I loved Olivia from the start. I think she had a heart of gold, wanted to believe the best in (most) people, and reached for others with her heart. I think that's why I despised the boyfriend turned fiancé (eek!) so very much. He was SO not good for her. He was too caught up in himself, couldn't seem to break off from his bachelor ways, and hiding so many things from our kind hearted gal, let's just say there were multiple times that I wanted to get up in his koolaid and tell him what's what. *grr* But I digress...you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince, and sometimes that prince comes along when you least expect it. Is her heart ready to accept what her mind has already figured out? Or will a love of convenience reign the day, making it a marriage in name, and shared space, but not of the heart?

Obviously you'll have to read it to find out, but suffice it to say that there are happy endings to be had even when you least expect them. There is one thing though...this one is more of a happy beginning. I won't spoil it, though I'm jonesing to tell you a little more, but don't look for a neatly tied package of a conclusion...it's definitely a "there's more to come" type of close than a ride into the sunset. It's still sweet, and fitting, but it is what it is! Trust me though, you'll be so caught up in the drama along the way and laughs to be had that you won't mind in the least!

A great cast of characters and a story brimming with laughter and heart, I'd say this is another win for this author and readers alike!

This was a fun, laugh out loud story and I had such fun reading it. It is a cute and sweet story that will having you smiling and laughing along the way. Out of the blue, Olivia's boyfriend, Teddy proposes to her, and she is a bit perplexed. It seems a little too soon to be heading into marriage, but she decides to go for it. It's always been her dream to get married on the Cornish coast, and she has an opportunity when a spot opens up at her dream venue. The only problem is the date is less than a month away. Olivia gets immersed in the wedding planning, but there are still alarm bells going off in her mind. She doesn't understand why Teddy is pushing for the wedding to happen so soon. She gets help from an unlikely stranger and begins to see things more clearly and begins to question Teddy's urgency to get married and his intentions.
This was a lovely, heartwarming story and I am glad to have had the opportunity to read it.
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

Swept away in a sudden engagement, Olivia (Liv), finds herself apart of a double wedding with her brother Doug(ie) and his fiancée Eden. A double wedding was never the plan. However, when they learn the location their grandfather helped build is being sold and one date has become available, what other option is there? With only two weeks to organize, her fiancé busy with work, and an opinionated soon to be sister-in-law, will Liv make it down the aisle?

Better Off Wed cements Portia MacIntosh as one of my favorite contemporary romance authors! I can always count on her to deliver a heartfelt story wrapped in a comedy package.

Liv was a dream female main character. As a struggling comedian and hopeful author, she provides the perfect combination of hope and humor. I couldn’t help but root for her as she discovered what she truly wanted out of life and a relationship.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
FMC: Olivia- when her boyfriend of less than 1 year proposes to her out-of-the-blue, it’s the start of a whirlwind comedy of errors.
POV: 1st person, single POV
HEA: yes- HFN
spice: This is a clean sloooooooow-burn romance with a couple kissy scenes.
TWs: cheating, public humiliation, death of parents (recounted), uncomfortable family dynamics, manipulation from partner and family,
standalone: yes
final thoughts: I love the premise of this book! The bones are great, the characters have so much potential, the setting is beautiful, the tropes are great. Where it lost me was that it took until almost 75% through the book until Oliva makes her decision… WOW. I liked her as a MC, but really couldn’t connect with what a doormat she allowed herself to be for her big day and trying to force herself into a box her fiancé wanted her to be in.
This book is great for someone who is looking for a little more drama, will-they-won’t-they story rather than a romance.

read this book if you love

💞 friends-to-lovers
🤐 miscommunication
😬 angst
🏝️ forced proximity (island)
💓 slowburn
🏡 small town
💏 fake dating

I love Portia MacIntosh. She has the ability to plot books with a fresh, new premise with interesting characters. They're always fun with a lot of heart. In Better Off Wed, Liv (Olivia) finds herself planning a rushed wedding after her boyfriend proposes and there's only one date for their chosen venue. Coupled with that its a joint wedding with her brother and his fiance. Cue the hijinx.

There were some fun scenes and of course there's strong evidence Liv is not with the man she should be with. The problem I had with this book is that, while I can see why Liv is the way she is (a bit of a doormat to everyone's needs but her own), the book dragged on longer with all the other chaos instead of focusing more on Liv's evolution. I also found the first few chapters were slow to really get to the meat of the story, which made it a bit of a slog I found myself skimming through. MacIntosh is a talented and prolific writer, and I will still read and look forward to her next ones.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

