Katie Fforde’s books have been welcome reads to me for many years, starting with The Rose Revived a number of years ago. Now, annually, I look forward to her latest title. Ms. Fforde writes the perfect escapist read with just enough drama, along with the promise of a happy ending. Just right for when life is just that little bit too overwhelming.

In A Vintage Wedding, three women living in the same small village meet and form a business together. Vintage Weddings will hopefully offer the perfect day while not breaking the bank in costs.

Readers follow Beth, Lindy and Rachel along with their male counterparts, family, and friends in these pages. Beth is house sitting; Lindy is a mom with chaos around her; Rachel is her opposite as the story opens-she is neat and clean and hates mess. Watch how each of them experiences life and grows over the course of the novel. It will give you a most pleasant read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this title. All opinions are my own.

Published in 2017.

Pure Katie. A wonderful respite a great escape. I wish she wrote two books a year. I love her characters and settings.

This was a great little chick lit that was just right for the mood I was in! I really liked the Cotswolds location and the characters.

Really enjoyed this one from Katie Fforde. One of my favourite authors. Loved the storyline and country feel. Would love to see what the Vintage Wedding Company does next.

4 Women’s Fiction Best Bets for August 2017

Scarlettleigh

There are no makeovers in my books. The ugly duckling does not become a beautiful swan. She becomes a confident duck able to take charge of her own life and problems. 
—Maeve Binchy
Authors imaginatively write about any difficult situations in their books. Hopefully, we will experience very few of them. But it's not the tribulations that draw us to a book, but it is the heroine's ability to overcome these obstacles that gives us immense satisfaction. Readers read women's fiction because we love being along on the journey as the ugly duckling becomes a confident duck.
And at the end of this month's selection, you'll find plenty of confident ducks. Here are some great books to put on your reading list:

How to Change a Life by Stacey Ballis
(Amazon | B&N | Kobo)
A dare between friends leads to startling revelations and simmering tensions in the latest novel from the author of Wedding Girl.

Eloise is happy with her life as a successful private chef. She has her clients, her corgi, and a recipe for the world’s most perfect chocolate cream pie. What more could she need? But when her long-lost trio of high school friends reunites, Eloise realizes how lonely she really is. 

Eloise, Lynne, and Teresa revamp their senior-class assignment and dare one another to create a list of things to accomplish by the time they each turn forty in a few months. Control freak Lynne has to get a dog, Teresa has to spice up her marriage, and Eloise has to start dating again. 

Enter Shawn, a hunky ex-athlete and the first man Eloise could see herself falling for. Suddenly forty doesn’t seem so lonely—until a chance encounter threatens the budding romance and reveals the true colors of her friends. Will the bucket listers make it to forty still speaking to one another? Or do some friendships come with an expiration date?
Strengths: Interracial dating; luscious food descriptions, friendship conflicts; HEA
Measure of Love: Teaspoon
Mood: Poignant and lighthearted
Why You Should Read this: This book is definitely about the characters becoming more confident and moving pass roadblocks. While the interracial dating seems idealistic –more like it should be then is—there is intriguing exploration of the difficulties and rewards of renewing old friendships. Read on a full stomach or you’ll go crazy reading about the wonderful food.

A Mother Like Mine by Kate Hewitt
(Amazon | B&N | Kobo)
Welcome to England’s beautiful Lake District, where a reluctant reunion forges a new bond between a daughter and her wayward mother....
Abby Rhodes is just starting to get her life on track. After her fiancé’s unexpected death, she returned with her young son to the small village where she grew up and threw herself into helping her ailing grandmother run the town's beach café. Then one evening, her mother, Laura, shows up in Hartley-by-the-Sea and announces her plan to stay. After twenty years away, she now wants to focus on the future—and has no intention, it seems, of revisiting the painful past.
Laura Rhodes has made a lot of mistakes, and many of them concern her daughter. But as Abby gets little glimpses into her mother's life, she begins to realize there are depths to Laura she never knew. Slowly, Abby and Laura start making tentative steps toward each other, only to have life become even more complicated when an unexpected tragedy arises. Together, the two women will discover truths both sad and surprising that draw them closer to a new understanding of what it means to truly forgive someone you love.
Strengths: Multi-faceted characters; Complex mother-daughter relationship; Staycation appeal; HEA
Measure of Love: Teaspoon
Mood: Poignant and lighthearted
Why You Should Read this: Marvelous exploration of the fragility and strength of the mother-daughter bond. Rewarding theme of forgiveness and insightful understanding. Hewitt has fast become one of my auto buy authors.

