The Wedding People by Alison Espach

 

Title:  The Wedding People

Author:  Alison Espach

Narrated by:  Helen Laser

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Length: Approximately 12 hours and 13 minutes

Source: Checked out from the Kewaunee Public Library through Libby.

What book have you recently read due to Instagram?  I kept seeing The Wedding People by Alison Espach on Instagram last year and I finally got around to reading it last month.

Phoebe Stone has arrived at the beautiful Cornwall Inn in Newport, Rhode Island.  The hotel has been taken over by “the wedding people,” and everyone has assumed that Phoebe is there for the wedding.  She is not, and she’s the only non-wedding person there.  Why is Phoebe visiting this hotel by herself?  What will the wedding people do with a stranger in their midst?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       I thought it was interesting when Phoebe thought about that it was a gift that random strangers give you is that you can say anything you want to, and it doesn’t matter.

·       This was a Read with Jenna book selection.

·       The characters were great with surprising depth.  I loved the characters and they felt real.

·       This was a character driven story

·       Sometimes chance encounters can change our life.

·       It was an interesting side look into adjunct professor versus professors.  Adjuncts do all of the work of a professor, but for less pay and no benefits.  It’s a strange system.

·       Depression, infertility, divorce, cheating, death of a cat, and loss of friendship are all problems that Phoebe is dealing with.  The wedding people are also dealing with a lot of issues as well including the loss of father, wife, mother.

·       Lila (the bride) decides to prevent Phoebe’s suicide as it will ruin her wedding.

·       This was a weighty book, but funny at times.  I loved how Phoebe felt free to finally voices her feelings amongst these strangers.

·       I loved the setting.  Newport was just in The Gilded Age this summer as well.  I would love to visit.

 

Overall, The Wedding People by Alison Espach was a great character driven story that will be one of my top reads of the year.