I thought this book was nice - which may seem like a pretty mundane description, but it was a fairly mundane book. If you’re looking for something plot driven, this isn’t it. This is incredibly character heavy and I don’t know if it was really for me, as someone who usually reads plot heavy fantasy books.

It wasn’t heavy reading and was quite refreshing in that sense, with all of the characters being well rounded, and their relationships being written with great detail and attention, but I just don’t think it was entirely my thing.

I really enjoyed Laura Barnett's previous books and was keen to read her latest. The book spans 25 years of the lives of a group of university friends as they experience births, marriages, deaths and everything in-between. On the whole I found the book enjoyable and some of the characters, in particular Zoe and Al, really drew me in. At times I wished there were slightly few main characters in order to focus the book a little more but that is a small gripe. If you enjoyed her previous books, you will enjoy this.

Honestly, I couldn’t really get into this. The story follows six university friends—Zoe, Al, Rachel, Rob, Yas, and Indie—over the course of a year, exploring their friendships, relationships, and life changes.

The multiple perspectives were meant to add depth, but I struggled to connect with the characters. Despite it covering big life events, I never felt fully immersed in the narrative.

While the book explores love, friendship, and personal growth, which are themes I enjoy reading about, it just didn’t hook me.

This book allows us to meet 6 friends; Al, Zoe, Rachel, Rob, Yas and Indie, who found each other after a tragic event during their first year of university and who's friendship has maintained over 20 years of trials & major life events.

The story starts off during their university days, when we get to see their young, carefree personalities, but soon transfers into modern day - where we see the toll that adult life has taken on the group and the struggles they are currently going through (both individually and intertwined).

It is described as a Four Weddings and a Funeral for the new generation and I can definitely see the similarities, but I would've LOVED to have seen more about their university days in the book, and a deeper storyline around them growing up and experiencing some of these life events firsthand, rather than just mentioned as a flashback or a memory.

Personally, I didn't connect fully to any of the characters, but I think that was mainly down to the narrative that switched from person to person so often, rather than the characters themselves. The ever-switching narrative sometimes was hard to keep up with, and left me going backwards and forwards trying to figure out who we were referring to at that time.

If you love a multiple POV, friendship & realistic life events kind of novel, this is definitely one for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld for this ARC.

This book did make me think back to my university friendships and how the people you were inseparable from at the time can then come and go in our life and you're not sure exactly why it happens. The tragedies that should bring us together can often drive us apart as seen here along with the relationships which were and which were wished for at the time.

Made me want to get in touch with people and find out how their life is going.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld for this ARC.

This book is about a group of six friends. Rob, Al, Zoe, Rachel, Yas and Indie meet at university and loosely stay in touch until they all meet again 20 years later for a succession of events spanning a year - parties, funerals and weddings within the group. The six are very different but realistic characters who are everything from single, married, divorced and widowed, have relationship and job problems and different attitudes towards children.

The kaleidoscope of human experience is explored well but the multi POV writing style takes some getting used to as we're hopping from one person to the next, often with matter of fact descriptions of their actions or feelings. There is a lot going on and staying on top of who is who and in love with who is not always easy. Maybe fewer characters would have worked better so we could have concentrated more on their lives and motivations instead of just getting write-ups of "Zoe did this and then Al said this".

The whole thing is a bit too literary for me and I have to confess that I found a lot too mundane and boring. There is no real storyline, just vignettes that don't always join together well. The complex and relatable characters all have their faults but I can't say I disliked anyone, except maybe Xavier. Read if you like character-driven stories about friendship, love and loss.

In this book six friends, all quite different, come together again after many years having taken their lives in many different directions but there is a clear bond still there and they begin to reconnect. For many of them the book covers a period of change that requires them to step back and look at the choices that they have made in their lives. The characters are very human in that we meet them complete with flaws as well as endearing qualities which some have more of than others!

There is definitely someone for everyone to relate to and whilst you might lament their choices - older and younger ones - you cannot help but care about them. This book covers all those landmark occasions in life when we are at our most raw and you will be cheering this crew on whilst also sometimes wanting to sit them down for a Mum-style chat!

This was a very cleverly written book, I found myself drawn into the characters quickly and although working out the complexities of their relationships and who liked who was tricky to start with, I felt I got to know each member of the "friend"ship group in no time. I think we can all identify with fading University friendship groups and seeing them find each other again was interesting. The individual story lines were varied and felt authentic and appropriate for their age and stage. It's quite hard to describe what the book is about apart from to say that it is a very real description of life in your 40s with each member of the group facing their own battles and decisions, coming together to celebrate those milestones we enjoy and those we hope won't come too quickly. Clever and enjoyable- thank you!

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK for the review copy of this novel. This is billed as a Four Weddings & a Funeral for the new generation and I can understand that label, but in some ways I think it does it a disservice. The novel has a real depth of understanding of the wreck that we can all be in our late thirties trying to assess the choices of the past and how to move forward into our next decade and beyond. The story is structured in a manner that reflects in some ways how fragmented and panicked our thoughts can be by where we are at that time and possibly wondering how we got there. The structure isn’t straightforward; it reflects and reverts to the past and is shared by six viewpoints that at times are very brief before they shift again. But it’s beautifully done. It’s a fine crafting that slowly becomes apparent as the story unfolds and as you come to understand the flaws and merits of each character.

