What a fun and witty read! Talley does an exceptional job detailing a friendship gone wrong. Two ex best friends must come together for the nuptials of their children. Chaos ensues and the reader will find themselves giggling uncontrollably at the characters' antics! I hadn't read anything by the author prior to this one, but she is definitely a new favorite!

This book is a hilarious take on two old friends who haven't spoken in 20 years but now they have to reunite for their kids' wedding. Set against the antics of a typical wedding, they have to try to navigate their relationships with each other and everyone else in their lives.

Thank you to the author, Montlake Romance and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The synopsis sounded fun, and this could have been a witty romantic comedy with a touch of snark toward the wedding industry - which needs all the pushback it can get, IMO. Unfortunately, the author took a different path and wrote a book with two unlikeable main characters, lots of casual racism and gross generalizations, and some very strange and outdated points of view. Cannot recommend.

Teeny and Melanie are childhood friends and an unlikely duo. No friends could be more different. However, their differences instead of setting the apart seem to fill in the missing piece for each other--like the missing pieces of the best friend necklaces they exchanged as kids. But after both women date the same guy the friendship cannot make it past the fall-out -- when Melanie marries him. They were once friends but now are sworn enemies.

Years later they have been married, and their kids are grown and announce their engagement. And the soon-to-be mother-in-law is someone the mom already knows--her sworn enemy and childhood friend. How will they be able to get it together and pull off the perfect wedding in 3 months?

I loved this book of friendship, family and wedding hijinks (in fact, I read it in two days since I couldn't put it down). I wish I could share some of the hijinks, but I don't want to give away any spoilers! Let's just say it includes a cake incident and a rodent in the house.... I absolutely loved the characters and the heartwarming theme of friendship and possibly second chances, mixed in with wedding humor. A heartwarming humorous read.

The story of Meanie and Tennyson and their friendship turned rivalry was intriguing. What caused the first between tase friends? How will they navigate the unlikely wedding of their children? As the story progressed I both liked and disliked both women at different times. The idea that there is always more to the story than what is seen on the surface. There were scenes that were meant to be funny, though I do wish just a little more lightheartedness had come through. The storyline was heavy and a little more humor to balance out the tale is what I was expecting from this book. I enjoyed the story and the conclusion.

The Wedding War is a well written woman’s fiction novel that I enjoyed very much. The central themes of friendship and forgiveness are ones that really touched me and I could relate to.

Melanie and Tennyson were friends in their 20’s and a HUGE falling out. I mean ooops I married your ex boyfriend and spilled your family secrets falling out. Now their kids are getting married and they have a wedding to plan and the pain and hurt is still fresh.

Melanie and Tennyson have relationship issues of their own. I absolutely loved the theme of friendship between Melanie and Tennyson and trying to resolve their issues for the happiness of their children. My female friendships are so very important and valuable to me.

There are some heavy topics in this book that the author writes with such respect and dignity including suicide and grief. I appreciate how she handled these topics.

The characters were complex, complicated, flawed and well fleshed out.

The Wedding War is a book I can happily recommend, I only wish I could give

This was a fun book, but it fell short for me. I guess I was expecting more on the romance front, whereas this is more a story about friendship and forgiveness. It seemed like the story sort of dragged on at some points, like there were just a lot of filler scenes. It was fun to see both of the women’s perspectives and find out what they thought of different situations. It was funny and kind of cliche. This would be a great book if you’re looking for a light escape, I think I was just looking for a little more!

I was not a fan of this novel. The women were ruthlessly mean and self-absorbed -- but not in a fun-to-read way. Some of the writing seemed to border on racist (or microaggressive at the least). This seemed up my alley as a fan of Say Yes to the Dress and every wedding-related reality show ever, and I tried so hard to like it but could not.

I really enjoyed this book. Mostly predictable but sometimes that is what one needs to read to restore order to one's life. The characters were funny and I liked the way they connected. Very well written. 3 1/2 stars.

I did not like this book.

The characters were catty beyond enjoyable, there was racism and stereotypes throughout, and it was a struggle to even get through. The drama went beyond a fun entertaining read, and instead went straight to stomach churning.

SPOILER ALERT: This ISN’T a romance, but then again, it’s not billed as one. If you’re looking for one of Liz Talley’s sweet, fun romances, stop right now. But if you’re looking for a story about life including broken friendships, marriages in trouble, finding yourself…then this is the book for you.

First, I fell in love with Liz Talley’s writing eons ago when reading her romances. She’s talented and has a knack for bringing humor to the page, along with touching moments that just send a zing straight to your heart. So, when she released her first Women’s Fiction book, Room to Breathe, I one-clicked without a moment’s hesitation. And guess what? I loved it, just like I loved THE WEDDING WARS.

Now, these women are not sweet. They’re not even remotely nice to each other and sometimes to others, but life and circumstances have shaped them into the people they are now. And that’s life. Real life. We’ve all had moments we’re not proud of, but what I loved about this book, is the author’s ability to show these horrible sides of these women and then tell a tale of redemption and forgiveness. It’s a tale of facing your own demons and recognizing that you’re not perfect, that your life is not perfect, and growing up enough to own your own faults, as well as make the steps necessary to improve.

