Mari, Jane, and Pearl de la Rosa have taken over the family wedding planning business. The sisters follow traditional birth order roles with the oldest, Mari, being the one in charge, the youngest, Pearl, trying to prove she is responsible and the middle sister, Jane, the mediator. The sisters must learn to work together keep the business successful. They are also trying to find happily ever after in their personal lives as well.

I loved this book! The relationship between the sisters echoes a typical family. They may not always agree but when one gets in trouble they band together to help each other. The sisters try to overcome their typical roles. Each chapter is titled after a song and I loved that. It really set the mood for the chapter. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a light, funny read.

I enjoyed this family drama even though I was expecting it to be a romantic comedy. I am not sure why I had that impression, maybe the sweet cover? Anyway, this book follows the interactions of three Filipino American sisters after they have taken over their parents wedding planning business. Weddings by their very nature are stressful, but the sisters have the added pressure of proving themselves, and breaking out of the roles they have cast for each other. In the end family is the most important thing.

Sisters Mari, Jane and Pearl recently inherited their parent's successful wedding planning company only to discover that mixing business and family isn't always so simple. The Key to Happily Ever After is the story of family dynamics, women in business and even a little romance on the side. I went into this read expecting more of a romcom but still fell in love with a family drama instead.

A heartwarming story about three sisters as they run their wedding planning family business. As they struggle to discover what they want in life and how to relate as sisters, their each find their own key to happily ever after!

Check out this book if you love books about sisters, family relationships, and enjoyed the movie The Wedding Planner

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book!

The Key to Happily Ever After was delightful! I enjoyed the way the relationships were portrayed and the way that the story was told. The three de la Rosa sisters, Mari, Jane, and Pearl have become the new co-owners of their parents’ wedding planning business. The sisters struggle to keep their work relationship going smoothly as they deal with their personal conflicts and family dynamics. And although they can plan their clients’ weddings to be beautiful, the sisters are still waiting for their own happily ever afters. The characters and their relationships are enjoyable. The plot is full of family, humor, and love in a mixture that makes this book a fun, delightful read!

What a cute delightful book! This book read like you were watching a romantic comedy the likes of Never Been Kissed or Sweet Home Alabama. While the cover of this book is what drew me in first I was excited that the writing inside the pages was equally enjoyable. This book was filled with dynamic family relationships, great scenery in Washington D.C and lots of brides and weddings. Very cute.

It was pretty slow to start. I guess it was to give the reader the background on why each sister acted the way she did. It was more about sibling angst than romance. In the end, everyone ended up with the person who would give her the HEA she wanted.

This book was gifted to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.

I'm a sucker for family drama's and though I thought this book would be a lot lighter than the book actually was, it was still an enjoyable reading adventure. This book follows the de la Rosa sisters, Mari, Jane, and Pearl as they take on the running of the family wedding planning business. The story focuses on the dynamics between the sisters, and we also get a small love story for each of them. There's a lot going on with this and I thought Marcelo did a nice job of weaving all of the little side stuff into the bigger story being told. Between the family business in crisis and the romances, there's a lot of things to focus on without the book as a whole being crammed.

Mari is the oldest and she's the controlling sister. The one that sets rules and bosses everyone around. Jane is the middle sister who is the peacemaker and then there's the creative artist, Pearl. Pearl is the youngest sister who nobody trusts to get the job done. They're all going through their own personal struggles and I was really invested in their lives. I wanted to know everything and fix everything for all of them. I thought Marcelo did a really great job of fleshing out each character because they were all super different but they were also flawed and just real, and raw. They each took turns getting on my nerves but I felt for each sister, how I feel for my own sisters. I loved each of them and wanted them to find their happy endings.

There's loads of drama but there's also humor and a whole lot of charm mixed in for good measure. I'm glad that I read this book and I will definitely be reading more from Tif Marcelo. I think I enjoyed this book a lot more than I enjoyed the contemporary romances that I read by her last year. She's got great stuff and I'm adding the rest of her books to my TBR pile. I definitely recommend this book if you're in the mood for family drama, bridezillas, and love. This one packs in all of that.

