I really adored Save the Date! I loved the Grants, enjoyed the hilarity and over the top wedding shenanigans and most of all, just liked the feeling that I was witnessing (well reading) something real.

I posted my review of Save the Date online in June of 2018 but never sent feedback through Netgalley. Please find the review below.

When I started reading "Save the Date" by Morgan Matson I was expecting a romcom, but got more of a coming-of-age story… which was even better. Charlie’s family was immortalized in her mother’s comic strip and memories of Charlie’s childhood were often confused with the fictional family. Throughout the novel, Charlie begins to grow up, to face truths about herself and secrets she never knew about her siblings and parents. So used to being part of a collective unit, Charlie struggles to become a unique individual on her own path.

There are so many stages of romance in this book, from first crushes to breakups to newly married to divorced. It makes the book seem a bit more realistic and allows to differentiate better between the Grant family and the comic version of them. Charlie had a crush on Jesse for years, and he is finally starting to notice her just as she is starting to notice Bill, the wedding planner’s nephew. For the entirety of the novel I did not know which way things would go, if Charlie will have a second-chance romance with Jesse or a friends-to-lovers type story with Bill, but you know she is still young and has many adventures to come.

While the wedding was likely supposed to be the climax of the story, it was not the best part for me. The ceremony and reception were full of humorous disasters and happy moments, but it is actually the goings on the morning after the ceremony that had me laughing out loud. I rather enjoyed reading this book and would love to see a second novel about the next phase of Charlie’s life. I found her character so relatable and with so much hope for the future, that I need to know what will happen. I definitely recommend this book, and plan to read more novels by this author.

I love Morgan Matson's writing. She writes the perfect amount of humour into her books that offset the deeper issues that the characters are facing. In this case - our main character Charlie is beginning to realize that the people in her life are not perfect, and her life isn't exactly as it appears to be.

Through the course of her sister's wedding, and her mother's retirement - Charlie and her family are all brought together, even her distant brother Mike, for one last epic family weekend before the family home is sold. Charlie (is the youngest) has always idolized her older siblings and wants nothing more for a perfect family bonding weekend. From the very start, NOTHING goes according to plan! Charlie feels like her perfect weekend is slipping through her fingers and it is up to her to keep everything together. As the weekend progresses - secrets are revealed, fights are rehashed and weddings are interrupted BUT by the end of the book Charlie begins to see her family as they really are, flawed. She realizes that she has built them up into impossible versions of themselves and it isn't their fault. 

It is a wonderful story of growing up and letting go of the things that you thought were true.

There are minor uses of foul language and some minor sexual situations. Suitable for older teens and young adults.

I've said it a million times, but contemporary is not my go to genre. It's one that I continue to dabble in from time to time in the hopes of finding a contemporary author I can call my go to when I need a light, easy book to read. Dare I say I think I found one? Last year I read my first ever Morgan Matson book, Since You've Been Gone, and really liked it. That being said I was still hesitant to purchase another Matson book, worried that it was a one hit wonder kind of thing.. then NetGalley had Save the Date available for request. I couldn't pass up this chance, and I'm so happy I chose to give it a chance.

Save the Date takes place over the course of three chaotic days. Charlie's older sister is getting married in their childhood home, for Charlie it's the moment she's been waiting for.. all of her siblings under one roof like the good old days. The problem? Nothing goes exactly as she plans, it's one disaster after another and Charlie tries to fix. Over the course of the three chaotic days she'll learn things about herself and her family she never expected to learn.

Morgan Matson does contemporary (at least from the two books I've read) exactly how I want it done. The focus is on family and friends, with a dash of romance on the side. As far as Save the Date is concerned it was everything I could have asked for and more. It felt like a 90s/ early 2000s romantic comedy film in a similar vein to Father of the Bride or The Wedding Planner. Add in a large family all returning to one house for the wedding and it's adorable, fun, familial chaos.

I loved spending the three days with the Grant family, getting to know everyone and how things operate in the household. My favourite Grant was probably J.J., he was such a precious bean and made me laugh out loud on several occasions. By the end I was fully invested in the Grant family, and could even see Charlie receiving a sequel someday if Morgan ever wanted to extend the Grant family into another book.

