Very cute premise, making friends as an adult it hard and I totally appreciate the pretend bridesmaid thing, reminded my of the movie I Love You Man! It was a simple sweet romance with fun banter. Can't ask for more!

I really enjoyed this contemporary romance that also had elements of friendship, grief, and family woven into the story. The characters are well-written and I couldn't help but like them and the relationships they formed. I listened to the audiobook and it was a delightful way to enjoy this novel.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

A woman who wants nothing to do with love or friendship finds both in the unlikeliest ways in this hilarious and heartwarming debut by Kerry Rea.

Overall this was a great read! I finished it super fast and I definitely felt for Willa. Finding your best friend of 20+ years/made of honor having an affair with your fiance 6 weeks before your wedding day is brutal and I liked that it takes her time and a series of events to work through that trauma. Usually these types of stories jump ahead of all that and THEN the story begins, but this one you're going through the thick of the depression and see her slowly work through it while working as Maisie's bridesmaid. I love Maisie and Willa's friendship as it progresses and I was speculating so hard on what Maisie's secret is and why this girl doesn't have any actual friends. The side characters were great and I didn't mind the love interest who went through something similar to the protagonist so they were able to find that common ground to build a solid foundation.

As I said before it was a great debut novel and I would highly recommend it!

Thank you to Berkley Romance and NetGalley for access to this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Willa is not in a good place, everything from her former life has gone up in flames and she is left feeling lost/alone. She ends up meeting Maisie, who asks her to be her pretend bridesmaid in exchange for $5,000.

Kerry Rea's debut novel was something special but I do want to mention is that I feel this book was mismarketed. A lot of my issues stem from the face that I was expecting a lot more romance and romance was not the main plot point in this book, friendship was. Which is a beautiful thing and I loved watching Willa and Maisie's friendship grow. The learned to rely on each other when they had no one else. Maisie was such a ray of sunshine and warmed my heart.

The romance that development between Willa and Liam, the best man, was very sweet. I enjoyed their banter and wish we just got a bit more of them.

I can't wait to read the authors future novels.

A fun and satisfying romance, The Wedding Ringer combines the unfolding of an unexpected female friendship and a romantic relationship, both of which grow and develop along with the heroine on her journey to emotional healing. After finding her best friend in bed with her fiancée, Willa is reduced to living in her sister’s guest bedroom and dressing up as a princess to work birthday parties for spoiled little girls. Aided by a supportive sister and her new relationships Willa is transformed into a strong, resilient heroine by the end.

This is a really great book about love, loss, heartbreak, and finding yourself and love again. I really enjoyed this book and will be reading more of Rea in the future!

I was excited to read THE WEDDING RINGER after being recommended to me by so many book loving friends of mine, and loved it just as much as I’d hoped!

It was just so adorable and I loved the characters, including Willa, who is in a coffee shop when a woman named Maisie approaches her, asking to be her friend because she’s getting married and needs a bridesmaid.

One of my favorite themes with books is a strong female friendship, and I found myself wanting to hold onto the story that much longer as I read. It was just so cute!

*many thanks to Berkley/Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

Was it OMG amazing, can't put it down, best book of the year? No. But it was perfectly pleasant and a good read between commitment books.

This was such a fun romance novel! It's been awhile since I read it but I remember devouring it in one sitting.

Willa Callister is seriously down on her luck. She found her fiancé in bed with another woman, and now she's living with her sister and helping with her event business by dressing up as a princess for children's birthday parties. If only she can save up enough money for a fresh start somewhere else.

Maisie Mitchell is in need of a bridesmaid. And when she runs into Willa at a coffee shop she offers to pay Willa to be in her bridal party. Willa is less than thrilled at the idea, but she really, really needs the cash.

Somewhere along the way Willa starts to see what a sweet, loyal person Maisie is, and begins to genuinely care about Maisie getting the wedding of her dreams. If only the irritating, hotshot doctor Liam would stay out of the way.

I enjoyed the tension and dislike-to-love between Willa and Liam, but what I really loved about this book was the female friendships. Overall this was a sweet story of growth and learning to let people in. It had lots of laugh-out-loud moments, but plenty of tender ones too that pulled at your heartstrings. And this is a debut novel! I would never have thought!

I wanted to like this so much more than I did! I just haven't really found a wedding romance that has satisfied me yet, and unfortunately this was just fine for me.

Kerry Rea's THE WEDDING RINGER had me feeling ALL the big feels.