<strong>Grade: 4 out of 5</strong>

Fantastic story about families, sisters, friendships and love.
When three sisters with big personalities try to work together and share the same apartment building, you can bet there will be a ton of drama, but also a lot of love. When push comes to shove for Mari, Jane & Pearl, they know they’ll always have each other to depend on. With a little romance thrown in, what more could you ask for in a book?!

The Key to Happily Ever After is on my Favorites of 2019 list! I really enjoyed the de la Rosa sisters and the myriad of emotions they put me through. The book includes witty moments, to be sure, but I don’t necessarily agree with its categorization as a romantic comedy. It feels much deeper than that—more like women’s fiction (my favorite genre) with elements of romance.

One of my favorite aspects of this book is the family dynamic between the three sisters—Mari, Jane, and Pearl. Although I enjoy and sympathize with all three women, I connect most strongly with Jane (being a middle sister myself.) Each personality fits their birth order (without being cookie-cutter) and I can imagine my own sisters in similar plights. The small touches of their Filipino culture are stimulating, and I wish even more were included!

The visualizations the author creates are vivid, and the characters feel authentic. Washington, D.C. is a fresh book setting for me, and I feel as if I’ve walked the streets of downtown, visited the Rings and Roses wedding boutique, and the sisters’ home on Duchess Street. The love connections are sweet, organic, and dissimilar, but appealing in their own special way. I “know” the main and secondary characters and consider them friends. Sigh… I will miss them.

The song titles at the opening of each chapter set the mood nicely and add an interesting dynamic to reading. Because all the songs are well known, it is easy to place the lyrics and tone in my mind as I read along.

This is a lively and touching story examining the importance of family, friends, trust, and the formidable and beneficial bonds of sisterhood.

#TheKeyToHappilyEverAfter
#AFavoriteOf2019

Author: Tif Marcelo
Publisher: Gallery Books
Pages: 320
Source: I received a complimentary copy as a member of the Tall Poppy Bloggers Team.

Don't you just LOVE the cover of this book?! I was quick to jump on this one for the cover alone :).

This is the story about three sisters Jane, Pearl, and Mari who have taken over the wedding business that they have inherited from their family. This book is marketed as a romcom but it focused more on the relationship dynamics between the three sisters instead of the romance aspect.

I think my expectations were gearing up towards a romcom so this may have caused my rating to be a tad lower since I was expecting more romance. I loved the cultural aspect of the sister's Filipino heritage and the wedding planning. Also, the family dynamics was also very good but I was really wanting more romance. I feel like this was. a disappointment and the romances were missing.

This one wasn't really that special in my book but I think if you go into it with the mindset its' more of a family dynamic book than a romance you may enjoy it more :).

Overall, thank you to Gallery Books and Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars

Publication date: 4/23/19
Published to Goodreads: 4/8/19

This is a fun, romantic comedy about three Filipino sisters who have taken over the family wedding planning business after their parents decided it was time to retire and travel and also spend time back in the Philippines.

The sisters go through the trials and tribulations of running a business and figuring out how to get along without their parents to mediate. I like how well the strong family values and culture were weaved in throughout the book. It was refreshing to read a book about a family that is not Italian, Irish, or, Chinese.

I received an eArc copy of this book through NetGalley to review it and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I requested an ARC of this book because I absolutely loved the description. I think this book definitely lived up to the description and then some. I enjoy books about sisters and found the relationship between the 3 sisters in this story to be super realistic and believable. Not only were the sisters' relationships realistic, but the romantic relationships were as well. They weren't super easy like a lot of contemporary romance novels. I found this to be much more like real life, which I appreciated.

I definitely recommend this book by Tif Marcelo. I will be looking to read more from her in the future!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this free ARC!

