This was such a fun and entertaining read ! I laughing out loud & hooked from the very beginning. At first I thought it might be a light romcom read, but it was such a meaningful read with deep parts that I will always cherish. I will say, that it is more of a women’s fiction with a lovely sprinkle of romance.

Willa went through a breakup & at the same time lost everything, including her best friend. She is going through the process of finding herself again, re-building her life & learning to trust again. In the mist of everything she meets Maisie, who offers to pay her in exchange for Willa to pretend to be her bridesmaid. Given her current financial situation, she couldn’t deny her. I loved seeing Willa’s journey as well as the fake friendship, & to how her friendship blossomed with Maisie. Willa also discovers an unexpected romance with the man that literally makes her blood boil. I am a huge fan of enemies to lovers so I absolutely loved that ! For me, that was that cherry on top to this wonderful read.

This book taught me about self love, friendships, and the importance of staying true to yourself. I definitely recommend this if you enjoy books that make you laugh with very relatable characters.

You can expect:

* Enemies to Lovers
* Witty Banter
* Fake Friends to Real Friends
* Laugh Out Loud Romcom
* Unexpected Romance
* Self Discovery

I really enjoyed this and loved that it was as much about the love story as it was about female friendships. Funny and heartfelt, The Wedding Ringer was an unexpected delight; I look forward to more books by Kerry Rea!

This is one of my top romances of 2021 hands down! It’s charming and Kerry has a way of engaging you into her storylines and characters. I laughed and yet I was immersed in Willa’s heartache . I can’t express who much I loved this book. I highly recommend reading it.

Loved this debut from Rea. Willa, the FMC is struggled after the breakup with her fiance. But she barely misses him, she is devastated over the breakup with her best friend, who had sex with her fiance.

Willa moves in with her sister and is at a low point. She quit her job, doesn't have any money. She's really wallowing. In a zany plot that only happens in romance and Hallmark movies (which we love and support dearly) she is wrangled in to a fake friendship that turns in to being a fake bridemaid.

Willa and Maisie's relationship is the real love story here. How Willa learns to love a friend. How to trust a friend. That she is worthy of being a friend. And also saying goodbye to her old friendship. Please give me all the stories with platonic love as the main story. It was beautiful and nearly brought me to tears several times.

Willa also meets and falls in love with pediatrician Liam. It is a cute love story, very low heat which was appropriate and fitting for this story.

I can not stress this enough that the main theme of this book is the platonic friendship. As a reader, I want so much more of that. Give me all the FMCs learning their worth as a friend and also as a romantic love interest. Because who wants to be the person who only has a romantic relationship and no friends?

This book was delightful. I loved the family dynamics portrayed throughout the story. Willa is charming and certainly grows over the course of the story. The romance was sweet and though predictable, still really wonderful.

So many novels recently with fiances in bed with best friends. Again, my heart is over here breaking for Willa. Can we just stop doing this for REAL? It is too much for me sometimes to have to endure this for fictional characters.

I also think I have a strange existence and connection with fictional characters when this happens to them- like viscerally.

Anyways, I digress in the midst of my heartache for so many women this happens to- Raise these men better, y’all!

I am so happy for Willa and her existence/kissmet with Liam. It made my suffering all the better. Loved it!

I gotta be honest, this book was pretty forgettable. For the first third or so of the book I really vibed with our main character, Willa, and I was even really enjoying the wackiness of her bridesmaid for hire scheme with Maisie. Unfortunately though as the book went on, the whole schtick kind of just.. got old??? And I ended up enjoying the story less and less and ultimately ended up finding this book to be just okay. I could definitely be open to reading more books by Kerry Rea in the future, but this one just wasn't quite the right fit for me. Womp womp

CW: anxiety, depression, cheating

Hands down one of my favorite romances of 2021! Rea has such a unique voice that hooks you in and makes you fall in love with her characters instantly. Willa is a down-on-her-luck blogger turned children's party entertainer after being spurned by her former fiance and best friend so when Maisie offers her $5,000 to pretend to be a childhood friend and stand as a bridesmaid, how can Willa refuse? The last thing Willa expects in the midst of all of this is Liam...

I can't wait for more from Rea and I hope everyone picks up this one and loves it as much as I did!

The Wedding Ringer is a charming novel about starting over after heartbreak and the power of family and friendship, plus finding a new, more worthy love and moving on. I found the pacing to be a bit slow, but otherwise great theme, great character development and great dialogues.

I thought this would be a lighter rom com, and yes, there are some very entertaining and funny parts, but this is so much more. This is a story of recovering from a bad breakup and losing your best friend, building trust with new people, feeling valued and your own self worth. I loved the developing friendship between Maisie and Willa and seeing both of them find so much strength and self confidence having the other in their life. Their friendship felt like the focal relationship compared to the romance. But yes, the interactions and banter with Liam had me laughing so loud! Pure delight with these two!!

