Personally, I did not enjoy this book at all, it felt more like Sophie was trying to get Cordelia to be her friend than focusing on the relationship that Sophie was "developing" with Tom and I say that in quotes because they were barely discussed, no idea how they managed to like each other let alone fall in love. Personally, for me I am more of a Hero Heroine focus that side characters and for me this one felt like romance really took a back seat I wouldn’t have thought this was even a romance novel no idea why it was categorized as one.

Dear friends, now I present you: My favourite book of 2021!!! (Imagine me happy screaming here.)

The Secret Bridesmaid was a buddy read with my friend Amanda. We both wanted to read something light and funny this time, and this hilariously entertaining novel was a perfect choice.
I think neither of us imagined we would love it so much.

The writing was up my league. So easy to follow, humorous and just purely enjoyable.
I hope Katy Birchall will continue to write adult fiction because she nailed it!

The book is written in first person, following Sophie's POV, and it also contains emails and messages between clients of Sophie, customers service etcetera. Those bonus pages reminded me of Sophie Kinsella's early work, and I welcomed it wholeheartedly.

The characters were impressive and the fact that even 7 days after finishing the book I still remember all of their names, including that douchebag Daniel, says a lot, as I often don't recall the names even while I'm still reading stories.

Cordelia was my absolutely favourite. I loved how upfront she was and I feel like her and me would be great friends, if we came from the same society (plus if she was, you know, NOT FICTIONAL). We have lots in common.

Sophie was great narrator and so devoted to her job, clients and people around her.
But most of all, she was funny and the one with good intentions, always.

And Tom... Can I just say he was swoon worthy and be done with it?
Ok, ok, I will also say that I don't remember the last time I liked love interest sooooo much.

In the end, I will say once more that this is the best book that I have read this year and I hope it will be enough to convince you to read it too.

I absolutely loved this book! This is my second Katy Birchall and I enjoyed it immensely. The email correspondence, the nearly-slapstick scenes as Sophie navigates what honestly might be my dream job - being a professional bridesmaid. I really loved the supporting characters, most of all Cordelia. I found her arc to be wonderful and extremely redemptive. We're all looking for friends who are there for us, thick or thin, and this was a lovely telling of that very thing. 4 robust stars for an easy-to-read trollop through the English countryside and Notting Hill.

The publisher provided this ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

"Sophie Breeze is a brilliant bridesmaid. So brilliant, in fact, that she’s made it her full-time job.

As a professional bridesmaid, Sophie is hired by London brides to be their right-hand woman, posing as a friend but working behind the scenes to help plan the perfect wedding and ensure their big day goes off without a hitch. When she’s hired by Lady Victoria Swann––a former model and “It Girl" of 1970’s London; now the Marchioness of Meade––for the society wedding of the year, it should be a chance for Sophie to prove just how talented she is."

When I first read the synopsis, it immediately made me remember 27 Dresses, and I thought that I should give a try for this one, since the movie is one of my favorite romcoms ever!

I wasn't disappointed. The Secret Bridesmaid is a thorough enjoyable read, highly entertaining, I laughed and I even wept a bit lol. Super recommend if you're looking for a cute, witty and light read!! :)

3 Stars This book was entertaining and fun but I wanted more romance from it. The cover is cute. I feel like I would have loved it more if I had gone in with a different set of expectations.

I will be reading more from Katy Birchall and I would recommend this book- just know that it is more chick lit than rom com.

Thank you Netgalley and St Martins Press for providing me an ARC to read and review.

This book was so witty and fun! I figured it was going to be a typical rom-com, but it gave me that warm and fuzzy feeling that's so amazing it puts you in a book slump after you finish reading. Main character, Sophie really puts her whole heart and soul into her job and is truly a genuine human. I'd want her by my side on my wedding day!

This was a great beach read. There were really great characters and it was an enjoyable read. Thanks for letting me read this.

Full of heart but also a new twist on a familiar story. I loved how even though I had some ideas of where this would go, the story kept surprising me.

It’s a fun, easy read with lots of heart. A perfect escape from the real world right now.

This book was the perfect English chick lit. I really loved the audio and i can't wait what is next for the author.