Thanks to Save the Date I've recently acquired two more of Morgan's book, Second Chance Summer and The Unexpected Everything, as previously mentioned I think I finally found a contemporary author who does my kind of contemporary (and does it extremely well). If you're in need of a light contemporary this summer I highly recommend picking up a copy of Save the Date.

The first time I’ve ever been disappointed in a Morgan Matson book. It read more like a movie script than a novel, the main character was a brat and a half, and I didn’t feel the usual pull I do toward her characters' journeys. There wasn't enough room to *breathe* in the book - it was just one mishap after another, for the sake of some kind of misguided comedy. It's a shame, because I think the story of the family being written as a cartoon for so long was compelling, and it didn't need the 'wedding gone wrong' backstory. Matson excels at tiny moments that bring truth with them - and while she IS funny, I think maybe let that go a little, for the sake of bringing more depth to the story.

Matson's best was "Amy & Roger" - she killed it when she was writing for a slightly older audience. It allowed her (in my opinion) to be freer as a writer. I also loved "Second Chance Summer". She just seems to skew younger and younger these days and that's not for me.

Funny and cute, loved the family dynamics and how the main character grew. Thought it was a little unnecessarily long but great overall!

Definitely one of my favourites by Morgan! Loved seeing how everyone in the book interacted, the wedding, and how families are not perfect.

What a weekend. What a wedding. I love this kind of a book. Mayham, madness and calamity, before you get to the good stuff...that's what family's for!
A nice story of the sweet hopeful angst of the past clashing with inevitable change. Will you find the courage to embrace things as they are, or suffer the pain of insisting things remain the same...and miss seeing all the good there is now.
A current popular read at our libraries.

As always, Morgan Matson delighted me with a fun, interesting and insightful story that I couldn’t stop reading. Although this book isn’t my favourite of hers, it’s most definitely worth reading and it was worth the wait! The characters are so complex and relatable that I felt like I was part of the story too, which is one of my favourite feelings. The setting was interesting and different for Morgan Matson, so I had a fun time reading it. I already cannot wait for her next novel!

After The Unexpected Everything, Morgan Matson because synonymous with "best summer reads" for me. She packed so much fun and emotion into one book that it just seemed like the right thing to be reading when the sun was shining and I was rocking my favourite shades.

Save the Date doesn't take place during the summer but since wedding season is in full swing now (as evidenced by my various social media feeds of friends and their plus ones) it fit right in with the summer feels. Add in shenanigans and the various small adventures Charlie ends up on and you have a recipe for a great time when you're sitting in the park, by the pool, on your deck...whatever floats your boat!

As usual, all the characters are amazing and I quickly felt like I was a part of the Grant family just as much as any of the siblings. After the impressive cast of dogs in TUE, Morgan delivers just one dog but he's just as great and just as strong of a character. Okay, and maybe Waffles made me miss the beagle we used to have just a little. So sue me, Morgan made me sentimental 😂

The actual plot was also sooooo good. I'm so here for a hilarious "what else could go wrong?" journey. I cringed and cackled through Save the Date so fast even though it's a solid 400+ pages. I don't think there was ever a moment when I wasn't totally entertained. I'm also here for the character growth that Morgan worked into to the family hijinks. The more serious, emotional moments had me tearing up (thankfully I lucked out and read these parts alone in my apartment) just as much as the funny parts had me laughing in public.

I knew Morgan Matson books would be auto-buys after reading The Unexpected Everything and Save the Date just cements that position. She delivers the 3 Fs - fun, feels, and family - and manages to make 400 pages feel almost too short because you're invested in the Grants and need to know more. Immediately.

I was given this ARC by the publisher in return for an honest review.
This was incredibly detailed and it took me more effort to stay focused on the story than any book I have read since “The Counsel of Elrond” in Tolkien’s <i>The Fellowship of the Ring</i>. Sorry, but that chapter took me a month to get through; I kept falling asleep and the same was happening with this story (not that I’m trying to compare classic fantasy literature with contemporary young adult fiction).
I found the protagonist to be rather entitled and self-centred.
There isn’t really much else I can say about this story except that my attention kept drifting to other thoughts and concentrating on the plot was extremely difficult. Most of the time I felt like having to wade through everything that was dumped on the reader in order to find the actual story beneath the countless, oh so many unnecessary descriptions of things no one really cared about that much.
Overall, the story had the potential to be highly entertaining and sweet, but was lost along the way. I believe there are readers, who enjoy a story with lots and lots of details, so for them this might be a worthwhile read, but it wasn’t my cup of tea.