I loved The Wedding Ringer by Kerry Rea so so so much! I cannot believe this a debut, and I would read anything this author writes! Seriously one of my new favorite romcom books ever! I was laughing out loud and smiling from the first page, and I just didn’t want this book to end. I loved that the characters also dealt with serious and relatable issues, and there were such positive messages sprinkled throughout the story. Although I really enjoyed the romance and thought Liam was amazing, Willa and Maisie’s friendship was hands down my absolute favorite part of this book! My heart went out to Willa, who was such a good, caring, and loving person. Maisie was the most adorable, sweetest person ever! I loved Maisie and Willa’s “meet cute” and how they leaned on one another and learned to let their guards down. I would be friends with them in a heartbeat! It was such a lovely, heartwarming, feel good book! I can’t recommend it enough!

After Willa finds her fiancé in bed with her best friend, she abandons her life as an influencer and moves in with her sister. Working as a children’s birthday princess isn’t particularly lucrative, so she agrees to be a paid bridesmaid in Maisie’s wedding after randomly meeting her at a coffee shop. Over the course of her bridesmaid duties, Willa meets Liam (the best man).

I thought this was so fun! I listened to in a day (only stopping to watch The Hating Game). I liked Willa’s romance with Liam, but I really enjoyed her friendship with Maisie and her relationship with her sister.

Thanks to @NetGalley and Berkley Romance for my ARC!

The Wedding Ringer by Kerry Rea was definitely more than a rom-com! Filled with moments of self reflection, readers have the privilege of riding along Willa's emotional growth journey as she recovers from her ex-fiancé's affair with her best friend. I so enjoyed the journey, the laughs and tears as Willa learns to love herself enough to give life another try. I felt that the writing was incredible, especially as this is Rea's debut novel!

The bond between Willa and her sister really reminds me of my sister and I and how we are there for each other. My heart hurt for Willa, losing a best friend is heart breaking. I definitely enjoyed this journey and felt the world was just a bit brighter after reading The Wedding Ringer. Friendship, familial love, and romantic love are definitely the main attractions, but I also feel that Rea did a great job with character growth, setting, and plot. Well done!!
Thank you to NetGalley and Berkeley Publishing for this digital copy for me to read and review.

#TheWeddingRinger #NetGalley @berittalksbooks @berkleypub @netgalley @authorkerryrea

4.5 stars
I am so impressed that this is Kerry Rea’s debut novel. The Wedding Ringer was heartfelt, hilarious, and a celebration of friendship in all of its forms. The book fell more into women’s fiction for me than romance, but there is a deliciously wonderful enemies to lovers/forced proximity romance (closed door) that develops in the book.

Willa was such a relatable character. My heart broke for her as she struggled to move forward, after her life was turned upside down. I think all of us, at one time or another, have felt varying degrees of that despair. I appreciated the message that you are not/do not need to face these pains alone. That there is no shame in asking for help and that there is strength in surviving. I loved seeing Willa and Maisie’s friendship develop and grow. Their mutual love and respect for each other was my favorite part of the novel and it really did show that friendship is created in all kinds of ways.

I also appreciated the emphasis on family relationships in the novel. That found families can be much more important than those that you’re born into. Willa’s relationship with her sister and her family was another highlight for me. I related a lot to the dynamic between Stacey and Willa and thought of my own relationship with my older sister and how it took time (and life knocking us down a time or two over the years) to achieve the level of closeness we now share.

The ending of the novel felt a little rushed and there was a lot that was revealed in the last quarter or so of the book. The lack of communication grated on me at times and I do wish that Willa would have come clean to Liam earlier. I understand that it was tied to her loyalty to Maisie though and that learning to lean on others and find your way back to yourself was integral to the journey of many of the characters. The ending was just right and I’m really looking forward to reading more from Kerry Rea in the future.

CW: cheating ex (past), broken engagement (past), divorce (past), strained parental relationship, fear of stigma associated with therapy, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, drunk driving & accident (past), grief, parental abandonment/disowning

*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*

Since there is a Nikki buzz word in the title alone, I knew I would like this one. If there's any book about weddings, I will at the very least add it to my TBR. And Lawd, that was the best decision. This was so good!

Willa was very comfortable in her life. She had it all; a great fiancé, an amazing best friend, and a successful blog. But then she finds her best friend in the bed with her fiancé. And she does what makes the most sense.... She runs. She goes to her sister's house with the intent to never see them again. And then, she does. And she runs again. But this time she knows there's not anywhere else she can go. So she just stays in her own little bubble for a while. This is when she meets a weirdly happy, charming girl named Maisie who wants to pay her to be her friend. Yes its weird. And it just gets weirder, but also more charming from there.

