Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a digital ARC of “Save the Date” by Morgan Matson. This is one adorable novel. It is sweet and very funny. Young readers who enjoy a fun and girly story will be very pleased with this story. The characters are very real. Especially the main character. I immediately connected with her and remembered pieces of my teen years through her story. This is such a fun read!

Thank you so much for approving me for this ARC! I'm apart of Fantastic Flying Book Club's blog tour for Save the Date, so my review won't be posted online until June 8th (my tour stop date). 

My review:

When I came across Save the Date on Goodreads, I immediately knew I wanted to read it, because it gave me major Sixteen Candles (one of my favorite teen movies) vibes. And guess what, my suspicion was correct! Like Sixteen Candles, there were a lot of hilariously disastrous events that took place before, during, and after the wedding, but like, times 3.

Charlie is going through an emotionally tough time because she doesn't like change, and a lot of changes are quickly approaching. She has big decisions she needs to make, but keeps putting them off.  I didn't like Charlie for most of the book, because she was often immature, selfish, and sometimes, inconsiderate. She kept envisioning this perfect weekend with her “perfect” family, and when things started getting in the way of her plans, she angrily lashed out at her family and best friend. However, I did love following her around as she frequently and frantically tried to stop her older sister's wedding from completely falling apart.

Charlie’s mom is a famous author/artist of Grant Central Station, a widely known, and beloved comic strip that is based on her big, wacky family. Throughout Save the Date, we're treated to actual Grant Central Station comic strips. I loved each and every one!

There were so many things to love about Save the Date, the awesome 80s movie and music references, the hilarious wedding snafus, and especially, the entire Grant family, and their interactions with one another. No Grant faded into the background, because they all had their own memorable personalities and moments.

Save the Date is a charming and fun contemporary that made me smile and laugh-out-loud a lot. I know I'll reread it sometime down the road.

This is the first Matson book I've read, and I was pleasantly surprised! Matson did a wonderful job of making it cute and heartfelt.  Definitely a fan.

I loved this book! It was exactly the book I needed. I loved Charlie’s big family. I come from a family with a bunch of kids too so I can definitely relate. This was a hilarious book filled with mad cap adventures, scrapes and shenanigans and I loved every minute of it. It was so funny and I could just picture everything in my mind so well. I want more from the Grant family!

I did laugh out loud while reading this.  The story follows a high school senior whose family is going through some changes, sibling getting married, house being sold, and she has to figure out which college to go to the coming fall (no small feat for this character!). Feeling pulled in many directions, wanting things to stay the same, go back to the way they were (when everyone got along), trying to figure out what her 'real' life is and her 'comic character' life are...crushes, chaos, relatives and the need to keep everything together--she's going nuts! This is a great summer read, fun, light and very enjoyable.

I liked this book a lot! The author's name didn't ring a bell, but looking through my Goodreads I realized I had read one of her earlier books and enjoyed it. This is YA but can easily be enjoyed by older readers, and sort of fits into the chicklit category. I liked the story of Charlie, a high school senior and the youngest of five siblings who's the last one living at home when everybody comes together for her sister's wedding. I tend to like stories of families with lots of kids because that's totally foreign to me and sounds both like a giant pain and a lot of fun at times. 

I don't want to give too much away, but the family is in upheaval because the parents are selling the house and the mom, a famous cartoonist, is ending her long-running syndicated comic strip that was based on the real family. Wedding prep is total chaos, and not everybody is getting along. Charlie is the peacemaker who loves being in her giant family and wants them all to get along and for the wedding to go well, but at the same time is having a secret romance with her older brother's best friend and trying to decide which college she'll attend in the fall. The family dynamics rang true to life and even though the book is kind of long, it was a fast-paced, easy read. I think it would make a really entertaining movie, actually.

I typically enjoy Morgan Matson’s books and this one was no exception. It included just the right mixture of real problems layered with humor, and a crush (or two). The story centers on the wedding weekend of Charlotte’s sister and over the course of three days anything that can go wrong does. Charlotte is the youngest of five children and idolizes her older siblings. She has been anxiously waiting to finally have all her siblings under the same roof for the first time in almost two years. While she tries to keep the wedding and the weekend from breaking out into total chaos she learns that her siblings are just as human as everyone else and that letting go of the past allows her to better look at the future. Mix in two cute boys, a new puppy, a few grudges, and a camera crew and you’ll have yourself a weekend sure to be remembered.

As a side note there was a scene towards the end of the book that had me unexpectedly laughing out loud. I could perfectly visualize the events unfolding and think it would make for a great movie scene!

This was such a super cute book! Morgan Matson never disappoints for a quick, heart-warming read! While I didn't like this book as much as I liked The Unexpected Everything, I did really enjoy this book. I got instantly hooked by the Grant family, and wanted to know everything there was to know about them! Charlie wasn't my favorite character, but she did grow throughout the book - which gave me a lot more respect for her. I loved Mike as a character even though he wasn't fleshed out as much as I'd liked. I'm an only child, so getting to read about a big family gave me the warm fuzzies. It had seriously hilarious moments and a few sad moments. My library will definitely be purchasing this amazing book!