3.75 stars

Pearl, Jane and Mari have taken over the family wedding planning business. Their relationship is very much about family dynamics and birth order: Mari is the oldest, and she is controlling and has to be in charge. Jane is the middle child and is calm and competent but being a single mom with health issues, has a lot on her plate. And Pearl, the youngest, is creative and sometimes brilliant but not completely trusted by her siblings.

A business and family crisis looms when Pearl insists on handling a major client on her own. Various romantic entanglements for the sisters add spice, humor and depth to the narrative.

I found this an enjoyable read with realistic and realistically flawed characters. The only part that didn't work for me was the dependence on an incident that happened years ago that ostensibly left scars on the sisters and helped sabotage Pearl and Mari's relationship. I liked the way the sisters worked through their issues in the end and made some business changes that worked on each's strengths and weaknesses.

Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for an ARC in return for my honest review.

I received an ARC from Net Galley for an honest review.

When I first started reading this book, I thought the author copied a theme from another author. But she went in an entirely different direction with it. This book is about three sisters, with three very different personalities. They are given equal parts ownership in the family wedding planning business when their parents retired. As you can imagine, the equality of business is not perceived by each of the sisters. Most of the book has a lot of tension in it. So if you are experiencing tension in your life, this may not be the time for this book. It may only add to your own tension. The situations the sisters encounter in business and in their personal lives is interesting. And in the end, it all works out well. But the author keeps you guessing up to the end.

Three sisters, a fantastic business opportunity for them as their parents decide it's time to retire from the business. Rings and Roses is only the most sought-after wedding planning business in Washington, D.C Marisol, the oldest sister, is all business. Jane is the logical planner and the peacemaker. Pearl, the youngest, is the baby in many ways, but also the most creative of the three. As they go about their day-to-day work, drawing in people with enormous budgets, their lives become complicated with the new jobs and responsibilities they have to take on.
Marisol does not have time for romance until Reid appears in her life after a less than auspicious beginning. Jane is a single parent to a seven-year-old son, until his formerly deadbeat dad comes back into their lives. Pearl has a best friend, Trenton, with whom she fakes a relationship in order to gain a client for Rings and Roses.
If you like stories about sisters, romance, with some comedy thrown in for good measure, then this is the book for you.

I LOVED this book. The sister story line was so wonderful. I love how each character develops throughout the book and each sister has their own set of gifts and challenges. The set up of the wedding planning company and all that goes into that kept me compelled all the way through.

The de la Rosa sisters have just taken the reins from their parents for the family wedding planning business. The sisters butt heads as they try to acclimate to their newfound status, and as tensions run high with clients, they soon realize that they will always have each other to fall back on. This novel reflects on the power of sisterhood as well as sneaking in a little romance for all three. After all, how could there not be romance, for three young wedding planners?

So well-balanced! Tif Marcelo creates that perfect blend of subplots, mixed into the larger picture of family, loyalty, and the soul-deep enrichment of culture that keeps it all together. That the sisters' company is in the wedding industry, there is plenty of froth and glamour to make this book ultra-visual. Clients' drama and depth of feelings keep the plot soaring, and we get lovely dips into the sisters' light romances. I enjoyed the author's decision to make this a multi-faceted read, and that's what keeps it zipping along so pleasantly. This is a fun one, a warm visit with a band of sisters who support, encourage, and even when butting heads do so with love and respect. So we get human sisters, not cliché monsters who make any narrative drudgery. Highly recommend this one for book clubs and beach reads. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for a review.

I was so excited when I got approved for this title because the cover was adorable and the description sounded like a fun romcom. However, the book focused more on the family dynamics-especially between Mari and Pearl, than any of their romances. I was surprised that Jane's story was so limited and I would've enjoyed to read more about her perspective on things and even her background with her son/dating options. Since I had the picture in my head that I was going to be reading a fun, romantic book I was bummed when there weren't many details on their romances/relationships.

If you're looking for a book that focuses on family/sisters then you may really enjoy this one, but sadly I didn't enjoy it as much as I anticipated.

I received an eARC from NetGalley, Gallery Books, and the author in exchange for an honest review, thank you so much!