I really enjoyed this one! It starts slow and definitely heavier, but at around the 30% mark, I really started to enjoy it. Flawed but lovable characters & a fun summer story overall.

The first chapter of this book was DARK and I considered DNFing but once the main character and the bride met, I was hooked. The banter is top notch and boy is this story messsssssyyyyyyyyyyyy. It felt realistic though. Phoebe’s inability to let go of her ex husband was so true to life. So was her just covering her dead cat and running away. I’m not really a fan of the cheating trope even if it is just “emotional cheating” and especially when it’s with your best friend’s fiancé but I feel like it worked here because the bride and groom clearly were not going to end up together. It’s a true testament to the author that I really liked the bride even though she was so incredibly frivolous and self centered. This felt like a depressing Wedding Crashers which is very much my vibe.

This is my feedback for the wedding people by Allison espach. Thank you so much NetGalley for allowing me to review this book in exchange for an honest review! My review is linked below! I have it 3.5

This was my first book by this author, and she did a fantastic job drawing me in. The synopsis intrigued me, and once I started, I couldn't stop. I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator did an excellent job bringing each character to life. The book is filled with a diverse cast of characters.

Phoebe arrives in Newport, Rhode Island, intending to end her life. She's at a low point—her husband has divorced her, her cat has died, and her career is stagnant. She checks into a beautiful hotel for what she plans to be her final night. Coincidentally, a wedding week is beginning at the hotel, and everyone assumes she's part of the wedding party. Phoebe wants nothing to do with anyone, but she soon meets the spoiled bride-to-be, Lila, who refuses to let her go.

The interactions and conversations between Phoebe and Lila are captivating. Lila pulls Phoebe into her world, and their lives become increasingly intertwined as the week progresses. The story flows beautifully, and I loved watching their relationship develop.

Both the audiobook and the book itself were incredibly entertaining!

I just finished THE WEDDING PEOPLE by Alison Espach, and it was such a quick read—I couldn't put it down. The story opens with Phoebe arriving alone at a romantic hotel, overwhelmed by personal setbacks and ready to give up. Unexpectedly, she crosses paths with a lively wedding party, sparking funny and insightful conversations with the guests. These interactions lead to mutual growth and honesty among the characters, creating a compelling and engaging narrative. Espach beautifully blends humor and raw honesty, making the book both entertaining and thought-provoking.

I alternated between reading the book and listening to the audiobook narrated by Helen Laser, who brought the characters to life wonderfully. I highly recommend experiencing this story in either format!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was wholly unprepared for this book. This isn't your average light-hearted romance -- it has so much depth and heart that I wasn't expecting.

It centers around a week-long wedding with a bride who thinks the hotel is booked out exclusively for wedding guests. And it is....well, with the exception of Phoebe, who shows up with her own plans. Phoebe is a wildcard in the carefully laid plans of the wedding, but sometimes unexpected connections can become the most meaningful.

"The Wedding People" is so many things: it's humorous and heartfelt, will make you laugh out loud and will make you cry. Espach writes with wit and hilariously accurate insight into love, relationships, and wedding charm and chaos. Please, please do yourself a favor and pick this one up!

(on another note, who do we have to lobby to make this into a movie??)

Thank you NetGally for this ARC!!

I just want to start by saying I LOVED THIS BOOK. I cannot say enough nice things about this story and the author.

The story follows Phoebe as she's going through a divorce post her husband's affair. Phoebe is about to end her life when she becomes one of the "wedding people" staying at a hotel and connecting with the bride. As the wedding continues, Phoebe learns what it means to truly live and how to continue on in her life when the unimmaginable has happened.

This book has truly changed the way I view the little things and what you mean to others. Phoebe may be going through what she feels like is the end of her world, but so is everyone else. Everyone has something that they are holding on to or getting over, but it's about how you deal with those things and reconnect with the world around you that makes life worth living. Phoebe is all of us.

Phoebe learns that she has more to live for in life and has truly made an impact on others around her, even in just one weekend. It really makes you think about all the people who you have impacted and impacted you, no matter how small.

Pheobe has been an adjunct college professor for years. She is stuck in a loop, unable to turn her book into a dissertation, unable to start a family, and unable to assert herself in her marriage. Facing a new loss, Phoebe decides to spend a night at a luxury hotel in Rhode Island. Due to a booking fluke, Phoebe is the only person at the hotel not part of an over-the-top wedding and quickly finds herself confiding in the bride. As the days pass and she becomes more involved in the wedding party, she finds herself forming connections to a number of the guests and coming into her own in a way she no longer thought was possible.

This is a hard book to summarize without giving away any spoilers, so regardless of how interesting/not-interesting that summary sounds to you, my advice is read this book asap! This book is the perfect blend of being weighty and involved with complex topics, while reading in a way that is funny and light and true-to-life. Heart-warming but never mawkish, funny but never relying on caricature, and thought-provoking without skipping a beat, this is the must-read book of the summer.

