The Wedding Season by Katy Birchall is a wonderfully hilarious and heartwarming romcom with a loveable main character that you cannot help but cheer on and you read. Her situation in the beginning is horrible after a filed relationship, however, Freya makes the best of her life during wedding season and grows throughout in an entertaining manner.

I really enjoyed this book! The Wedding Season was a beautiful ode to finding yourself after heartbreak. Normally I find books like this a bit tedious and overdone, with a classic love interest/rebound popping in halfway through in a very predictable manner. However, the addition of the wedding checklist created by her friends added a fun twist and made it more than your typical romcom. I gave the book 4 stars for a delightful, easy read!

Did not finish book. Stopped at 23%.
I loved Katy Birchall’s first adult book, The Secret Bridesmaid, so I was excited to read this. But the first time I picked this up as an ARC, I had a hard time getting into it. I picked it up a second time as an audiobook hoping that would help, but I still had difficulty getting invested. It's a very different book than The Secret Bridesmaid. It’s more women’s fiction than rom com, and the first 23% drags on without much plot happening. I enjoyed the characters for the most part, but it was just too slow for me.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

The wedding season

Boy, I feel bad about how long it took me to finish this book! And I’ll give you the cliche it wasn’t you it’s me. Because really it wasn’t the book it was totally me.

I couldn’t rave enough about The Secret Bridesmaid the first book I read by this author. So when I saw she was publishing The Wedding Season it was a must-read I needed it!

Well, it did not disappoint. The thing I loved about The Secret Bridesmaid was how funny it was! Neither TSB or TWS fit the typical rom-com narrative because it’s less about a couple's relationship and more about the main character and the changes she makes. The building of her character and relationship with friends and or family. The Wedding Season fits perfectly with that and Birchall was able to again bring a funny, charming story to life with the main character you could easily be friends with.

Freya is all ready for her big day, enjoying her rehearsal when her groom-to-be shocks her by backing out of the wedding. Freya is at the age where everyone you know is getting married or having engagements and showers and doesn’t know how she will be able to handle all the events to come without thinking of her wedding that did not happen. So her friends and herself make a list of quests/challenges for her to compete at each event so she will be distracted. Can Freya complete each task without thinking of Matthew? Or will she let her “sturdy” personality get in the way of trying new more adventurous things.

Filled with beyond-funny banter, friendship, getting back on your feet, and great characters. This book is as wonderful as the last.

I loved the growth of Freya's character over the book.This book will make you want to book a ticket and travel to all the different places Freya goes!

I love Katy Birchall’s writing and will be following this author and reading more from her.

Thank you!

I'm a bit frustrated by the fact that this book was categorized as a romance, it's women's fiction. It's about Freya, who after being left by her fiancé the day before their wedding faces a season's worth of friend's weddings head on. Her friends give her tasks to complete at each wedding to give her something to distract herself. This book is entirely about Freya and her growth, so it is not a romance, it is women's fiction. I was expecting a much lighter book given the blurb and designation as a "rom-com" but it's not overly funny and so much of this was Freya working through her issues. I do think the book was an accurate portrayal of the situation but when that was not what was promised, it made me not enjoy the book as much as I would have knowing what I was getting myself into.

This is so good!!!! Such a great and realistic story! This book had me laughing my head off and truly enjoyed each and every page. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVED the main character Freya and totally related to her experience!

There’s a certain time in your life when it seems like all of your weekends are spent celebrating engagements and weddings. It can be a fun and exciting time—unless, like the jilted young woman in Katy Birchall’s The Wedding Season, you’re still reeling from unexpected heartbreak...

Full review published on NightsAndWeekends.com - and aired on Shelf Discovery

Me the whole time: BLOCK HIS NUMBER!!

Freya has been dumped the day before her wedding. With it being the wedding season, Freya now has to attend seven friend’s weddings. Her best friends come up with a task for her to complete at each wedding to keep her mind off of her despair. As Freya completes her tasks, she gets to know herself better and becomes more fearless.