The Chesapeake Bride by Mariah Stewart
(Amazon | B&N | Kobo)
Architect Cassidy Logan has sworn off good-looking adventurers. Newly divorced, she’s focused on building ecologically friendly, historically accurate homes on the Chesapeake Bay for her father’s construction company. Traveling to Cannonball Island—where there has been no new construction in nearly one hundred years—Cass is sensitive to the heritage of the island, and has come up with plans so perfect she’s determined to buy a home for herself. Even the fact that Owen Parker—a local who she dismisses as a lightweight and a player—seems to be everywhere isn’t enough to deter her from building her dream house.

Owen Parker is and always has been sinfully handsome and wickedly clever, a magnet for mischief as well as girls. He’s a rolling stone, going and doing whatever appeals to him, from flying a mail plane in Alaska, to working on a cattle ranch in Australia, a shrimp boat in Louisiana, and surfing and diving in Costa Rica. When an old friend offers him a job salvaging a sunken ship on the Chesapeake Bay, Owen gladly accepts. Something’s been telling him it was time to head home to Cannonball Island, and a job is as good an excuse as any. And he’s totally smitten by the pretty architect on the scene, but it seems he’s finally met a woman who’s immune to his charms. Sooner or later, Owen will have to face the reason why he always runs, because this time, leaving just might be harder than staying.
Strengths: Noteworthy historical content; Engaging characters; Strong Romance; HEA
Measure of Love: Teaspoon
Mood: Poignant and lighthearted
Why You Should Read this: Definitely will appeal to readers wanting a strong romance. And the genealogy and historical aspects are a perfect addition to a pleasing story!
 

A Vintage Wedding by Katie Fforde
(Amazon)
A chance meeting one evening results in an instant friendship between the three women. And they decide to pool their talents and set up their dream business together.
Soon they are having the time of their lives organising stylish and affordable vintage weddings. The summer becomes busier than they could ever have imagined as they sew bunting, bake cakes and add extra sparkle to the special days they create.
But what none of them realise is that their own romances lie waiting, just around the corner...
A Vintage Wedding is a gorgeous, uplifting romance novel about the magic of love, friendship and second chances. The perfect read for fans of Susan Mallery, Mary Kay Andrews and Debbie Macomber.
Strengths: Staycation appeal; Wedding theme; Multi-romances; HEA
Measure of Love: Teaspoon
Mood: Lighthearted
Why You Should Read this: Definitely a warm-hearted, feel-good story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishers for this review copy, given in exchange for an honest review.

We meet Rachel who has a small obsession about interior design, particularly the colour white; Lindy a single mother of two boys who gets reacquainted with her ex brother in law and Beth who has recently moved into an empty holiday let owned by her sister's future in laws! They all become friends, brought together by a village decision to fix up the village hall. The first use for the newly decorated hall is for a local couple organising their wedding on a budget. The girls pool together their skills and come up with 'Vintage Weddings', a business organising budget weddings. Following the first wedding, Beth agrees that they help organise her sister's wedding. Along the way we meet Raff, Charlie, Angus and Finn. Which one will win their heart So?

I've read a few 'wedding' books recently and have loved them, which is why I decided to read this one. The cover of the book is lovely, and definitely played a part in my choice to read this one. I instantly connected to the characters, and whilst I read some criticism of Rachel's character, I loved her!! She was my favourite and I could see a lot of myself in her! I just do hoped she found love with Raff, despite her pushing him away at every opportunity, as he sounded absolutely gorgeous!!!

The story flowed well and was a nice easy read. My one criticism was some of the chapters ended abruptly, to the point that I had to check to make sure I hadn't turned two pages! I hope there will be a second book to carry on the story of the girls, as I'd love to hear more from 'Vintage Weddings'!

Four stars!

I loved this one! A fun, light read with just the amount of humor, sizzle and quirkiness! Highly recommended.

An absolutely pleasurable read, as always with this author. One caveat, if you are offended by body shaming, there is a fairly well-repeated reference to how fat a particular character is, which I found genuinely disturbing. I like Fforde's books generally, and this one is no different, good story, overall.

Katie Fforde is the perfect author to read when you feel down or when you just want something light, happy, and funny. Vintage Wedding is no exception! Love the emphasis on friendship and how it can truly enrich and even change lives. While the characters are sweet, attractive, & quirky, morality isn't their strong suit. (No descriptive love scenes or anything, though, at all). They seem to give into their carnal desires rather quickly, but are sweet and fun to read about. I enjoyed my time spent with the lovely ladies Beth, Lindy, & Rachel and appreciated their collective genius of talents and their love for each other. May we all meet such friends in our own lives (and be as successful in business with them)!