Six people, who at university had been a group of good friends, four of whom shared a house together, are now at different kinds of cross roads in their lives and are drawn together by one of them hosting an engagement party to celebrate his nuptials to an older man. One of the group, Yas, a brilliant, sharp tongued consultant surgeon from a working class background has reached her goal that she’s worked hard to achieve, but now she finds she’s pregnant from a one night stand. She’s never really thought she would have children or marry, but suddenly she finds herself in turmoil. Zoe, a divorcee and midwife, is facing her son Gabe leaving the home to attend university and for the first time since her surprise pregnancy in university she will be on her own. Handsome teacher Rob, the ex husband and father to Gabe is engaged to an older man who adores him and yet Rob is panicking, just as he’d done so many other times in his life. Indie, a coffee entrepreneur is considering taking her business, Mother Bean, to the next level in America, is stunned when her husband of ten years declares that he wants children, something she’s said from the beginning was something she would never consider. And Rachel, a wife and mother to two boys under five is feels likes she’s drowning under the weight of motherhood and her husband’s failing business. Al, a partner in his father’s funeral business, is waiting for his father to retire and his chance to implement his vision of the business though his personal life is halted by his grief from his wife who’d died suddenly ten years before. All six of them meet up at this engagement party, the former tangled crushes and relationships still hanging on in various ways, and find that this meeting acts as a catalyst in different ways to make decisions and understand how their life has progressed. In the months following the party the shift is cataclysmic, cathartic or moves them beyond the point they all felt stuck in before the party.

Cleverly crafted and filled with deep rich characters this is a story that will resonate for many who have experienced those feelings in their thirties or any time of life. At the very least it’s a story about our deep selves that can be doubt filled and questioning no matter what time of life we’re in. Very good read.

From the moment I saw the title I was invested in this book, and who wouldn't be with the title? This a charming, delightful and somewhat relatable book about six friends who met at university and carries on twenty years later. The writing is beautiful and keeps you want to keep turning the pages.

Thank you for the ARC and I can't wait to read the next book by this author.

I enjoyed this story of six former uni friends, their relationships and how they navigate life’s challenges over the course of a year. The characters come from a variety of backgrounds and have different attitudes to life, which made it believable. The characterisation is excellent. If you’re interested in people and what makes them tick, I think you’ll enjoy this one.

A really enjoyable story from beginning to end taking you through the challenges within a friendship group and how that stands the test of time.

Initially you are bombarded with so many characters that it takes you a little time to remember who is who. Once you have all the characters clear in your mind an enjoyable read follows.

Birth, Deaths and Marriages is a good easy read that is similar to that of the movie Four Weddings and a Funeral or any of those movies/tv shows that follow a bunch of university friends.

Some characters seem to have more of a story line than others, so there were some characters that I didn't really know/care for that well. But really, there is nothing that new in this novel and you will probably feel like you've read something similar before. All that aside, I did enjoy it and read it pretty quickly, there was enough going on to hold my attention.

In the space of 12 months there will be a birth, marriage and death among the friends, told from multiple perspectives, the story follows a group of 6 old university friends. We are told how they meet in the early 2000’s and the story continues 20 years later.

It took a few chapters to get to know who was who, it was a very easy read a bit of a slow burn at times.

I liked that it had stories of births and deaths interlaced with the story. All in all a very relatable read that I enjoyed.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I haven't read a book this delightful in a long time. Unlike many novels, this one isn't driven by a complex plot, instead focusing on the beauty of relationships and friendships. The story reunites six university friends as they gather to celebrate Rob and Ges's engagement. As they reconnect, old bonds are strengthened, and new ones are formed.

Initially, I struggled to keep track of the characters and their connections, but once I got acquainted, I was hooked. The novel's character-driven narrative reminded me of a modern-day "Four Weddings and a Funeral," which proved apt as the story unfolded.

The characters' diverse personalities and relationships were expertly crafted, making the story feel incredibly real and relatable. Each character was so well-developed that readers will undoubtedly find someone to identify with.

This heartwarming tale explores the intricacies of life, love, loss, and friendship through the years. With its perfect blend of humor, poignancy, and authenticity, this novel will resonate with anyone who's ever experienced the joys and challenges of close relationships.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Random House UK, and Transworld Publishers for the advance copy.

This book follows six friends who met at university. As the years have passed some members of the group have stayed more in touch than others, but we see them reunite to celebrate the engagement of one of their group.

My first thought when I started reading this book was how there were a lot of characters that are frequently switched between. I thought I would struggle to get my head around who was who and who was connected to who, however as it progressed this became far more clear.

This was a very light hearted and easy read, so if that’s the kind of book you enjoy then I would certainly recommend. For me personally, I prefer a more intense read with some dramatic twists going on. Despite this, I did still enjoy it. Thank you NetGalley for my ARC.

Relatable, funny, moving and hopeful. Births, Deaths and Marriages is a fantastic read that reminded me of Cold Feet and deals with the themes of feeling unsure in your life, grief and moving forward beautifully. A huge thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this.

I really enjoyed this book and I felt a lot for the characters. However, the jumping timelines and perspectives had me a little lost at times and meant it took me a lot longer than usual to get through. Despite this I loved the characters.

This book follows six friends from university whose remain interconnected by underlying secrets and passions. It’s quite the slow burn and a little disjointed in places, however an interesting read. The characters are all interesting and relatable and the storyline believable. If you want plot twists this isn’t the book for you but if you enjoy strong characterisation and realism you’ll love it!