Like a mashup of some of my favorite wedding movies (27 Dresses, Bridesmaids, and My Best Friend's Wedding), The Wedding Ringer hooked me with its romcom plot and laugh-out-loud moments (the bakery scene had me laughing out loud!), but it held onto me with its depth. Rea tackles issues including anxiety, mental health, PTSD, addiction, and infidelity with extreme poise, grace, and sensitivity, and I adored the themes of found family, honesty, and acceptance.

It wasn't hard to fall in love with Willa, Maisie, and Liam, and the secondary characters in this novel were amazing too (Stacey, Glory, Lorene, Kaya, Maeve, and Lucy, I'm looking at you. Talk about an amazing squad of women/girls!) And while the development of Willa and Liam's romantic relationship played a big part in The Wedding Ringer, I liked that it took a backseat to Willa's relationships with Maisie, Stacey, her nieces, and Sarah. The female relationships in this book stole the show, and Willa and Maisie's personal growth was inspiring and heartwarming.

On the topic of Willa and Liam, their chemistry and banter was on point. I loved how they ribbed each other, and can I just nominate Liam for prime book boyfriend? Handsome, smart, funny, thoughtful, a pediatrician, and great with kids? Sold!

Looking for a book to get you out of a reading rut or a quick read that will add some pep to Thanksgiving week? Definitely give this one a try! Thank you so much to @kerry @berkleyromance @berittalksbooks @dgreads @thephdivabooks for my gifted e-copy and for having me along for this buddy read. I adored it and can't wait to read more from Kerry!

Word to the wise: Please read Kerry's acknowledgments with a tissue in hand - it will give you even more insight into this book and make you love it and Kerry even more.

This was not at all what I expected and I ended up loving it. The characters were great and the story was engaging. So much so, that I finished it in a day. Will definitely recommend.

The Wedding Ringer
By Kerry Rea

It took some time for me to get into the book because I was not impressed with Willa but as I learned more about her I enjoyed how her character develops. This in turn had me more invested in her story.

Willa was a popular blogger writing about the top five date night restaurants and favorite ice cream shops. But after finding her finance in bed with her best friend, she now spends her days performing at children’s birthday parties dressed in a pink gown. Willa dreams of starting fresh, where no one knows who she used to be, but she needs money to leave.

She meets Maisie at a coffee shop and she needs a bridesmaid. She offers Willa money up front and will pay her the balance after the wedding.

Willa takes her bridesmaid duties seriously and shortly after she realizes she treats Maisie as a best friend. This arrangement made them closer and they form a bond and stick by one another through thick and thin.

I was surprised this was a debut novel because it was written so well. I was so excited to read about my hometown and many of my favorite places and learning of some new places I should check out as well. I also really liked that the book focused on the importance of female friendships.

I enjoyed this book. The Wedding Ringer was definitely not what I expected but I absolutely devoured it. I will definitely be reading more from Kerry Rea.

Name a book in 2021 that absolutely surprised you in the best way….

Enter The Wedding Ringer.
This debut romance was simply so AMAZING I could not put it down. Between the enemies to lovers trope and the heavy plot points of friendship I was just absolutely obsessed.
This was definitely more of a friendship book mixed with a bit of romance but I still adored it all the same.

Whether the author was talking about deep friendship connections (or lack there of) or making us laugh with how much everything that would go writing, did, I could not spot smiling this entire book.
Now don’t get me wrong, this book was DEEP. It heavily focused on the betrayal of a friend and how difficult it can be to get over that. This topic is so relatable at any age and made me see myself in the characters so much more.
I found myself hurting for Willa while also seeing hope for a new unlikely friendship in Maise.
This book made me want to hug my best friends tighter, to truly appreciate the GOOD friendships I have in life, and to be grateful I have a man like Liam in my life.

The first scene when Willa is dressed up as Princess Sparkleheart gave me suchhhhh Rachel Green vibes from the episode where they flash back to her prom dress. That is legitimately all I could think about 🤣

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Steam: 🔥🔥

Thank you so much to @berkleyromance #berkleypartner #berkleyig for the gifted copy!
Absolutely add this one to your shelves!

This sounded lovely but the problem was time. At my back I always hear, and so on. Andrew Marvell has a lot to answer for, writing a line like that.

This is adorable - a perfect little beach read. Because I’m predictable I was much more interested in the female friendship than the romance, and the book was also more interested in that! Willa was, also predictably, sometimes deeply embarrassing and grating

This was an adorable book about rediscovering yourself after a huge life setback and betrayal.

Certain aspects felt very surface and rushed, especially when it came to mental health issues but I felt it was relatable because I know I hate discussing those things at length as well.

Dr. Dreamboat was a welcome distraction too.

This was such a great debut from Kelly Rea! The friendship between Maisie and Willa was just as endearing as Willa's relationship with Liam. The perfect book to read during the upcoming wedding season!