This book was quite fun, and it had all the components of a classic romcom. I personally just did not particularly care about any of the characters. I feel very neutral about this book; I did not hate it, but I also did not love it— it was just okay.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My heart broke for Freya the way she was broken up with. I couldn't even imagine how heartbreaking that would be. Reading her journey from heartbreak to coming to terms with it all and finding who she is alone, is a beautiful and funny one. The tasks her best friends gave her were great and some hilarious and exactly what she needed to survive the summer.

This book reads like a movie, not necessarily a bad thing but an adjustment when reading. It was a fun read and lighter than I anticipated!

Freya is planning the last minute details of her wedding to her fiancé Matthew only to have him call it off the day before. All of her friends have upcoming weddings as well and in order to help her heal, her friends come up with a task she has to complete during each one. I loved how her friends did their best to help her get through her breakup and her family did their best too. It was a great read and I would definitely recommend it.

***ARC provided by the publisher on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Though the description of The Wedding Season by Katy Birchall, Four Weddings and Funeral, it also feels like Bridget Jones’s Diary thrown in as well, if the protagonist’s narrations throughout the novel were any indication.

The point is? This was probably better as a movie than a book.

After being jilted the day before her wedding, Freya has to find a way to make it through a host of weddings she’s been invited to while getting over a twelve-year relationship. When her friends come up with a series of challenges to get her through each one, she finds herself learning something new about herself from each one. Mix in Jamie, a chronically late, amiable wedding guest she keeps bumping into throughout the season, and will she be finding herself open to the possibility of romance once again?

The plot moved breezily enough, and it didn’t feel like a slog. But our protagonist, Freya, was a bit of a sticking point for most of the story.

I know we’re supposed to be rooting for her, but at almost every turn for nearly two-thirds of the book, she went about droning on about Matthew and lamenting the end of the relationship when the dude up and left her the day before their wedding!

12 years is understandably a looooong time to be in a relationship, and Freya is well within her right to wallow and miss what she had before with Matthew. However, it feels that for too much of the book, she is still stuck in this phase where she’s leaving the door slightly open for Matthew, even when she and Jamie get closer leading up to that moment in Dublin.

It became grating and, honestly, at moments, tested my patience. You know, like that one friend who won’t get over their ex despite being treated poorly by said ex. So, in that respect, it feels like a highly grounded portrayal.

The moments where I’m kind of okay with her moping and sulking over Matthew are too few and far between, and by the time the final chapters roll around, I come to a realization that I like her better when she’s with friends like Ruby and Leo or when she’s with Jamie. They are getting to know each other or standing in her righteous anger after a restaurant confrontation.

Ruby, Leo, and Niamh were a blast, and I honestly got more than a few giggles from their interactions with Freya. They also provided some hard truths and essentially said what I thought for large portions of it.

I loved her moments with her family. Her father and her brother, Aidan, were fun additions and added something to her story.

But I think Freya’s relationship with her mother was fantastically done. I think that’s one of the relationships I was invested in seeing grow, leading to that beautiful moonlight walk by the water for mother and daughter in a way that allowed them to see each other for the first time in their lives.

Jamie was fun to have included in some of the Wedding Season tasks. He felt a lot like Alex from People We Meet on Vacation in that he feels like a wholly adult, witty, funny, self-assured, comfortable-in-his-own-skin kind of character. At this moment, as I’m typing, I realize that these are becoming a favorite archetype of mine.

This is another romance that would probably have benefited from correctly categorizing it as an Adult Fiction/Women’s Fiction novel. Unlike my last read, this bait and switch did not work to this book’s benefit. Overall, it was a light, breezy read with pockets of slightly heavy introspection and family dysfunction that offered some character growth.

I will read anything Katy Birchall publishes, including her grocery list. The Wedding Season is Birchalll’s sophomore novel and does not disappoint.

Freya is getting married to her forever lover, Matthew, in just a short twenty-four hours… That is, until he pulls her into a broom closet and informs he that he is no longer in love and will not meet her at the chapel. With devastation and embarrassment, Freya returns home with multiple weddings to attend and no wedding date. Sounds like it’ll be the perfect wedding season for her!

