A quick and easy read. Overall, a happy story even though I kept scratching my head wondering why Hannah would agree to marry Eric in the first place.


Thank You NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for this ARC copy. 3.5 stars

Ten grand to play a fake bridesmaid and a week on a tropical island? Sure! Too bad the groom is an ass and the actual bride is the most beautiful woman you’ve ever seen…

I received an advance copy from Netgalley for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is the weirdest acting job Meli has ever been offered. Be a bridesmaid to a bride who has apparently no friends of her own. It’s a destination wedding in a tropical paradise and the pay is very, very good. So what’s wrong with this woman? She’s supposedly so socially awkward she needs a professional bridal party. When Meli meets Hannah for the first time, it is at once startlingly clear. Hannah, might have difficulties speaking to people, but she is gorgeous and amazing. It’s clearly the groom, Eric, who is at fault here. Why on earth would someone as special as Hannah even want to marry a guy like that?

Hannah is left by Eric at the meeting with her hired bridesmaids. Oh god, so embarrassing. She could not feel any more awkward, but this is what she has to endure to satisfy her very demanding parents and her extremely controlling fiancé. There are actually four bridesmaids at the table. One who is clearly a superficial bitch, two others who seem nice, and then there is Meli. Somehow Hannah feels immediately at ease with her. Even when Hannah suddenly flees the cafe during an uncomfortable game of truth or dare, Meli has a way to make her feel better. Why would anyone as cool and beautiful as Meli ever want to be friends with Hannah? Is it just because she gets payed to do so?

This is Haley Donell’s debut and let me tell you, she is one new author to watch. This story dives deep into the realities of what it means like to suck at being social. The story is told from both Meli’s and Hannah’s perspectives and that gives an excellent glimpse into their internal processing of the same events. Hannah might be a disaster in social situations, she is very outspoken in her own head. The longer she knows Meli, the more she realizes that she can do so much better than getting stuck in a loveless marriage just to be paraded around to impress Eric’s business contacts.

As Hannah grows more into herself she embraces the fierce woman she actually is. On the inside. Now if only she could be fierce on the outside as well. That’s where Meli comes in. She has a natural understanding of how Hannah seems to work. She is supportive, patient and accepts Hannah exactly as she is. That is just what Hannah needs.

There are a lot of sapphic romances out there where couples just don’t communicate. Only A Bridesmaid is a great example of the opposite. Even though communication isn’t nowhere near Hannah’s strongsuit, these women find a form to communicate openly and honestly despite that. If you expect very explicit spiciness though, you’re not going to find it. For me that wouldn’t have been right for this story anyway.

Let’s talk a little about controlling, deeply religious parents and misogynistic, selfish men. While reading I was horrified to realize these people actually exist in the real world. Parents that do not love their children unconditionally and men that see women as props on their stage. It was very empowering to see Hannah finally breaking free from those chains. She’s a literal ball buster when it comes down to it.

Only A Bridesmaid is a very strong debut novel. It’s sweet, it’s vulnerable and endearing all at the same time!

If you are looking for a shortish novel with pretty much off page intimacy, a bit of personal development and an obvious baddie to dislike this should fit the bill. The book I don’t think is aimed at YA, but it reads like that. Not a criticism, sometimes light and short is ideal.
A reference to the Potterverse, with this writer making their feelings on that writer known. And some other books I didn’t know.

Sometimes you want a novel that is rich in world building and has stakes that are intense and sometimes you want a story about two unlikely people getting together against all odds. Only a bridesmaid is strictly in the second category and while I normally like my romance with a side of vampire slaying, I found myself charmed by its simple premise.
Meli is a struggling actress who is offered one of her most unexpected roles, that of a bridesmaid to a quiet and shy bride Hannah. Meli is hired by Hannah’s fiancé to play the part of a long-time friend to keep up appearances at the wedding but from the moment the two meet there is a spark. The feelings are mutual but for it to go anywhere Hannah is going to have to overcome not only the expectations of her family and fiancé but also the inner doubts that plague her in social situations.
Only a bridesmaid is not a perfect book. The author tell the story using first person perspective for both main characters with them alternating between chapters and I found it took away from the book as the two characters interior voices and the fact that both of them were constantly worried about the thoughts of the other character kind of pulled me out of the story. Also, most of the side characters are not particularly developed but all of this is balanced out by the sheer charm of the banter between the Hannah and Meli. Almost from the start we are rooting for the two of them to get together and for Hannah to be saved from the nightmare that would be her marriage. Donnell also does a masterful job of portraying someone with social anxiety and how that can keep you from sometimes even realizing what could make yourself happy. The book is a light read and is great for anyone who is a fan of the will they or won’t they school of Rom-Coms. This is Helen Donnell’s first novel and I look forward to checking out her future work.

The main characters Meli and Hannah were OK, as the book goes along though there chemistry just doesn't seem to develop as much as I would've liked it to. I get Eric is supposed to end up being the "bad guy" but his entire personality was not my cup of tea but that does make him the right person for a side character named Courtney. The spicy scenes are fade to black, some people like those and some don't, I just happen to fall in the category of those who would rather have the open door scenes if you will. For a debut novel it's good, I would give another chance to the authors future books.