It’s not all dark and dreary and depressing. There are humorous moments. There are touching moments between the two once-upon-a-time best friends where you can see hope. And there are moments of enlightenment where you just have to cheer for both Mel and Tennyson to open their hearts and give each other a chance again. There are also heartbreaking moments dealing with a marriage in trouble, and some sexy moments as one of them starts to find love, real love and a chance at happiness.

I found the story funny, moving, sad, and hopeful. The writing sharp, witty, and thought-provoking. And while we don’t get our typical Happily Ever After like we do with Ms. Talley’s romances, we do get to witness the true strength of women’s hearts and souls and what they are capable of dealing with and handling.

Thanks to Montlake Romance, Liz Talley, Amazon Publishing, and Netgalley for my e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This title is so perfect for this book. After years of being apart, Melanie and Tennyson meet again when their children become engaged and start to plan their wedding. Once childhood best friends, the ladies are now enemies and despise each other. Their drama begins to complicate wedding planning...and everything ensues from there.

Drama begins as soon as the kids get engaged...and there is no shortage of it. Melanie and Tennyson’s antics are hilarious, but once you learn more about the root of their problems...it quickly becomes a beautiful story of forgiveness. I was so impressed with how the theme materialized in the book, and honestly didn’t see it coming.

I read this during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it was a great escape. If you are in need of a beach or a pool read this summer and loved the movie Bride Wars, you’ll enjoy this book.

𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝗪: A rounded up 3.5🌟! ⁣
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I originally had rounded my 3.5 down to a 3 when rating in Netgalley.. I slept on it and woke up really feeling like I should round up because I did genuinely find this book entertaining. ⁣
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The overarching theme of this story is about love, loss and forgiveness. Melanie and Tennyson were lifelong best friends until a falling out occurred when Melanie married Tennyson’s ex-boyfriend. Now Tennyson’s son is marrying Melanie’s daughter and they both have to learn to navigate and heal their old wounds while each of them have to take on new emotionally challenges at the same time. ⁣
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Liz Talley did a great job developing and expressing to reads the personalities and nuances of the main characters in this story. I didn’t particularly love any of the characters and found myself bored and annoyed with both of them many points during the story which caused me to not finish this book as quickly as I wanted to. That being said, it’s still an enjoyable story. It gave me ‘When Life Gives You Lululemons’ vibes, so if you enjoyed that one chances are you will enjoy this one.

“The Wedding War” by Liz Talley

I am at a loss with this train wreck of a book which I should have DNF but I am terrible at that. To the author’s credit, the pacing was fast but everything else about this book was toxic and depressing.

First off, I have to feel for anyone writing a contemporary meant to be set in 2020 since the books probably won’t accurately reflect the current turmoil of our present time. It’s going to be hard to have a wedding when people can’t work and are clearing the store shelves.

But to the story. Tennyson and Melanie were childhood friends until a big dark secret blew up their friendship. They’re forced back into each other’s lives when their children get engaged. The offspring in this story were some of the few characters I could find sympathy for as they all needed to escape from their toxic parents.

There was lots of dancing around the big dark secret, but rather than intriguing me I felt annoyed that we don’t learn what happened. The secret was incredibly random but the fallout was horrible. I didn’t get a sense that Tennyson felt any remorse and she definitely should not have been forgiven.

The story is stuffed with bad stereotypes, women hating, and plentiful racism. Tennyson also drags a Yorkie everywhere in her purse faking it to be an emotional support animal (she straight up says she’s faking this).

The file also has issues with missing pages when people would be exchanging texts.

In the description it says Tennyson falls for “the wrong guy” so I kept waiting to find out that he was a horrible human being like every other character in the book. Was he just “the wrong guy” because he wasn’t scum?

I sincerely hope there is no “Grandma Wars” sequel. Those poor kids and grandkids don’t deserve to be subjected to the toxic family dynamics in this story.

1/5 stars

This book read like a cliche I couldn’t get through it.

*** I received an ARC for my honest opinion. ********

Really enjoyed this one!
I liked the concept of it and the characters were well written!
I would recommend it!!

Once upon a time Mel and Teeny were best-friends, inseparable, always together. Until they weren't.

Both adults married well but have dragged enough baggage with them to weigh them both down. When Mel's daughter decides to marry Teeny's son, all hell breaks loose.

A close up look at what happens to two best friends who lose track of each other to hating each other to remembering why they were friends in the first place.

Well done.

Good book, but often found my mind drifting Off too other things. The story was good but some parts were a bit boring.

Some parts of this book reminded me of the movie Bride Wars but with unlikable characters. I really didn't like them at all. It had it's funny moments and the story was good but sometimes when I dont like a main character, it ruins the book for me. But it did have a good plot, just fell flat to me.

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

DNF

Honestly, the conflict between the two MCs is not working for me. It's so venomous and unlikable; I have no idea how they'll resolve their issues and I don't care enough about them to find out. YMMV.