The BEST thing about this was the characters and the friendships. I LOVED Maisie from the moment we met her and I just knew she was going to be a delight. I was a little frustrated with Willa because I felt like she was letting them win. They were moving on together, spending holidays together and so much more, while she was in her sister's house wasting away. I was so happy when she put on her big girl pants and recognized that. I was also a bit annoyed with her for how she treated Maisie. She took advantage of her and it was not ok. Two wrongs don't make a right.

As for the writing style, I was in love. This is the first time in a long time where I actually laughed in something that was said to be a rom-com. It was Usually I only smile, but for this one I was actually laughing out loud. Especially in the beginning. I wouldn't have laughed in front of her, but reading it, I laughed so hard I almost woke my kid. Definitely would have had to laugh to keep from crying.

The plot was ok, but I did find that the pacing was a bit off. There was some time when I was thinking that there was some repetition, but I liked the rest of the book enough to ignore it. The ending was quick, but well worth it. I wanted to see how they received her when she returned, but the Epilogue was ok so I was satisfied.

The romance was just okay. I LOVED the love interest and I thought he was hilarious. I was sad that Willa didn't let him in, but I realized that wouldn't make for a good story lol But although I was a little annoyed by the pacing of the rest of the story, I was ok with the pacing between the two of them. I could tell that she wasn't ready for any type of relationship, so I was ok with them not being together except for like 10% of the book. She definitely needed more work on herself before she dragged someone else into it.

I was sure I was going to like this from the very beginning. From the illustrated cover, to the promise that it's a rom-com, to the Nikki buzz word "wedding" in the title, I knew this was going to be something that I really enjoyed. And as it turns out, I did. I do wish this had been released during wedding season, but that's not really a huge deal. Any season is wedding season. lol

LOVED. Such a great friendship story, with a great side of romance. Would highly recommend this fresh & original story. Loved the supporting cast of characters as well.

The Wedding Ringer exemplifies everything I love about reading! The themes of friendship, love, loss, and grief as so poignantly written in this book. If I could give this book more than 5 stars, I absolutely would. Willa Callister is one of my new favorite characters and she was so relatable. Having dealt with my own loss of community and a career, Willa's experience spoke to my soul. In swoops Maisie, the friend Willa never knew she needed. Their relationship absolutely takes center stage in this book. The Wedding Ringer is definitely going on my must-re-read list. Which is a very, very short list!

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.

Once upon a time, Willa Callister was a successful blogger with a good credit score, actual hobbies, and legs that she shaved more than once a month. But after finding her fiancé in bed with her best friend, she now spends her days performing at children's birthday parties in a ball gown that makes her look like a walking bottle of Pepto Bismol. Willa dreams of starting fresh, where no one knows who she used to be, but first she needs to save up enough money to make it happen.

Maisie Mitchell needs something too: another bridesmaid for her wedding. After a chance encounter at a coffee shop, Maisie offers to pay Willa to be in her bridal party. Willa wants nothing to do with weddings—or Maisie—but the money will give her the freedom to start the new life she so badly desires.

Willa's bridesmaid duties thrust her into Maisie's high-energy world and into the path of hotshot doctor Liam Rafferty. But as Willa and Maisie form a real friendship, and Liam's annoyingly irresistible smile makes her reconsider her mantra that all men are trash, Willa's exit strategy becomes way more complicated. And when a secret from Maisie's past threatens to derail the wedding, Willa must consider whether friendship—and romance—are worth sticking around for.

This book hit me in the gut. Willa was just so relatable to me. If you are looking for a fun read with a hear of gold that will take you on an emotional journey, pick this up!

I've been eagerly waiting for the release of The Wedding Ringer since it was announced. I'm so glad I finally got my hands on it and overall, I thought it was a solid and enjoyable read.

I enjoyed the characters in this book. I think that they were all enjoyable and added to different aspects of the book. Willa is someone I could relate to throughout the length of the book as a blogger, and I enjoyed that depth to her character. Maisie is really sweet and I love how she pulls out a side of Willa that she tries so hard to protect — Maisie has a way with pulling people's barriers down and I think it's great to watch.

I think the overall story is fun and entertaining. Maisie seems a bit crazy at first with wanting to hire Willa, and it makes you really think how you would react if in the same situation. I think it creates a fun and silly storyline that keeps you entertained the whole way through.

My only qualm with this book is the constant mention of "the incident." While I know that this plays a huge role in the way Willa is and why she makes certain decisions, I found that there was an overuse to the term "the incident," which ultimately did become a bit annoying every time it was mentioned. A minor issue, and while I may be nitpicking, it was something I wish was reduced a bit throughout the book.

Thanks for the early copy! I'm looking forward to reading more of Kerry Rea's books in the future!

4.5 stars = I loved it! Would re-read.

This story delivered on the comedy! I loved the fake relationship trope applied to a friendship instead of a romance, and I got a kick out of the bridesmaid for hire thing as well, something I have been seeing more and more in books. While there is a romance here (and it's well done), this feels like it's Willa and Maisie's story first and foremost. And I loved all of it. Don't miss this one! (Language)