Mel and Teeny were BFFS until they weren't. Big time weren't. And all over a boy. Now, 20 years later, their children are getting married- to each other. Weddings bring out the worst in many people and it does the same to these two, who have their claws out. To be honest, neither one of them is especially likable, especially in the beginning of the novel, but the point of this is to see them grow up and recognize that they are better together than when they engage in verbal warfare. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Some of this is chuckleworthy, some of it is cringeworthy but it's always diversionary from the news.

I enjoyed this story of two longtime friends that became enemies before they became related through their children's wedding.

At the heart of it all it's the story of secrets and how secrets are fine until maybe one is used to hurt someone. It's the story of learning to forgive and how sometimes we really do just need a good talk with a good friend that knows our entire story.

The story of the tenor in the gondola was great and made me laugh. The Wedding War is a fun story that delivers a strong punch of a moral which redeemed the parts of the characters that I didn't care for.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an ARC at my request. This review is my own and freely given.

Easy and short story about two old best friend who became enemy’s and now they have to fix their problems because their son will get married.

I think this scenario is the worst for two enemies, and that’s make a funny and entertainment story to enjoy in a few afternoons.

First, I have to mention that this story reminded me of two comical movies about weddings:

Bride wars because of the similarity of the two brides fighting for have the best; the best bridal shower, the best wedding

But this time is a fighting between moms, and you can see how hard is because the two moms are totally different but they love their son and daughter so they want the best for both.

Moreover, in the wedding war you can see how Tennynson and Melanie care for each other and they have dialogues and situations that make you laugh all the time.

I love the characters, both Melanie and Tennynson.

While Melanie is reserved, controlled and always has to do everything in the best way possible and she cared about her children so much that you started to like it.

Tennynson is crazy, she thinks that she can do whatever she wants (and she does) and she is so spontaneous and secure of herself, I truly fancy her character.

The second movie is the father of the bride 1, when his daughter gets married and the father hire an exotic wedding planner like Tennynson and Melanie do.

The situations every time they are reunited for the wedding are hilarious because they are fighting for things of the past but you start to read little glimpses why they fight years ago and that is entertaining.

Besides, are not only funny things in the story you also can see struggles with diseases like bulimia, anorexy, depression and anxiety.

I truly recommend this book!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The cover of this book was the reason I requested it, before I read the synopsis. While it did intrigue me a bit, I felt it was definitely a book about friendship and less about romance.

Tennyson and Melanie are best friends forever, until a deeply hidden secret is revealed at an unfortunate time, ripping apart the friendship for good. But what happens when Tennyson's son and Melanie's daughter fall in love, get engaged and need to plan a wedding in only a few months? The two women will need to set their differences apart for their children, but how can then when there's so much unsettled bad blood between them. When the realities of life start hitting the women at all the wrong times, they will only have each other to turn to, but will that be enough to fix the broken friendship?

I absolutely detested so many characters in this book. Melanie was one of the worst characters I think I've ever read, Kit was almost unbearable, and the kids were both a little annoying. Tennyson and her hot cop probably saved this for me, even though they both had annoying qualities themselves. I did enjoy the basic storyline of the long ruined friendship having to overcome obstacles and daily life, so it had potential, which is why I gave it the 3 star rating I did. I realistically would have rated it 2.5 stars if I could have. What irked me the most about this overall book was how repetitive certain sayings and actions were, to the point I was very obviously noticing the overuse of them, along with the strange and out of date point of views/stereotypes that seemed to be portrayed. It felt like a jumbled mess of everything that could happen, happening all at once. There were just too many ideas and storylines happening to be able to focus on what was going on. After writing this review, I feel like I should only give this book 2 stars, but maybe others will enjoy this more than I did.

I liked the outline of this book, but when I started reading it I was disappointed. The characters were shallow and cruel to one another. It improved slightly in the end, but it was not what I was expecting.

Thanks to Montlake Romance and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When you add one half Desperate Housewives, combine it with one half Bride Wars, sprinkle in a little Bridesmaids and a dash of Father of the Bride, you get Liz Talley’s entertaining and over-the-top novel, The Wedding War

Tennyson let go of the love of her life only to find that her best friend, Melanie, swooped in and married him. At Melanie’s wedding, secrets are revealed and lives are destroyed. Years later, another wedding brings Tennyson back to her home town and face-to-face with Melanie. Nothing is ever easy as these enemies now need to learn how to put the past aside and look for forgiveness as this upcoming wedding approaches. And, boy, what they put each other through! If you enjoyed the lol funny or cringeworthy antics of the movies I mentioned, then you’ll enjoy what goes down in this book.

While a lot of it is light hearted and loaded with crazy antics, we do watch as Melanie and Tennyson deal with their past, struggle with their present, deal with how they are perceived, and how devastating secrets can be. And we watch as they try to come to terms and reconcile with themselves and their combined past.

This tale, told in current time with flashbacks, could easily be imagined as a charming rom-com movie. It read just like watching one due to Luz Talley’s descriptions. It was the perfect book to escape life with! While I’m not a huge rom-com/chick lit fan, I did enjoy this book. It was a witty, entertaining, and redeeming trip.

No, just no. I can't remember the last book I rated this low, and I read a book every day. It's offensive, full of stereotypes that cross the line into racism, and features characters who are overbearing, MEAN, and entirely unlikable. It's also not a romance.

If you go into this with open eyes, your reading experience might be slightly better. The blurb makes this sound like a light-hearted read with some snarky banter, though it’s anything but. The overall tone is mean, harsh, bitter. And while I picked up this book because it was categorized as a romance (and I’ve seen this author on romance bestseller lists before), this isn’t a happily ever after kind of book.