I would recommend this to pretty much anyone, but especially for fans of Kevin Wilson’s Nothing to See Here or Maria Semple’s Where’d You Go, Bernadette?

Wow. This was beautiful. It is deep and hearty and tortured, but hopeful. It really made me pay attention. I felt like I really knew these characters at a visceral level. I will think about this book for a long time; I know I will. I would love to know what happens next for these characters, but I think maybe it’s important that we also don’t. Note: There are a lot of trigger warnings to be aware of if you are sensitive to certain topics. Thank you @netgalley and @henryholtbooks for this ARC. It is happenstance that I finished this book today, the day of its release!

Happy Pub Day Review

“I think it’s amazing how much work we’ll do just to feel something. I don’t think there is anything more human than that.”

Well I am adding this to my favorites pile of the year for sure.

I really didn’t know what to expect when I started reading this as I went in completely blind and 100 percent because I loved the cover. I highly, highly suggest you do the same because the story completely captivated me, tugged on my heart strings, and made me laugh out loud.

The premise is an interesting one. The characters are endearing, quirky, weird, and some of my favorites now. The writing really makes you feel like you are with the characters with witty and meaningful dialogue.

I will think about this one for a long time and really can’t WAIT for you to meet Phoebe and Lila.

Add this one to another amazing immersive reading experience with another amazing narrator, Helen Laser. She really brought the story to life and I honestly couldn't stop listening.

Thank you so much @henryholtbooks for the early reading copy and @macmillian.audio for the early listening copy

“Life is strange. Always thinking that this one thing is going to make you happy. Because then you get it. And then you’re maybe not as happy as you imagined you would be. Because every day is just every day. Like the happiness becomes so big you have no choice but to live inside it. Unit you can no longer see or feel it. And so you start to fixate on something else.”

5 stars

I loved this book so much that I was texting @elizabookworm while reading, saying OMG — the hot tub scene — because I needed to emote. I was cracking up and at the same time, should I really be laughing at this!?! Yes, yes, I should.

I saw Alison Espach at Barnes and Noble Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn last night (in conversation with Jenny Jackson( to celebrate THE WEDDING PEOPLE. Espach funny, which should not be surprising given the book. What I absolutely love about this book are the characters, Phoebe, Lila, Neck Pillow, High Bun, Juice and Marla were my absolute faves who jumped off the page.

The story: Phoebe, an adjunct professor at a Missouri college, gets up one morning and can’t put her teacher clothes on. She leaves her breakfast crumbs on the counter, puts on an emerald evening dress and heads to a fancy hotel in Newport. When she walks in, she sees a crowd of people, the wedding people. She wasn’t expecting them. The bride certainly wasn’t expecting Phoebe who intends to end her life with cat tranquilizers at the hotel.

The Wedding People is deep, funny, lyrical and about our innate yearning to connect with other humans even when we think we do not want to do so. It is a brave book, as well.

I loved Espach’s last novel NOTES ON YOUR SUDDEN DISAPPEARANCE. If you haven’t read it, do not miss it. It is so different from The Wedding People, but brilliant.

Thank you @henryholt for a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are honest and my own.

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Thanks to NetGalley, The Author, & Henry Holt & Company for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book follows our 2 FMC on an unexpected crashing of a weeding weekend. Filled with humor, charm and relatable feelings, this was such a feel-good read that I truly enjoyed every chapter of. I loved our quirky FMCs and their strange, but relatable friendship. I so enjoyed the setting of this book as well. This has moved up the chain in my favorite comfort reads.

Some readers may appreciate a trigger warning--I was not expecting so much discussion of suicide. But I enjoyed the cast of characters and their very real struggles with life and love.

What happens when random people comile into your life unexpectedly, especially when you are at the lowest point of your life? This story explores that and so much more. It isn't an exciting, thrilling ride, but it is a well written, extremely expressive story about life and everything that goes with it-all the ups and downs. Phoebe is most definitely at her lowest point. She decides to give in to one last dream. A hotel full of wedding people (bride, groom, and guest) throws her plans into a turmoil that finds her completely entrenched in the wedding plans. She soon finds that these interactions may be what she need to save her life and allow her to see clearly what was always missing.

I loved this author's last book Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance, so I was so excited to learn she was coming out with another book this summer. The Wedding People did not disappoint!

The story starts with Phoebe booking a trip to a luxury hotel at the beach. When she arrives, she realizes she is the only person who is not a guest of Lila and Gary's wedding that will be occurring at the hotel later in the week. Phoebe then starts interacting with all "the wedding people", who have an impact on her. While this seems like a very simplistic, even soap opera-ish premise, there is so much depth in where this storyline goes. I even appreciated the characters who are over-the-top and annoying because even they are represented skillfully. And I was sorry when the book ended that I had to say goodbye to these characters.

What made this such a fabulous read for me is that Alison Espach writes family dynamics so well. And even when it's about difficult things, it is smart and thoughtful and non-stereotypical. And yet I would still categorize this as an entertaining beach read. Do yourself a favor and read this new summer read which comes out today, July 30th. Heads up on some trigger warnings, so please investigate if you are sensitive to some topics.