This had major chick lit vibes and I mean that as a compliment. Breezy and fun this is a great beach read

I loved the sound of this as it sounded so unique. I've never come across a story about someone who gets paid to be a bridesmaid before so was looking forward to trying something new. I had it in my head that this was going to be a rom com so I was disappointed to learn it was more chic lit with only a tiny bit of romance in it. I found my self chuckling at certain bits and situations our mc found herself in but unfortunately the story just didn't grab me like I had hoped. Over all an OK read but for me it that's all it was just OK

The Secret Bridesmaid is a heartwarming story about love and friendship. I was pleasantly surprised by this novel and didn’t want it to end! I am a sucker for a British romcom as well.

Sophie is a professional bridesmaid who people hire to pretend she’s their friend, but really she’s organizing their perfect wedding. When she’s hired by Lady Victoria Swann to pose as her daughter Cordelia’s bridesmaid in a society wedding things don’t go as planned.

First off, how did I not know this was a job? I think it’s something I’d be really good at. I loved all of the organizing thrown into the story and email conversations with vendors. They brought some humor to the book especially one debacle with a shirt!

Sophie was a great character. She’s a strong, secure, and organized woman who really will do anything for her brides. It was nice seeing her have some challenges and seeing how she handled them especially with Cordelia not being on board with Sophie being her bridesmaid.

There is a small bit of romance in this story which I really enjoyed. I would have liked a bit more of that, but did appreciate that this story was more about Sophie’s job. It was nice to see such a strong female protagonist be the focus.

I really can’t believe this was a debut novel. I loved how it was written and really look forward to reading more by Birchall. Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

*4.5 stars
Absolutely loved this book!!!!
The story follows Sophie Breeze, a professional bridesmaid as she gets hired for a high society wedding, Cordelia’s wedding, as an undercover friend of the bride. The catch? Cordelia never wanted her there and makes her life a living hell.
The plot was so much fun to read, and I loved the developing friendships and love interests. I was completely in love with the main couple. This entertaining and funny romcom got me laughing and swooning in no time. I would definitely recommend as a light read.

I gave this book 4.5 instead of 5 stars because there was a lot of jumping around at the start of the story, almost like a movie montage of wedding events, but it just ended up being confusing in book format. The last 10% of the book started jumping around as well, with no separators in the pages, making it hard to understand what was happening. This might have been changed in the editing, however.

**Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin for providing me with an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

So much love for this book! There is something about Weddings that always make me cry. The hope. The happiness. The love. The crazy, mean bride. Wait, what?

This book has some really great female lead characters. I loved them all. Even when some of them were being nasty, because I knew there would be a great explanation.

I didn’t realize that this wasn’t a RomCom until about half-way through (there is Romance but it’s not the focal point). The female friendship, which is the main relationship in this book, had such a fun arc. I throughly enjoyed everything about this one. And yes, I also cried some happy tears.

I highly recommend this one- 5 stars! And that cover - Chef’s Kiss!

I could not put this book down. Surprisingly I was less invested in the romance than in the relationship between Sophie and Cordelia. I actually found myself getting emotionally attached to the happiness of both of these women. I loved this sweet story and would definitely recommend it to others.

I loved this book. It hooked me and grabbed my attention right away. The main character felt like a best friend telling me her story. It drew you into a story that is the best type of rom com

I enjoyed this one. The main character is a professional bridesmaid who gets hired by a bridezilla who is hard to get along and work with but Sophie is determined to see it through and make the wedding a success. Sophie has a romance with the brides brother. I wish this was more of the story as it was more of a women’s fiction book than a romance. It follows mostly Sophie’s journey of confidence, life and friendship

Let me start by saying that this book is NOT a romance. It's woman fiction.
There is a very minor romance that attempts to be more than it is (feelings-wise), however, the relationship is not a major part of the book. if anything this book is a "bromance" between our heroine Sophie, and the bridezilla Cordelia (AKA the "hero's" sister.
With that being said, I really enjoyed this book.
Sophie's character is very intriguing, her job as a bridesmaid for hire was so cool, and I really love seeing her loving a job that seems like not only a lot of work but also includes having to do almost everything the bride asks her to do.
I also loved seeing how her and Cordelia's relationship helps her grow and evolve.
Cordelia's character was very different from Sophie's. They truly are grumpy and sunshine, and seeing their relationship grow was sweet and rendering.

Overall I had a lot of fun reading this book even though it was not a romance by any means - which is why I gave this 4/5 stars :).

*** I received this arc from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion**

This was a very pleasant and diverting read. I'd recommend this for a beach read or a planer trip. The premise of paying a bridesmaid to be the one who handles everything you wish your bridesmaid would handle is great. If there aren't such things there should be.