The premise of marrying oneself, in a full wedding ceremony to boot, to celebrate your love for yourself is a little (okay, a lot) quirky but hey, Girl Power and all that. This would have been so much more if Lily was really a strong, confident woman who needs no-one to complete her BUT she was not. The more I got into it...and I got into about 50% of it <b>DNF</b>, the more it seemed to me that Lily was out to prove rather than celebrate something. It felt like she had underlying (daddy) issues that made her untrusting of men rather than her preferred narrative of not needing them. Had this been a validation of self with the introduction of a hero to complement that, this would have gone a lot better, I think. As it stands...sorry but NO.

Lily is great at her job - she plans exciting events, whether weddings or birthday parties. However, no matter how happy she says she is with her single-hood, being asked when she's the next to get hitched is getting old. What better way to shut up the critics with a spectacular wedding ... to herself?

To Me I Wed has a pretty interesting concept. What made me want to read it was the idea of Lily being surrounded by people who expected her to simply wait for Mr. Right to sweep her off her feet, but instead she opts to show them that she was whole on her own. The wrench thrown in by her attraction to Vincent makes for a lot of tension, sexual and otherwise.

I found Lily to be a bit unlikable, which surprised me. She seemed extremely tightly wound, and a great deal more insecure than one would think given her choice to marry herself. The book starts with her finally breaking off a not-quite friends with benefits arrangement with a guy who didn't really seem to treat her well while they were "together." Then, she almost comes across as the butt of family jokes regarding her singlehood. I took her choice to marry herself more as a manifestation of that insecurity, rather than a show of strength. Later, she was a bit more selfish and rude in her interactions with Vincent. She was contradictory at best, and disrespectful at worst. Luckily, she came into her own a bit more as the book progressed. She was able to address areas some of the most pressing "problems" in her life and seemed more honestly independent and understanding of her impact on others.

Vincent is a brooding character, and grapples with his own insecurities. He heavily affected by his mother's sudden death, and the result is that he blocks people out and is emotionally distant. He and Lily had an evening of heavy petting and a year later reconnect at Lily's sister's wedding. The chemistry is still simmering, but the two struggle with how to move forward, if at all. While Lily tries to keep him at bay, she ends up further embedding him into her life by selecting his restaurant as the venue for her "wedding." The two have a back and forth rapport that not only challenges Lily's rationale for marrying herself, but also what the two want for themselves in a relationship.

Overall, this is a cute story and a novel concept. I thought the ending was a bit predictable but fitting given the circumstances. Unfortunately, it did not captivate me as much as I expected, and it took me a while to finish it.

Two peas in a pod are Lily Perry and Vincent Caro. Both struggling small-business owners who are happy with their relationship-free lifestyles. Lily is a successful event planner who has pulled off amazing parties for her several sisters, living up to the “always a bridesmaid, never a bride” lifestyle. Vin recently opened his own restaurant in memory of his mother who always shared her joy of cooking with him. The pair hooked up a while back, and even though it was an intense evening, neither called for a second chance. However, when Lily sees Vin at her sister’s wedding, sparks ignite and neither can rest until they see the attraction through.

To Me I Wed is the second story in Ms. Jackson’s Unconventional Bride series, and unconventional is the best word to describe Lily’s plans. Doing research, Lily comes across an article how a woman, ready to show the world she’s good just as she is, married herself. At first Lily sees this as a potential business opportunity - which I can appreciate. But then she internalizes it, seeing herself in this woman. She gets swept up in the idea, immediately calling her assistant, Tori, and getting Vin’s restaurant to host it!

I have to say, I struggled with Lily. I understood her desire to show the world she's all good as is. But I had a lot of trouble getting behind the concept of marrying herself. I had hoped it would have been a funny/silly storyline, but Lily was kind of obsessive about her life and the wedding. It was an "I'm gonna show them" kind of thing. She was so serious, not having fun with it at all, which actually made her come off as desperate - not for a man - but for people to believe she’s “okay” as she is.

Similarly, we got a lot of how “okay” Vin is, yet he’s clearly still dealing with his mother’s death and his own father-issues. I loved that he genuinely cares for Lily and pushed her until she gave into her desire. But then their relationship coasts… and when one got too close to the other, they would blow up and push apart. As much as they were falling into one another, they both had serious walls. And we didn’t really see them ever open up to one another. They danced around it, but slammed the walls down hard as soon as one or the other was uncomfortable. They argued about it and instead of moving closer, continually slamming down the barriers.

The author did include some glimpses of genuine emotion, like when Vin kissed Lily with all his heart and at the point right before the wedding. But those moments were so rare. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but I felt even though there is an HFN ending, we never see the couple work things out and get past the messy emotions.

In the end, To Me I Wed was an enjoyable read, but I struggled getting into the story, and then, I found it was lacking solid relationship bonding. By the end of the book I felt that Lily and Vin *could* be a couple, but they really never shared a scene that shows me they will be able to open up and be there for one another.

My Rating: C+ Liked It, but I had issues

Fed up with the expectations and disappointments of love, Lily decides to step off the escalator and take control of her life. Sounds sane, right? The way she goes about accomplishing this task, is anything but. To Me I Wed has to be the most over the top love story that I have had the pleasure of reading, yet that is what I found so adorably intoxicating about it. When it comes to love, everyone is clueless. Love is the most frustrating, heartbreaking, irresistibly alluring emotional out there. No one understands how it works, but we all know when it feels right. K.M. Jackson scores points for originality. She created a story that is identifiable, at times certifiable, but in the end proves to an edible addiction of sweet and tempting charm.