Many thanks to #HenryHolt for providing me an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

An unexpected, funny, and poignant novel about being so far removed from the world but slowly finding your place back in it. A rumination on change, growth, and what it means to find yourself at rock bottom. This book is special.

I’m not really sure how to explain why I loved this novel as much as I did. Many of the characters were unlikeable and the themes were heavy. The best way to describe it is that this book felt like that first burst of saltwater on your face in a speedboat on the ocean. A little uncomfortable but refreshing and freeing and like the start of something new. I really, really enjoyed this late-in-life coming-of-age story.

Pub Date: 7/30/24
Review Published: 7/29/24
eARC received from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Weddings bring out the best and worst in people, which is evident throughout Alison Espach’s new novel, The Wedding People. Expectations and the stress that goes with them, whether they’re self-imposed or projected by those around you blend into a unique fog that can surround the participants and guests at a wedding. Sometimes it requires the perspective of an outsider to see through that fog to what’s really going on. But then, the same can be said about our lives even when there isn’t a wedding going on. Exploring the boundaries of truth and façade in The Wedding People, Espach’s novel is both hilarious and insightful, lighthearted and poignant. Touching on darker truths, the novel ultimately lands in place that loses none of its hopefulness for being predictable.

After the pandemic helped convert the cracks in her marriage into shattered pieces, Phoebe reaches rock bottom and decides she’s had enough. She wants to do the things she and her husband always talked about doing and she’s going to use the money they’d set aside for trying to have and raise kids to do it. She’s going to finally book a room at the fancy and incredibly expensive hotel in Newport and she’s going to kill herself while watching the sunset over the ocean. But when she arrives, Phoebe learns that the hotel has been completely booked for an extremely lavish wedding leaving her the only guest who is not one of the wedding people. Since she has nothing to lose, Phoebe is honest with the bride about what she’s there to do and instead finds herself increasingly sucked into the world of the wedding, finding that perhaps she isn’t as done with life as she thought – she’s just done with the way she’s been living it.

There is a lot of humor throughout The Wedding People and a lot of it can appear to be at the expense of specific characters. They can feel like caricatures more than individuals when the reader is first introduced to them and that is because to Phoebe, they initially are caricatures. They are the “wedding people” rather than individuals and so many of them play specific roles – the bride, the groom, the bridesmaids, the best man, etc. But as Phoebe gets drawn further and further into the wedding, those archetypal characters do become fleshed out people. The elements that make them humorous remain but they are fleshed out with a deft hand and Espach is able to demonstrate just how much the characters shift in relation to one another and the existing relationships between the characters as individuals.

The family and friendship dynamics that appear are what truly carry the novel for me. The tension between Lila (the bride) and her future in-laws, her future step-daughter, her mother all makes sense from both sides. Her frustrations with them as well as their frustrations with her and the way that the true roots of those frustrations get brushed aside to keep things moving smoothly for the sake of the wedding, all of that rings so true that it becomes completely plausible that they would pull a stranger like Phoebe in with such ease as a way to further avoid confronting the deeper issues at hand. Because that’s the thing: it shouldn’t make sense for a complete stranger to get so deeply sucked into the wedding festivities and yet, somehow Espach makes it work beyond just requiring the suspension of disbelief necessary simply because it’s the story’s premise.

4.5 stars. In turns heartbreaking and absurdly funny. Phoebe Stone arrives at the Cornwall Inn in RI ready to kill herself, She shows up in her fancy green dress and gold heels, during the week that was rented out for a high-end wedding. Phoebe gets mistaken for one of the wedding people and instead of going ahead with her initial plan, she gets bamboozled into joining the wedding party and really finding herself. Do yourself a favor and read this one.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co. for this e-arc.*

What a fantastic book. I couldn't wait to see where the story went, yet I didn't want the book to end. I loved every minute of reading The Wedding People.

It has everything you want. Emotional, poignant moments, laugh out loud moments, quotes you want to highlight, and plenty of material that makes you reflect on what you've read and how parts of it may apply to your own life.

The characters were fantastic. I felt they were all well-fleshed out and realistic. Nothing irritates me more than when characters are made out to be these larger-than-life, almost caricature-like characters, and thankfully, there was none of that here. The characters were flawed but relatable. Even the characters I couldn't relate to on a personal level still felt so realistic and each loveable in their own way.

Phoebe's character arc was absolutely perfect - it was everything I could have wanted it to be. This book tackles several different issues without ever feeling like too much was jammed into one story and without ever feeling preachy or obvious. It's just subtle and beautiful. Even the storylines that I worried about (in terms of how the author would keep things progressing without leaving me disappointed in the characters), left me satisfied, happy, and hopeful.

I don't really want to say much more for those of you that prefer to go in blind. But just know this is a fantastic book. I think it would make a great book club book because there are lots of characters and issues to discuss, but I read it on my own and enjoyed it just the same.

Thank you to Henry Holt & Company and NetGalley for the e-arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.