get Talking: Bookclub Notes for The Funeral Crashers by Joanna Nell

Looking for a great new book club read? Look no further. A delightfully heartwarming story of four or more funerals and at least one wedding, from the bestselling author of Mrs Winterbottom Takes a Gap Year.

Retired academic Martin Pottinger‘s romantic aspirations for the delectable head of his former university’s archaeology department, Professor Mary Blake, seem about to be realised. If only he could devise a plan to manage the demands of his eccentric elderly mother, Edwina.

Recently bereaved Grace Cavendish spends her days helping out at All Souls Church, making it her mission to drown out the Reverend Rod’s tone-deaf hymn-singing and give each funeral recipient a hearty send-off. Yet the peace she craves remains elusive despite the comforts offered by psychic medium Rhondda and her eight-year-old son, Hudson.

When Martin and Grace meet and bond at an All Souls service, they unwittingly set off a chain of events with far-reaching consequences. They become funeral crashers. But who could have predicted that crashing funerals might have such life-changing and life-affirming outcomes?

Find the bookclub questions here…

Buy a copy of The Funeral Crashers here.

Reviews

Delightfully Heartwarming: Read an Extract from The Funeral Crashers by Joanna Nell

Review | Extract

3 November 2025

Delightfully Heartwarming: Read an Extract from The Funeral Crashers by Joanna Nell

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                    Publisher details

                    The Funeral Crashers
                    Author
                    Joanna Nell
                    Publisher
                    Hachette
                    Genre
                    Fiction
                    Released
                    28 October, 2025
                    ISBN
                    9780733652868

                    Synopsis

                    Retired academic Martin Pottinger's romantic aspirations for the delectable head of his former university's archaeology department, Professor Mary Blake, seem about to be realised. If only he could devise a plan to manage the demands of his eccentric elderly mother, Edwina.

                    Recently bereaved Grace Cavendish spends her days helping out at All Souls Church, making it her mission to drown out the Reverend Rod's tone-deaf hymn-singing and give each funeral recipient a hearty send-off. Yet the peace she craves remains elusive despite the comforts offered by psychic medium Rhondda and her eight-year-old son, Hudson.

                    When Martin and Grace meet and bond at an All Souls service, they unwittingly set off a chain of events with far-reaching consequences. They become funeral crashers. But who could have predicted that crashing funerals might have such life-changing and life-affirming outcomes?

                    Joanna Nell
                    About the author

                    Joanna Nell

                    Joanna Nell was born in the UK and studied medicine at Cambridge and Oxford universities. Her short fiction has won multiple awards and has been published in various journals and literary anthologies. A former ship's doctor and now a GP with a passion for women's health and care of the elderly, Joanna is drawn to writing character-driven stories for women in their prime, creating young-at-heart characters who are not afraid to break the rules and defy society's expectations of ageing. Her first novel, THE SINGLE LADIES OF JACARANDA RETIREMENT VILLAGE, was a national bestseller. Joanna lives on Sydney's Northern Beaches with her husband and two teenage children.

                    Books by Joanna Nell

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