Thanks to NetGalley, Haley Donnell, and Bold Stroke Books for the ARC.

This was the first book I’ve read by this author and unfortunately it will more than likely be the last. The writing was, to be perfectly honest, rough. There was a general lack of description giving it a very rushed feeling and from the very beginning the dialogue was cringe.

Given the plethora of good romance books out there (even sapphic) I cannot recommend this book. This was a dnf after a couple chapters for me.

This is a debut novel by Haley Donnell, without being harsh it does reflect in the style of writing.

The story of shy bride Hannah and rent a bridesmaid Meli, both characters and likeable and they bond as soon as they meet up.

There are secondary characters, but I think HD missed a great opportunity to expand on these.

The story is straightforward and doesn't have much depth to it.

he contents of the book book lack detailed action.

Would I recommend: great if you're looking for a quick, carefree read.

I was given an advance copy to offer an honest review.
Hannah, a very shy woman, is about to be married to the ideal man. The perfect man in her parents' eyes, at least. With the wedding approaching and no close friends, Hannah's future husband hires her bridesmaids, introducing Hannah and Meli. Trouble is, Meli develops a fast crush on the future bride.
This book brings us a love story between two very easily liked main characters, that need to overcome some obstacles to find their way to each other. I'm giving it three stars as for me the best thing about books is how deeply we can explore the characters, their personalities, and their feelings, and there could have been bigger things for them to go through.
Overall, this books is an excellent light read for people who are only looking for a feel-good book with a happy ending.

A very sweet, quick and easy read. This was my first wlw book and it didn’t disappoint! The main characters were so cute and complemented each other really well. The writing is a bit simple and there were times where I wanted a bit more elaboration on scenes or relationships to get deeper into it, like more depth to her parents or fiancée would have been nice. There was also an unrealistic amount of winking but maybe that’s just me lol. The biggest thing for me was that the epilogue felt a bit rushed and I would’ve liked to see more of their new lives, as what did happen was a little predictable (but not bad!), but their new jobs etc would have been interesting as the ending fell a tad flat. It was a bit underwhelming without some elaboration on certain relationships and, as I said, a bit simplistic in nature but still quite enjoyable to read. The MCs are just so cute they distract you from the lesser points, I think. Either way, it was funny and cute and a great book considering it’s the authors debut. I would definitely read another book by her in the future! — thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review 🤍

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

Meli is an actress who gets hire by the fiancé of Hannah to be her bridesmaid. It’s not a bad gig because she gets to spend it in Caribbean. Hannah is very shy and basically getting married to Eric for her parents not for herself. Hannah and Meli spend time together and makes Hannah wonder if she should for once follow her own heart or will she let expectations of everyone get in the way. It’s was ok read I like Hannah and her journey her parents and Eric are the worst.

The style of this story has been somewhat childish, in its development, in the behavior of the protagonists, in the profile of the protagonists themselves. All very black or white, good or bad.

It has been difficult to follow Hannah's efforts to fit into her family's standards, despite a distant relationship between them, mainly because the parents are superficial and disrespectful to their own daughter. Shy, introverted Hannah thinks she must marry Eric or she won't have any more chances, she has such low self-esteem. But having to hire bridesmaids because Hannah doesn't have friends who can fill that role is very sad. Hannah has low self-esteem, but lower is the ethics of those around her, family or not.

Meli, one of the bridesmaid for hire, is the opposite of Hannah, open, outgoing, and empathetic, especially with Hannah's social struggles, but she is not as sympathetic to the abusive attitudes of Eric, the groom, and another of the bridesmaids, Crystal. And she managed to get one of her friends, Jen, to also accept the role and accompany her to the Caribbean island where the wedding and its festivities were to be held.

Once everyone was on the island, things became a bit unbelievable, reaching the point of absurdity, and from there until the end it was expected and without surprises.

It's quite confusing that each chapter is written from the point of view of one of the two main protagonists, which is why the first-person paragraphs have been difficult to place.

It hasn't been anything to write home about.

This story was like wanting an entree for dinner and getting a salad. You get to eat and enjoy it but ultimately it isn’t filling. The set up is cute. Eric offers Meli (Amelia) $10K to be a bridesmaid to his ultra shy fiancee Hannah. Meli even manages to get her best friend in on the set up. At worst thinking they will get to enjoy a paycheck and a week in the Caribbean. Hannah is super sweet but has a hard time speaking up especially in large groups. There are only a couple of chances to meet and get to know the bride and the others of the hired wedding party before the wedding trip. The pacing, already quick, jumps into high gear once on the island. And it is up to Hannah to decide if she can defy her parents and back out of the wedding.

At a little over 200 pages this is a short novel and easy to read. The writing makes the main characters seem younger than college graduates with several years of work experience. Eric is such an obviously a villain it made me wonder why Hannah said yes to him to begin with. And after waiting for something to happen I was disappointed that it fades to black. Overall the story is happy but feels superficial and light. I didn’t invest in the characters or their feelings.