Thankfully, her friends come up with a unique list of tasks that allow Freya to step outside of her comfort zone per wedding. From being the last on the dance floor to taking someone’s cuff links, Freya is about to realize that maybe not having a wedding date is just what she needs.

The Wedding Season is a novel about discovering your own happily every after despite the world’s expectations to always have a lover by your side. Birchall crafts Freya so that you will root for her as she completes each task and laugh at all of her mishaps. The side characters that you meet along the way are just the icing on top of the cake. Any lover of romantic comedy and wedding tales will enjoy Birchall’s latest.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press Romance and netgalley for my arc in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Wow! This is amazing. I learn a lot from this story and I love how the female character were able to survived the wedding season.

A bride scorned hours before the wedding has her whole life upheaved! Her group of friends devise a set of really fun challenges for her to complete at each event of the summer - aka their weddings - to distract her from thinking of the ex-groom-to-be and Freya ends up realizing that she can have fun without another person! She is just great alone but then again, love might not be too far away for her after all.

Having not read a book by this author before, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I ended up really enjoying this book. It was fun and sweet with a side of seriousness. I laughed out loud many times and even cried a bit. I enjoyed Freud’s growth not only in herself but in her relationships with her family. Loved that she got her HEA. Looking forward to reading more from this author.

I've had a few years in my life were it seemed like I had endless weddings to attend each "season". I am fortunate that most of these weddings I attended with my husband, which was the plan for Freya until her fiance Matthew breaks things off... the day before their wedding. Now Freya is facing the wedding season alone and jilted. To get her through, her best friends devise a plan. Freya must complete a task at each wedding to help keep her mind off of her heartbreak. Hilarity often ensues as Freya pushes herself out of her comfort zone, learns more about who she is when she isn't with Matthew and realizes maybe her love story is over.

You guys, this book is so cute. It's a lovely story featuring the likeable Freya and her amazing friends that are the real relationship goals. The support and loyalty the trio show each other is the best part of the story. The plot is fun and while the ending is somewhat predictable, it is also exactly what I wanted for Freya and I love a happy ever after.

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Freya’s life took a head-whipping turn, from the happiest moments completing her last-minute preparations for her wedding, to shock and devastation when her fiancé Matthew calls off the wedding the day before the nuptials.

How will Freya recover? Will she recover? Will her heart ever mend enough for her to leave the house without breaking down?

It’s wedding season, and all… and I mean ALL of her friends have weddings planned this year. Freya is obligated to attend each one. But how?

Her besties come up with a creative plan to distract her during each wedding. She must perform an outrageous task during each wedding…each building in complexity. (And embarrassment) All to bring Freya out of her cocoon and find that life can be joyful once more. (Just what good friends are for!)

What I really enjoyed about this read: The heart-warming friendships Freya had, and how everyone rallied around her to help her heal. Her father and brother were amazing as well. And yes, I grew to love her mom too.

What I didn’t enjoy: For the first third of the book it was the overwhelming sadness and heartache Freya endured. Just difficult to read. ( Maybe ‘cause I’m such a softie 💞).

Overall, the spirit of the weddings and the healing of hearts through the strength and love of family and friends won me over.

This was a buddy read with Susanne that gave us lots to talk about. Love, loss, and of course friendship!

I really liked this book. I loved following Freya’s journey throughout this book and I loved the whole idea of the challenges that Leo and Ruby gave her. I enjoyed all of the side characters as well. I enjoyed reading Freya’s journey of discovering herself again after her breakup and coming out stronger on the other side
I enjoyed seeing how Jamie and Freya’s relationship changed throughout the book and how Freya and her mom's relationship changed. This story was so fun and entertaining. I enjoyed the authors writing style and look forward to checking out more from her.

Overall, this was a 4.75 for me!

Thank you to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for a copy of this e-book in exchange for an honest review.

My first ever ARC was also by this author and I loved this book just as much as that one! Katy Bitchalls books are fun and entertaining yet still have a deeper side to them, for sure recommend!