Save the Date was what I expected from Morgan Matson. I found it cute and adorable, especially the whole wedding aspect and the situation with "Waffles". Honestly this felt more like a rom-com than a young adult book.

Save the Date focuses on family relationships and the complexity of it as each member goes through different phases of their life, letting go of the past and things they can't control, and growing up. There was so much happening to this family that it was a bit difficult to believe that all of it would end up coming to such a predictable ending. From the very beginning you can easily see where the story is heading so there was no real element of surprise. It was at times unrealistic and a bit farfetched. However, what redeemed some of the unrealistic scenarios were the characters.

The characters in this story felt real and the drama between them was entertaining to say the least. They made the book interesting, amusing, and captivating. The character development in this book was so well done that I was astonished by Morgan Matson's capabilities. The plot was too predictable but the characters were cute and ended up making up for the mediocre plot. I also really liked the concept of the comic strips as well as the story behind it

What sort-of surprised me was that this was not really a romance book. There were hints of it but it never really cemented. It was only about 10 pages of the whole book, and though I wish there was a bit more, I was content with how it was played out. In a way, by not making the romance take centre stage, I was able to learn more about Charlie's character and understand her behaviour in a better light. If the romance was more present I believe it would have ended up taking away Charlie's character development and the overall feel of the story.

In the end, Save the Date is young adult contemporary novel that was an overall interesting book to read. I would recommend this book to those who feel like reading something that would make them feel a bit nostalgic or those who are heading to college or university.

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

Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the advanced reading copy of Save the Date by Morgan Matson. I can't wait to start this book.

This book takes place over a three day span of time. It is based on the character Charlie, who’s sister is getting married at her family house before it is sold. Charlie expects the perfect weekend and to spend quality time with her four siblings. As time goes on however, with so many people under one roof there seems to be one catastrophe after another. Will Charlie get the weekend she has dreamed of? Or does life have other plans in store?

I loved the family dynamic of this book! The siblings all of intricate bonds to one another. They share family jokes, nicknames, bets, and loyalty to one another. I was nervous with there being so many characters in this novel but Matson does a fantastic job giving the reader enough information on each for you to love and understand each of their points of view. I loved that the main focus was on the family and the preparation of the wedding. There is a romance in this book but it takes a side step to the family aspect.

This book would lend its self wonderfully to a movie adaptation. This was my first Morgan Matson book (not including Katie Finn) but I will definitely be reading more from her in the future. I highly recommend this book to contemporary lovers.

Family events are pretty mad at the best of times, but put two together and what a weekend! That’s what you get in Save The Date.

Focused on Charlie, the youngest of a large family, you see the weekend from her perspective. It is not only her sisters’ wedding, but the one that marks the end of her mothers celebrated career as a cartoonist.

The family is an interesting one. It is a very close and loving family, with the exception of one estrangement. Early on you get the impression that there are undercurrents between the parents as well, undercurrents of which the kids may not be aware.

The wedding itself is a bit of mayhem. The wedding consultant turned out to be either incompetent or embezzling and is missing in action. Half of what she did do has to be undone by the new wedding consultant. And he has a nice nephew too.

The neighbors are joyous, constantly complaining about the noise, which is, of course, uncontrollable given the nature of the weekend. Everything that can go wrong seems to go wrong.

Grant Central Station has been a favorite with comic readers for many years. Chronicling a barely fictionalized version of the family, it is the cause of the original estrangement with one of the children. When she mentions in the strip an embarrassing but funny episode in her sons’ life, even after his express request that she not, it sparks a two-year feud between them.

Everything All At Once

Now that the mothers’ cartoon career is coming to an end, of course, there must be much pomp and circumstance surrounding it. The papers are all wanting an interview as are the national TV shows and it just seems like a really bad idea to schedule it all on the same weekend as the wedding. Add into the mix Charlie’s personal life, school life transition into college, and it makes for a rather chaotic but thoroughly enjoyable novel.

