I liked the premise of dresses having a history and being matched to new brides to be. Unfortunately I found the characters, particularly Rafael, unsympathetic.
Not one for me.

Romance coupled with vintage wedding dresses and the stories behind them - a perfect match. Thoroughly enjoyed this book and read it in one sitting whilst on holiday

This book is not quite my usual fare, but I couldn’t resist the idea of dresses that pass their wisdom onto the next wearer.

The story is good - the finding of a very special dress gradually leads to the unwinding of the pasts of both the dress, and the two main characters. The way the book is written is very atmospheric, and carries one along with the story.

Whilst I did enjoy this book, it is not quite too my taste (slightly too emotional, and there aren’t any funny bits), so I won’t be reading it again. However, for anyone looking for an atmospheric tale of the redemptive power of love, this could be the book for you.

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

This was an easy, nice enough read and I was intrigued by the plot. However I felt that it lacked depth and reality, I want get to get to know Fran a little better. I also felt that the way Rafael treated and dismissed her would have made me far angrier than she seemed to get! I definitely wouldn’t have been dating him! I enjoyed the small historical stories sewn into the book and reading about various weddings.
Thank you to netgalley for gifting me this book in exchange for an honest review.

A perfect piece of escapism with a compelling love story, a heroine to root for and several beautiful dresses 👗 you will never forget!

A real mystery and romance story. An unusual storyline. Good strong characters and one of those hard to put down books. Well worth reading.

What a lovely premise for a romantic story. A wedding dress shop where the dresses are matched to the characters of the brides rather than their figures. The story is a little unbelievable at times as are the character quirks of the Fran the shop owner, but at the end of the day this is a romantic novel.

Breathtaking and wonderous are two words to describe this gentle yet elegant book
Like the vintage dresses Fran sells in her small boutique shop 'The Whispering Dress'
Fran believes every bride deserves the right dress for her special day, brides don't come in to try on lots of gowns, no they talk to Fran about their lives their personality their groom everything and then Fran matches them with the dress that she knows they will adore
Fran herself can't imagine finding love ever until one day at a house clearance she discovers an antique wedding dress and a rather arrogant man who throws said dress in a skip.
Will she go back for it delve into its past maybe even find out who the rude man was.

What a lovely story. I thoroughly enjoyed getting engrossed in this one! Louisa Leaman has written a fabulous romance, which is totally worth reading. With romance, a brooding male, wonderful wedding dresses, each with its own story to tell, you couldn't ask for more.

The characters in this romance are great Fran, the owner of "The Whispering Dress" shop was so lovely. I loved her enthusiasm to match each bride to the perfect vintage dress. Each character was so real that you felt you knew them and were part of their story.

The brooding lead, Rafael, was fascinating. His aloofness was chilling at times but he fascinated me and I really wanted to learn his story. Despite their bad start, I loved the way the author wove the story to interconnect these two and the dress that brought them together.

This is a story full of stories related to each dress, as well as the characters past stories. It was a wonderful story to read, it flowed beautifully and was so written. I love vintage clothes and their history, so this book really appealed to me. I highly recommend this story especially if you are looking for that sigh moment in a romance.

A bit of a mixed bag for me - some really lovely, charming sections and moments and it’s a great concept. However, there were points when Fran just wasn’t believable and the story ventured into the unbelievable.

I was intrigued by the premise of this book. A shop where vintage wedding gowns are not just sold but matched to a prospective bride. It sounded charming and unusual but unfortunately didn't live up to its promise, mainly because of the characterisation.

Fran, the main character is someone I wouldn't want to meet in real life. I think we are meant to see her as whacky and impulsive and cute but in reality she is a pain in the neck and quite intrusive in her methods. But she meets her match in Rafael, an arrogant entitled man who is utterly dismissive in his assessment of her business. As annoying as Fran is, I doubt that she deserves to be thrown out of a car in the middle of nowhere. Hardly the actions of a gentleman. Raf is the stereotypical rich love interest. Handsome (of course), arrogant (you bet) and emotionally retarded (duh) with a playboy's reputation (are there any cliches missing?). I long to read about romance between ordinary people with none of the usual stereotypical behaviour of hate leading to love etc etc.