My review of this book is heavily affected by my previous experiences with the author. I continue to enjoy her style of writing and the kind of people that are present in the story, but I enjoyed this a little lesser than the others I have had the opportunity to read. I think people who are new to her writing might like this even better.
There are some common features in the books I have read thus far - a loving but eccentric family, at least one established couple, while the other and the more central pair seem to have another person either during or at the beginning of the story, only to end up together. It is not exactly cheating, but borderline so (whether warranted or otherwise).
This story has all those moving pieces written in the author's trademark style. We have a wedding being announced at another couple's engagement party. Then as it happens that the dream wedding location is to be scrapped, they decide to have a joint wedding. This is just the beginning of the chaos. Having a joint wedding for people who think alike might be easier, but for the brides in this scenario - nothing clicks the same way. The grooms are as hands-off as possible, one more than the other.
When everyone moves to a house near the wedding location, things start to fracture and change. I saw some of the surprises coming, although that did not alter my own reading experience. Overall, it was an easy read, and I will definitely read another book by the author.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

I liked the book enough, but the storyline with Hugo felt forced, particularly at the end. First she says she needs time to move on from her relationship with Teddy but within 24hrs she's turned around and decided she wants Hugo but that's where the story ends. So did they get together? Did she stay in Cornwall? Are they doing long distance?

It felt like an "Oh. Is that it?" Kind of ending. I was expecting some kind of epilogue that gave an update a year on or something. To see how their relationship turned out but it just ended.

I also felt like a lot of the dialogue was contrived and overly lengthy and was definitely not how people would normally speak to one another. It also seemed like everyone "joked" rather than said anything of any meaning.

Thanks for NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC!

I realize I am in the minority but this book wasn't for me. Liv had no backbone. It was hard to read. I wanted Liv to be more true to herself.

I had previsouly read Your Place Or Mine? By Portia MacIntosh and absolutely enjoyed it! So when I saw that she was releasing a new book, I knew I wanted to read it.

I loved this book so much! It was such a cute and funny romance just like I want them to be. I loved everything about this book. Olivia is so relatable and realistic. I felt sorry for the way Teddy was neglecting her. And yet she managed to keep her sense of humour and be witty. I loved her relationship with Heidi, they were such cute friends.

All characters were amazingly developed. I loved Olivia's family and especially her parents who were so funny and caring. I also loved Hugo and how the relationship between him and Olivia developed. It was easy to guess where the story was going to sometimes but I loved it.

It was a nice and light read that I highly recommend for the summer!

This was a funny and entertaining book which like Portia’s other books I throughly enjoyed. The ups and downs of life are so true especially with weddings involved and the stress of planning them. I loved this one. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Cornwall has been added to my list of places to visit.

This book is beautiful, heartwarming and hilarious. Everything I know I will always get from a Portia Macintosh book.

I really warmed to Olivia and took an instant dislike to Teddy. Portia has written the characters really well. I would love to know what happens in Olivias life next.

Better off Wed is my second portia macintosh book and as much as I enjoyed your place or mine I loved this one so much more! In Better off wed the main character Olivia finds herself in a very unique situation - if she wants to get married in her dream wedding venue - a family tradition, she must marry her boyfriend of less than a year in less than a month! Not only that - she must share the wedding with her brother and his slightly bridezilla-esque fiancee. Olivia quickly learns that ignoring your gut feeling and a zillion red flags is the last thing you should do, especially when making life-altering decisions.

Filled with wedding-related fun, slow reveal secrets, and a cast of quirky characters, this book is perfect if you are currently in the midst of wedding planning like me, or just want to enjoy the drama from a distance while reading a fun rom com! Thanks so much to netgalley and book and tonic for giving me the chance to read and review this fun book, I look forward to reading more novels from Macintosh in the future!

Liv says yes when her boyfriend Teddy proposes. But straight away she has doubts. Things fast forward quickly as they have to have the wedding within weeks before the family wedding venue closes forever. She heads to the coast to start planning the wedding with her family. Is Liv making the right choice marrying Teddy or will she find happiness by the sea...?
Better Off Wed is a warm and uplifting romantic comedy set on the Cornish coast.
Liv is a comedian and ghostwriter but dreams of writing her own book one day. She has been dating Teddy for almost a year and is delighted when he proposes. However, he is a workaholic for his family business and it is clear from the start the pair are not compatible!
There is only one place Liv would ever get married: a barn in Cornwall which was built by her ancestor. However, she discovers that the venue is closing down and there is one date left so they book it quickly (for a double wedding with her brother and his annoying fiancee!) But as she moves to the venue with her family, Teddy is nowhere to be seen. Liv meets Hugo who helps her with the wedding preparations that Teddy should have been doing.
I loved the jokes dotted throughout the book, especially the cheesy ones :) . There is a beautiful warmth to the tone of the book and the style of writing is easy to read. I liked Liv's character but wanted to shout at her for not standing up for herself. There are lots of characters who are the kind of people we love to hate so we side with Liv even more. The outcome of the plot is entirely predictable and the twist was easy to spot, but I enjoyed seeing how events played out.
Better Off Wed is a warm and wonderful romantic comedy.

Oh, sigh. This is by FAR my favorite Portia MacIntosh book. There were so many questions as I went through the book, and I couldn't wait to get the answers. And, boy, did I get the answers. This is definitely swoon-worthy and you won't be disappointed if you like a good rom-com novel. I get goosebumps still thinking about this fun-to-read book.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read it. I'm so thrilled I did!