Reviewed for LnkToMi iRead in response to a complimentary copy of the book provided by the publisher in hopes of an honest review.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book should be made into a movie. It's already set and ready to go! This was such a great read. Quick, easy, funny, and heart wrenching all bundled into one. The novel features the Grant family, from the comic strip, in the 3 days leading up to Linnie's wedding. The narrator is the youngest daughter, Charlie who is struggling with her family, her childhood home being sold, and the looming decision of where to go to college next year. Add in 4 other siblings, one estranged brother, 2 parents, a loaner dog, and a bunch of insane relatives and you're in for one wild ride. Anything that could go wrong with the wedding, literally does and it's hilarious.
I would totally recommend this book for anyone looking for a great summer read. Since this was my first book that I've read by this author, I will be checking out her other books to read as well

Such a fun little book. A wedding where anything that can go wrong does. Meanwhile, a youngest child starts to see her family and herself through new eyes. Add in the these ordeals happen to a real life family of a famous comic strip. A fun book but with serious themes. A sweet coming of age novel.

Save the Date , in particular, hit it off with a bang by starting with a romantic get-together that swept me right into the storyline.

Youngest daughter Charlie is the narrator, and she just wants all her siblings together again in one place before their parents sell the house and she goes off to college. Is that too much to ask for? But some siblings have been estranged, others may bring home uninvited guests, and then you just have those oddball family members that make life fun. This book capitalizes on that natural family feel and just makes you smile as the chaos of the wedding day ramps up.


I had fun with it. Yes, some things were unrealistic, but that's just how books work.overall, it was a really fun, summer, read and i would totally recomend it as something lighthearted and fun but i didn't feel like it was a book you could get lost inside.

Loooooved this book! it was such a fun read about all the disastrous things that can go wrong at a wedding! Can't wait to read more of her books at some point!

Oh, Morgan Matson. My first introduction to the books of Morgan Matson was reading Amy & Roger's Epic Detour back in 2012, then moving on to Second Chance Summer - both books I absolutely LOVED. I feel like since then I've been trying to get the same feelings I had reading those first books - especially SCS - but nothing has come close. The last two books have been just okay for me and I really think that it's time for me to stop reading books by Matson. 

Of course, that's not to say her writing is terrible - really, I think Morgan Matson would write great screenplays - but I just don't think her books are working for me anymore. Save The Date sounded like it would be a lot of fun, but I felt like it lacked emotion and those really in-depth family conversations and struggles that I was looking for. I loved the storyline of Mark and his mother and wanted more of that in this book, but I got a LOT of silliness instead, something that would've translated better on the screen than in a book. The story was definitely cute to begin with, but it just started to get predictable as everything that could go wrong, goes wrong, and eventually it felt too unrealistic and even though it's a work of fiction, I would like to have something that still feels real. 

There's also Charlie, the main character, who I really, really disliked. She was stubborn and selfish and just plain mean. There's a great character in the story, Brooke, and Charlie is horrible to her. I also felt like her worries about school were completely overshadowed by the so-called "romance" in the story - I didn't get the obsession with Jesse in the beginning and there is a majorly forced romantic relationship as the story goes on, with a character who gets barely any screentime. There's pretty much no chemistry at all and I knew the story would go downhill after we barely see Charlie's love interest and then her sister tells Charlie that she thinks that the guy likes her - like, HOW did she come to that conclusion when we barely see this character to begin with? 

I also had a hard time with Charlie's mother, who writes a very popular comic strip about their family, The Grant Family. She seemed completely delusional about the separation between work and family, not caring who she would hurt in the storylines she created in her comics. As a mother, this completely horrified me! As for the rest of the characters, we barely get to know anyone. For a book that's over 400 pages, I'd like to end with actually knowing someone in the story, but everyone is pretty forgettable because we just don't go very deep into anyone. 

Anyway, this story was just not for me and I think it's time that I stop saving the date for Matson and try other authors. This story was way too long (I pretty much started skimming and felt like I wasn't missing anything at all) and the characters way too forgettable. I'm kind of mad that I bought a copy of this book, thinking I'd love it, since it's now going into my donate pile.