Charlie has a big family that are all coming together on the big weekend of her sister's wedding and mother's final comic strip panel. Hijinks ensue as they often do at family weddings. 
The family dynamic involving the wedding and Charlie's mother's comic strip was interesting and fun. 
There were a lot of characters, some times to the point of distraction because I had to stop and think about who Charlie was talking about. 
Charlie apprehension to change while everything around her was changing will resonate with teenagers, especially those on the cusp of graduating high school.

Save the Date is a cute, fluffy, contemporary read. Compared to the other book I have read by Matson, The Unexpected Everything, this novel was a disappointment. I didn’t really care about any of the characters and there were too many disasters for it to be truly interesting. 

Charlie was not a likable protagonist. In the beginning, I could deal with this and her unbearable personality. As the book went on, she grew but not necessarily in a good way. 

I did enjoy the family relationships in the novel. I come from a big family and the complicated sibling relationships I could relate to and understand. Charlie was just incredibly naive in my opinion about her family and all of the other things going on in her life.

Overall, I did enjoy the book. It was a cute story, there was just too much of it. It was too long and the uninteresting bits too prevalent for me to truly enjoy it.

This book was too cute, as always with Morgan’s books.

I’ve been waiting for another release since her last book and this one didn’t disappoint. It’s all about the family element and sticking together through the good times and the bad.

There’s a dog named Waffles (that I totally want), a wedding with unexpected results throughout, an unrealistic crush, a family feud, a missing priest for a non-religious family, a jealous neighbor hellbent on getting the family arrested, a rueful papergirl, and so much more. It would take a while to list every element and that’d probably just give away spoilers.

The main character, Charlie, was so delightful. She’s got the true family spirit, though it does block her sense of reality sometimes. And she is also spending a lot of time with the wedding planner’s nephew with a name like BILL! Props to Morgan for literally going the extra mile with a simple name like BILL. 

It was a bit too romcom-y for me at times, but this was just essentially adorable and amazing. I wouldn’t be surprised if this really did turn into an actual romcom.

I come from a large extended family and this book hit that nail on the head! I loved the dynamics between the siblings and the chaos of planning a wedding. I have never read a book by this author before and I would gladly do so again. The only downside for me was the love triangle as it is so overplayed in young adult literature. Other than that it was a very fun read.

This was an enjoyable YA read. I think it was well written and had a great storyline and series of characters. Overall, it just wasn't the strongest contemporary YA novel that I feel like I would recommend to readers first but more of a secondary option.

Charlie Grant's parents have decided to sell Charlie's childhood home, and she wants just one perfect weekend with all her siblings. Charlie's sister Linnie is getting married at the house, so it's the perfect opportunity for all her older siblings to come home for one last chance to relive memories. Charlie's mother is also a famous cartoonist for a syndicated comic strip and she decides to have an interview with national television while all the kids are in the house. No pressure! Unfortunately Linnie's wedding planner has skipped town and EVERYTHING goes wrong.

This book was a bit more serious than some of the other YA contemporary, such as Kasie West. There are feuds, antagonistic neighbors, estranged family and failed relationships. It was the definition of a messy family relationship and I was into it. I loved the writing, combining humor and keeping the content relatively lighthearted. It was the definition of dysfunctional family relationships in a total sitcom way.

I felt that the book was a little light on the romance. I loved the Charlie and the guy she winds up with, but there just was not enough screen time for them with all of the family hijinks. Don't mistake me, they had some adorable scenes...but it just wasn't quite enough for me.

This really needs to be made into a movie! I could just see the whole zany antics playing out as I read. The Grants are a real life family who has also been shown in comic form their whole lives as Mrs. Grant drew a daily comic strip about them. All of that seems to be coming to an end. The comic strip is ending, Linnie Grant is getting married, and Charlie Grant is heading off to college. The book follows the last weekend the wedding is taking place and it is just one problem and misstep after another! What result is a funny light-hearted book that does tackle a few serious topics. I could see late middle-schoolers or early high-schoolers really enjoying this.

Great characters and full of humor Morgan Matson pure genius and great storyteller. You won't be able to put this one down. Great romance for everyone .

Matson is fantastic at creating ridiculous plot points that feel grounded in reality. The family dynamics were such fun to read.

My favorite Morgan Matson novel yet (with Amy and Roger's Detour a close second). I couldn't put this story down and I know it will find its way into the hands of many many readers.

If you like Sarah Dessen's novels, then Save the Date is probably for you. Charlie's sister is getting married and all of her siblings come home before her parents sell their childhood home. Charlie's mother writes a comic, which is also ending and the source of some strife in the family. Everything is not as rosy as Charlie thinks it is. Through a series of disasters around the wedding, the family comes together as a unit one last time in the home they grew up in. Somewhat predictable, but and entertaining and quick read.

Morgan Matson can honestly do no wrong. I have always loved her books. This one was a 4.5 stars and the only reason I did not give it a 5 is because it is a bit unrealistic.

 The Grant kids are all grown up and most have moved out. Charlie (the youngest) has been excited for them all to be back together for her sister Linnie's wedding. Things don't go as smoothly as one would hope (surprise girlfriend's, MIA wedding planner, old crush, and a missing tux) and Charlie is doing her best to keep it all together. 

I loved the characters and how well they played off of each other. Matson really knows how to add in just the right amount of humor. This was a fast read and if I had had the time I probably would have done it in one sitting. 

NetGalley only gave me a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review, they did not throw in coffee or wine.