It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She’s immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself.
Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe's plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other.
In turns absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is ultimately an incredibly nuanced and resonant look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined—and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us. (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)
I don't know what took me so long to finally check out The Wedding People, but I'm really glad I did.
The story is charming and genuine in so many ways. The dialogue is witty throughout. I just really liked the premise and had no idea how things would end up. There were lots of interesting surprises and moments. The descriptions brought Newport to life for me; even though I've never been there I could easily visualize it. Some parts were funny, in a really amusing way.
Even though Alison jumps back and forth in time, she doesn't make it confusing and gives a lot of insight as to what led Phoebe to the Cornwall at the same time as Lila's wedding week was kicking off. It felt like kismet in some ways. There were times in the flashbacks where things felt a bit confusing and I wasn't always sure how much time had passed. Especially since the present events take place four years ago (although it would have been two years ago when the novel was published). It helped when she included the years.
As I have now proven, it's never too late to give this one a try. It's just a really enjoyable read that I couldn't get enough of. I'd love for there to be a sequel, as long as it's done in the same amazing way and perhaps through Lila's perspective. I definitely recommend The Wedding People!
Phoebe: Mary Holland
Lila: Kristine Froseth
Gary: Ryan Eggold
Patricia: Kate Vernon
Marla: Meghan Ory
Jim: John Mulaney
Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.
Listen to this book on Speechify!
👰
👰
👰
👰
👰
👰
👰
👰
TW: Suicide attempt, divorce, infidelity, death of parents, death of spouse/mother, death of pet.
No comments:
Post a Comment