-Thanks to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Katie Fforde for a reading copy in exchange for an honest review-

Vintage Wedding tells the story of three different women of different ages with different dreams and one goal: Help to revitalize a local building. When they met, they soon narrowed the bond of friendship thanks to the marriage of the sister of one of them. And what better than transforming the building into the ideal place for parties and events?

Beth, Lindy and Rachel set out for a challenge: helping brides fulfill the dream of marrying with a small, lean budget but preferably full of significant details and of course taking advantage of the idyllic locations of the small English town, especially the building in question. Gradually, each one is discovering theirself, realizing their abilities, learning to love and to value what she has.

No doubt it's my favorite book of this writer so far. With a warm and fluid writing, she is showing this journey of self-knowledge, love for the family and appreciation that each one of them .

With light touches of humor and lots of romance, the book is a full plate for those who enjoy a light and exciting book.
5/5 stars

A Vintage Wedding by Katie Fforde is a lovely book by an author who makes you cheer on the characters. She makes you want them to get their happily ever after, even if she leaves you to draw your own conclusions.

In A Vintage Wedding, we meet three women who join forces to plan and carryout weddings in their small town. Beth has just moved to town and attends an raffle at the town hall. When her number is drawn, she finds that the same number was given to another attendee, Rachel. Rachel is also new to town and Beth and Rachel bond along with Lindy, a single mother who has always lived in town. Beth is in the process of planning her sister's wedding and Rachel and Lindy join her. In the process of getting the wedding together, they decide to set up shop as full service wedding planners.

In between the planning, all three women meet and date a variety of men, which is nice and adds to the story. But for me the story is three women of divergent backgrounds and talents bonding over a new business.

I was given a copy of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I like this author but I had trouble reading this particular book. It did not hold my interest and was disappointing.

Three women Beth, Lindy, and Rachel quickly became friends. One is Beth who is to organize a wedding for her sister Helena but cheaply yet also nice. Then Beth and Lindy and Rachel decide to start organizing inexpensive but nice weddings even using vintage clothes. Rachel had OCD and loved to paint but paint everything white. Lindy is a single mother who had lived in the village all her life. Where the other two women were fairly new to the area.Rachel admits she has a problem cleanliness and her obsession with getting things just right. Lindy was a loving mom even if her life didn’t really turn out as she had planned it. Beth had Charlie but but then he cheats and has sex with other women and even though it wasn’t stated her and Charlie were exclusive Beth felt Charlie was a dirty cheater. Then it took awhile but Beth did get get over Charlie and yet she didn’t really know him. Then Beth talks to Finn a couple of times and all of a sudden she is in love with Finn. Then she is again heart broken when Finn gets mad at her. Lindy was having sex with her ex husband’s brother Angus and never discussed how odd their relationship was.
I had mixed feelings about this story. I felt ther ewas too many leading characters and there just didn’t need so much sex in this book. I also think there were certain aspects in this story that was just so unrealistic. But this was a fun read and I liked the plot/ I basically like the women and were glad they became friends. I didn’t care for the insta love/lust aspect of this book. But did really like how the women weren’t afraid of hard work and were determined women. I did think that Angus and Lindy’s relationship was odd. So as I said there were things I liked about this book and others not so much.

In this delightful novel by Fforde, Beth, Lindy, and Rachel are friends who set up a business coordinating vintage weddings. As they build their new business, they each encounter a romance of their own.

I liked these three friends and thought there story was a good one. I enjoyed their interactions together, as well as each of the romances.

Yes it's kind of predictable but it's also light, fun, and good for when you want to relax. Katie Forde used to be one of my favorite buys at Heathrow because she was perfect for the transatlantic flight. She's still a favorite but now we can read her in the US more easily (and thanks to Netgalley for the ARC I read.). Beth, Lindy, and Rachel are busy as wedding planners but they find their own romance as well. I liked the details of the weddings, liked all three women, and was happy for the happy endings. Try this one for good old fashioned chick lit!

I usually love Fforde's books, and although a light read for summer, I felt that more character development would have been welcome. Rachel, Beth and Lindy start up a wedding planning business, Vintage Weddings, originally to help Beth's sister plan her wedding on a budget. All three end up with love interests, but the relationships seem a bit rushed. I was not happy with the description of "the fat bridesmaid", surprisingly demeaning for Fforde. A quick frothy read that could use a bit more substance.