Another super cute easy read by the wonderful Portia! I've enjoyed all of her books so far and this one is just the same.

I really wasn't sure about Liv and Teddy's relationship at the beginning but I went in with an open heart. This one was funny, I loved all the little jokes throughout even the cheesy ones 😉 It was super comical and I always found myself drawn back to it for this reason.

Set in the beautiful Cornwall I did find myself being able to visualise the area and it just helped. I loved the whole process and I think it was all done at a very good pace. The side characters were all important and really helped develop the plot.

Very enjoyable read! Would definitely recommend Portia's books if your into cutie romance novels!

Liv is suddenly proposed to by Teddy. Is it all as it seems? Soon she finds herself thrown into joint wedding plans with her brother and his fiancée. Their dream venue appears and soon she finds herself questioning her choices.
Is this really what Liv wants?

Another enjoyable read from Portia.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an Arc of this book in exchange for a honest review.

Okay, listen, they really need to put more work into books’ blurb because this book wasn’t what I thought. If I knew it was going to be a city girl goes to small seaside small town and meets a guy who suddenly makes her realise that her city boyfriend is an asshole and the key to her happiness is moving to said small town, I would have definitely skipped this one.

The FMC is SUCH a pushover I was itching to get into my kindle and smack some sense into her. It took her 60% to realise that Teddy doesn’t care one bit about her. And honestly, how much disrespect can one sigle human bear from her family and fiancé and his family??

It physically hurt to read this book, I swear. I absolutely hate this kind of stories because they feel flat, clichés and give me nothing. And so did this book.

Read in one sitting but it left me feeling itchy and nervous. Also, it’s not that funny. And finding someone who’s your spitting image? It’s not chemistry it’s make believe.

I’m sorry but this just wasn’t for me.

Better Of Wed has Portia Macintosh's usual charm and humour, with fun and friendly characters and a family holiday vibe. There were page turning developments and activities throughout the story that made it an easy-going, enjoyable read. It also had leading lady realizations that made me happy and relieved, as well as a sweet, surprise romance.

I really feel like this story was very different and unique! I picked it up and didn’t want to put it down! Unfortunately as I was reading some big things happened in my life, so I didn’t get to finish it as quickly as I could have normally. But every spare moment I had I was reading, even if that meant sitting in the hospital waiting room and scrolling on my tiny phone screen.

While it started out with Olivia going to an interview for a tv show, I was definitely intrigued as it went down the little detour with that not really playing any more into the story. There were a lot of great characters, and even the ones that I didn’t like for how they treated Olivia actually, most of them anyway, had some redeeming qualities in the end, especially one, that I won’t mention because I won’t spoil the little moments that made me smile towards the end.

And then the big “darkest night” moment at the end, what started to come between the two at the end, well, I hated it, but in the best way. I totally understood Olivia’s reasons, even if I wish she’d stayed and heard or asked him for clarification. But, yeah, misunderstandings are a big part of romances.

Probably my only complaint is that I wished for an epilogue! For a while I was kind of thinking who cared about those, but I think lately I’ve gotten spoiled with all the authors that give epilogues. Not that this needs it, there was a definite happy ending.

I have to say I’m becoming more and more a big fan of Portia MacIntosh!

<b> ... even if it feels like you've met the right person at the wrong time, sometimes you have to meet the wrong person first, so that you can find yourself in the right place, at the right time, to meet the right person. </b>

A sudden proposal. A joint wedding. Rushed preparation. What could go wrong until the supposed future groom keeps busy at work and just send his mother to help the wedding preparation? In the middle of chaos Liv found herself in, a mysterious bar manager came helping her realizes her dream wedding.

tbh this is my first read of the author, although i've been eyeing some of Portia MacIntosh's books on my tbr for quiet awhile. but i'm glad I did this one, and certainly wouldn't be my last!

I've almost give up on this story since I couldn't feel the charm Teddy supposed to have that was captivating Liv wholly that makes me having a hard time to relate and rooting for her until they went to Cornwall and *cue* Hugo comes into the scenes. I love how the plots and storytelling is so refreshing and how insanely good it is that it succeeded on making me feels suffocated and just as helpless as Liv went through almost the whole book, also how it's just so easy to read when Liv and Hugo are spending times together. The character growth Liv has is so wholesome, I'm so proud of her! Though this might sounds like a triangle love story, I guaranteed you it's not!

There's so many wholesome scenes too, not limited to Liv, Teddy, and/or Hugo, but also between Liv's family, her brother and soon-to-be sister in law, Eden. The whole town and cottage are so alive, cute, and become the true embodiment of rom-com sites! The ending too??? I really can't stop smiling at the end! Wish there's an epilogue for the couples..

Overall, this has been a laugh out loud clean romantic-comedy perfect for summer read!
<i>Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for the e-ARC of this charming book</i>