I can see the author has another book coming out soon and I would read her again.

This is a debut novel by Donnell and I really wanted to like it, but I had a hard time getting into the story. Unfortunately, that never changed even though I read the book until the end, despite wanting to quit several times.

Meli is an actor and loves what she does. She is hired to be a fake bridesmaid for a woman she's never met. hired by the woman's fiancé, Eric. Not a bad gig in Meli's mind as the wedding will be on a private island, but Meli develops a crush on Hannah, but believes it will never happen and resigns herself to being a good bridesmaid for a woman she's come to care for a great deal.

Hannah is very shy and is awkward in social situations. She tends to go along with what everyone else wants and defers to Eric constantly, which was very annoying. She like Meli, but believes Meli doesn't feel the same and knows her parents wouldn't be happy if she didn't go through with the wedding and got involved with a woman.

I hated Eric, he was the perfect bad guy, but I didn't like either of the main characters either. I honestly liked Jen more, who was a secondary character. Their relationship wasn't very believable and they didn't talk. It moved too quickly after the fact and their was no chemistry.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Only a Bridesmaid was a good first novel for the author. It is a super sweet novel of a bride that is not good socially and feels that she has to get married to meet her parent's expectations. Her husband-to-be takes matters into his own hands and hires a group of women to be her bridesmaids, one of which ends up being attracted to the bride.

I found the first 3/4 of the book to be very enjoyable and kept me very engaged. The last 1/4 of the book felt like it was dragging. The main part of the story had been completed by that point and all that was left was the happy ending, which took a while to get to. In my personal opinion, if that portion had come to a conclusion a lot sooner, it would have been a much better story.

All in all, it was an enjoyable read.

This unfortunately was not the book that I expected to read based on the description. I could not connect to the characters and some seemed to be exaggerated versions of what they should have been, With the interesting description of a fake bridesmaid who connects with the bride on a Caribbean island, this could have been such a wonderful read. 2 stars

I received an ARC from Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

It sounded like an interesting story. Actress gets paid to be a fake bridesmaid (I have read a similar story and liked it) I had a feeling we’re it was going to go and thought, this will be interesting to see how it plays out.

The beginning was going ok and then, well it just became a very unbelievable storyline with one dimensional characters. The pacing went from slow to warp speed. There were so many plot holes I got very frustrated with the characters and the story in general. Nice idea but badly written. Perhaps a few more drafts of this story will help make this story work and for the reader to believe in the characters love story. As it is now, it just left me feeling nothing for the characters.

Light hearted lesbian romance. Hannah socially awkward and less sure of herself and Meli helps her with that. I liked Hannah and Meli as well as a couple of supporting characters.
I seen the plot of Eric and the other bridesmaid coming a mile away, which is okay.

This is an adorable, quick read. Not always is a book that’s mind bending or NSFW needed to be enjoyable.

I’m a big fine of this publisher so I’ll be sure to look out for Haleys next book.

This has been one of the sweetest romance novels I’ve read in a while. It is a fun and kind of unusual story with very sweet main characters and fade to black “spicy” scenes which many romance readers don’t like but I appreciate.

This story feels fresh and it’s very entertaining, I read it in a couple of sittings. I would have loved to spend more time with these characters after they got to the island for the wedding, I feel like this part was a bit too rushed, but I loved the story anyway.

I look forward to Haley Donnell’s next novel, hopefully the story will be as sweet as this one.

3.5 Stars
There are moments I loved and moments I wanted to stop reading all together, but in the end I'm glad I read this book and finished it!

Spice level: 2x fade to black scenes

Flag: This is a dual POV story, with each chapter switching off, but you're not told whose POV you're reading. I was confused at first as there was no indication it was switching, but then you get into it.

My thoughts:
While I struggle a lot with anxiety and social situations, I don't to the level Hannah does. She's unable to order juice at a restaurant. It's not my place to judge anyone else's experiences, so I won't. My only comment is at some moments it almost felt too childish. Her reaction to event like how a child would react or she needed to be treated by Meli, like a child. It felt almost condescending. Meli was incredibly and patient handling Hannah's anxiety and never pressured her which was just nice to experience but she was little too "holier than now" at points.

Eric is the world and so are Hannah's parents - just the worst.

This is a story that starts slower (thought he feelings are instantaneous) and then moves incredibly fast. The ending is somehow both detailed and too quick/fast.

THE BEST: Hannah's story arc is fantastic. I could feel her becoming more comfortable with Meli which was very impressive to get down on paper and make it so tangible. You truly are brought into the emotions and feelings of both characters. All in all, this was a story of love and courage. If you're looking for a short/fast read, this is a good choice.

An entertaining story. Hannah, the bride to be, is very shy and finds it extremely difficult to make friends or talk to people she doesn't know. As a result she has no one to ask to be her bridesmaids. Her fiancé hires bridesmaids for the wedding. One of whom is Meli. Meli takes a liking to Hannah and tries to help her. Especially since the fiancé is definitely a jerk. This is how Meli helps Hannah realise her own potential and discover what she really wants.