If I was judging this on plot alone, it’d be a 2-star read for me. The racism drops it to 1 star because there were some lines that made me stop and stare. For a book that’s written in 2020, it sure didn’t feel like it. I appreciated receiving an ARC via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review, but this was a no-go for me.

Former best friends, Tennyson and Melanie are reunited when their children decide to get married. In this book, they try to outdo each other, during every step of the wedding planning, making a hilariously entertaining story. It’s a cat fight until the very end.

I laughed so hard during some of the scenes. It was like if anything could go wrong it would. But I also enjoyed the slow reuniting of best friends as came to terms on their past and learned they could still be friends if they put everything aside for a fresh start.

Melanie and Tennyson were best friends as kids. They promised to remain that way forever, but forever is a long time. That promise has long been broken now. Tennyson and Melanie haven't talked since Melanie got married, but now they are forced to get along since their kids are going to marry one another. This upcoming marriage brings up a lot of the unresolved hurt, the competitiveness between former best friends to be the best at planning, and a whole bunch of new secrets along the way..

This was a fun read. The characters are fun. Melanie being a typical stay at home underappreciated mom and Tennyson is a woman married into money and flaunts it like its no ones business. While I understand all the background and family issues presented for Melanie, I feel that it takes away from part of the wedding war. I would love to see a sequel with the ending we were left. I could only imagine.

Tennyson and Melanie were the best of friends, and now they’re mortal enemies. Now Tennyson’s son and Melanie’s daughter are engaged—what could possibly go wrong?? This is the setup for this book, and there are so many emotions on each of its pages. The relationships are tricky and real and complicated, which makes for a very compelling read.

This one wasn't for me. I wanted to like it. The premise was good, but just felt like both women were really whiney. Thank you for letting me read early!

What a fun and witty read! Talley does an exceptional job detailing a friendship gone wrong. Two ex best friends must come together for the nuptials of their children. Chaos ensues and the reader will find themselves giggling uncontrollably at the characters' antics! I hadn't read anything by the author prior to this one, but she is definitely a new favorite!

This book is a hilarious take on two old friends who haven't spoken in 20 years but now they have to reunite for their kids' wedding. Set against the antics of a typical wedding, they have to try to navigate their relationships with each other and everyone else in their lives.

Thank you to the author, Montlake Romance and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The synopsis sounded fun, and this could have been a witty romantic comedy with a touch of snark toward the wedding industry - which needs all the pushback it can get, IMO. Unfortunately, the author took a different path and wrote a book with two unlikeable main characters, lots of casual racism and gross generalizations, and some very strange and outdated points of view. Cannot recommend.

Teeny and Melanie are childhood friends and an unlikely duo. No friends could be more different. However, their differences instead of setting the apart seem to fill in the missing piece for each other--like the missing pieces of the best friend necklaces they exchanged as kids. But after both women date the same guy the friendship cannot make it past the fall-out -- when Melanie marries him. They were once friends but now are sworn enemies.

Years later they have been married, and their kids are grown and announce their engagement. And the soon-to-be mother-in-law is someone the mom already knows--her sworn enemy and childhood friend. How will they be able to get it together and pull off the perfect wedding in 3 months?

I loved this book of friendship, family and wedding hijinks (in fact, I read it in two days since I couldn't put it down). I wish I could share some of the hijinks, but I don't want to give away any spoilers! Let's just say it includes a cake incident and a rodent in the house.... I absolutely loved the characters and the heartwarming theme of friendship and possibly second chances, mixed in with wedding humor. A heartwarming humorous read.

The story of Meanie and Tennyson and their friendship turned rivalry was intriguing. What caused the first between tase friends? How will they navigate the unlikely wedding of their children? As the story progressed I both liked and disliked both women at different times. The idea that there is always more to the story than what is seen on the surface. There were scenes that were meant to be funny, though I do wish just a little more lightheartedness had come through. The storyline was heavy and a little more humor to balance out the tale is what I was expecting from this book. I enjoyed the story and the conclusion.

The Wedding War is a well written woman’s fiction novel that I enjoyed very much. The central themes of friendship and forgiveness are ones that really touched me and I could relate to.

Melanie and Tennyson were friends in their 20’s and a HUGE falling out. I mean ooops I married your ex boyfriend and spilled your family secrets falling out. Now their kids are getting married and they have a wedding to plan and the pain and hurt is still fresh.

Melanie and Tennyson have relationship issues of their own. I absolutely loved the theme of friendship between Melanie and Tennyson and trying to resolve their issues for the happiness of their children. My female friendships are so very important and valuable to me.

There are some heavy topics in this book that the author writes with such respect and dignity including suicide and grief. I appreciate how she handled these topics.

The characters were complex, complicated, flawed and well fleshed out.

The Wedding War is a book I can happily recommend, I only wish I could give

This was a fun book, but it fell short for me. I guess I was expecting more on the romance front, whereas this is more a story about friendship and forgiveness. It seemed like the story sort of dragged on at some points, like there were just a lot of filler scenes. It was fun to see both of the women’s perspectives and find out what they thought of different situations. It was funny and kind of cliche. This would be a great book if you’re looking for a light escape, I think I was just looking for a little more!

I was not a fan of this novel. The women were ruthlessly mean and self-absorbed -- but not in a fun-to-read way. Some of the writing seemed to border on racist (or microaggressive at the least). This seemed up my alley as a fan of Say Yes to the Dress and every wedding-related reality show ever, and I tried so hard to like it but could not.

I really enjoyed this book. Mostly predictable but sometimes that is what one needs to read to restore order to one's life. The characters were funny and I liked the way they connected. Very well written. 3 1/2 stars.