A Vintage Wedding is a lighthearted romance featuring three young women who form a friendship and a business based around saving the town hall and vintage wedding planning.

Katie Fforde has a huge following and an equally huge book list. While this title was originally published a few years ago, it still holds onto it’s charm and uplifting message of friendship, hope and love. It’s a good story, it simply wasn’t a story that I would return to. I enjoyed my time with these characters and I’ll call it time well spent then move along. Sometimes a story just doesn’t grab me and hold on to me from beginning to ending, and this was the case of A Vintage Wedding … for me. I’m certain there is an audience that will adore this story, and it is a good story simply one that really isn’t for me.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. That does not change what I think of this story. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

A sweet story of weddings, friendship, and love. Another winner by this author.

I enjoy the plot of The Vintage Wedding. Three women Beth, Rachel and Lindy meet, per chance, at the Save Our Village Hall meeting. They agree it would be a great place for a wedding. And, they join together to organize inexpensive Vintage Weddings.

Beth is in the village to help her sister, Helena, organize her wedding.

Lindy is young seamstress and the single mother of two young boys.

Rachel is a recently divorced. We learn she is and organized accountant and a bit of a control freak.

The references of Raff to Mr.Darcy, and of the 'Finn and the McCools', band, I found amusing. Life and relationships formed in the Cotswold village are interesting. We read the description of the wedding arrangements are, "The fragrance of the spring flowers was lovely. The five jam jars on each table looked extravagant. And although the Flower Guild had said there wasn't time to decorate the marquee itself very much, they had found time to wind swatches of net and ivy and narcissus from the centres, covering the supporting struts.The roof was tented with net and tiny lights that gave the impression of being a fairy palace."

I think this is basically a get out of the rut you are in ....type of read. So, if you are interested in a nice - easy, slightly - charming, village romance, then this Katie Fforde novel might just be the book for you.

Reviewed ARC for Bookouture and Net Galley

Beth has come to a village in the Cotswolds to escape from her overbearing mother and to find a job and to figure out what she wants to do with her life. She meets Rachel, a divorced accountant, who purchased her home several years ago. She has taken those years to create a home that is perfect. For Rachel, perfect is absolutely the only way to live her life. They both meet Lindy. Lindy grew up in the village. She is a divorced mother of young boys. Her parents and grandmother are helping her raise her boys. She has never really left the village or seen the world.
When the women are thrown together during a committee meeting about the Town Hall they learn that they make a good team.
Beth is a whiz at computers, websites and selling and buying on Ebay. Rachel's OCD makes her a good detail person. She is a wonderful person to keep track of every tiny thing as well as monitor money. Lindy is artistic. She can create beautiful dresses from nearly nothing. Her artistic ability and imagination allow her to move her beautiful ideas into reality.
Together they create a business, A Vintage Wedding. They will provide weddings on a budget. They can provide many services and products which can give the bride a wedding of her dreams.
Each of these women grow as their company grows. They learn what works, what doesn't work and what needs to be added to their services. They also learn that because each of them are blessed with different skills, they make a nearly perfect combination.
Their relationships with one another almost immediately becomes a warm and caring one. Each of them learn to depend on one another for friendship and support.
Beth makes a false start in romance, but eventually she overcomes the hurt and moves on with her life. Lindy is reunited with the man who was her first crush. He never knew she worshiped him from not very afar. Rachel has no desire for a man in her life. She is swept off her feet by a man who is nothing like her but is intelligent, funny and charming.
This story is as much about the village and the people who live there as it is about the 3 women. The village needs to update the Town Hall but have no funds for the job. There are innovative plans made which help get the work started for little or nothing. Villagers help with the work and support their own, whether it is by cooking for a bride or having a Pub Quiz in order to raise money for the Hall.
The plot is quick moving and provides the reader with enough action to hold interest. Living in a small village is never dull and there is always some gossip to repeat.
I liked all the characters, whether they were the leads or secondary. Each of them are well developed and very human. Maybe a little “different” but very real.
If I had any disappointment, it was that some aspects of the plot seemed to be resolved too quickly. I would have enjoyed some more depth to the growing romantic relationships as well as the conclusions to each story.
Ms Fforde has created another terrific book. I am a fan and have been since I first discovered her writing.
I received this book from the publisher, Bookouture, through NetGalley. I am voluntarily writing this review and all opinions are my own.