Other characters don't shine either. There is an element of snobbishness in attitudes to working class brides. There is the ubiquitous gay best friend, the drunken poor little rich girl and so on.

I was hoping for something light hearted.. I'm not the biggest fan of chicklit but when it's done well it can be very good indeed - Sophie Kinsella for instance. But this disappoints. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

A whimsical tale of old fashioned romance and of course the most exquisite wedding dresses. I realised the ending to this story very early on but I still kept reading, the authors use of words kept me transfixed, a simple story told well. I rarely read romances but glad I chose this one.

Not usually my go to genre of choice but I did find myself getting totally lost in the tale of love and wedding dresses.

Fran owns a wedding dress shop but not a normal wedding dress shop. Her dresses have been owned before and have a history. She gathers as much information about the dresses and then after talking to the bride to be, she matches them with their perfect dress.

But will she ever find love? Perhaps a chance encounter with a dress with its own intriguing mystery will bring her love.

A charming, joy to read. Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK and the author for the chance to review.

I love a wedding story. This one I thoroughly enjoyed. What a better way to buy a dress that is steeped in history along with finding love along the way. Be great if another was to follow.

This book took me a while to get into. However the descriptive element of the writing was very good.
A great read with two wonderful characters

Nice read, quick and lighthearted. Enjoyable and would recommend for summer. Desiring my perfect dress (and man) as a result! Thank you!

Weddings! I love reading about weddings and all the frippery that goes with it, despite never having been there, done that. So when a book like this comes along that pretty much guarantees nuptials, it’s definitely one for my TBR shelf.

So Fran is a sweet girl, running the Whispering Dress wedding dress shop. She doesn’t sell your usual mass-produced gowns, not worried about a quick sale or big commission. She wants to make sure her brides get the right dress, not necessarily what they think they want but what Fran knows they need. All her dresses are described in so much detail by the author, you can see them. So when she finds a one-of-a-kind exquisite dress in a house clearance, you are drawn into the history of the dress just as much as Fran is.

Of course, it helps that Raf happens to be the guy giving the dress away. Whilst he is gorgeous and captivating, at the same time he is moody, arrogant and very secretive. Both Fran and Raf have baggage, all of which is ensuring that their relationship will not run smoothly. We find out Raf’s secrets first because he lets his guard down first to the point you think it’s all worked out but just then Fran’s emotional luggage holds them back.

Ultimately it all comes down to the dress. It both drives them apart and pulls them together at different points in the story.

Sewn together like the lace and silk of the wedding gowns within, this romance is both beautiful and full of mystery.

Overall Rating
4 out of 5

This was a sweet enemies to lovers story.
Fran was an interesting character who collects old wedding dresses, researches their history and then matches them to the perfect bride. I really loved seeing Frans interactions with the brides and her matching dresses to their personalities and history.
Fran and Rafael meet at a house clearance and straight away get off on the wrong foot. I really wasn't a fan of Rafael and found their love story a but far fetched. Rafael was continuously calling Fran dull and delusional in regards to her work with wedding dresses and trying to find the history of dresses. There were lots of small fights and bickering between Raf and Fran and then BAM love and happy ending ... I'm not convinced.
This book was easy to read and flowed well and had a really interesting premise however some aspects fell flat for me.
Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Really enjoyed this novel. The writing flowed and the characters were depicted very well. Couldn't wait to find out what happens next.

Fran has a wonderful wedding dress shop, dealing only with Vintage dresses. They all have an intriguing history, and she works hard to see that each dress finds the perfect owner.
Discovering a rare vintage dress in an old castle, she comes head to head with its owner, Rafael, who is doing a massive declutter of the castle.
I enjoyed the story ,more for the references to the history of the dress fashions.
I felt that Rafael was very odd, and ranged from being very disinterested and unkind, to being charming. I'm not sure what he was meant to be, but his attitude was somewhat self important. The relationship between him and Fran never seemed to settle down, confusing!
Thank you for a review copy of the book.