I was so, so excited to get approved to read this book. So, first, a thank you to the publishers for 1) publishing this book. We NEED diverse stories. And 2) thank you for approving me to read this one. This was one that sounded right up my alley. Coming from a small, “back woods”, southern town in Mississippi with a bigoted mother, this premises sounded all too familiar. But, oof! It did not go well for me. I appreciate the levity that Byron tried to bring to the story. But this was a farce that leaned too far into absurd. The characters became too big, too unrealistic, too…everything. Just all around too much. Especially Nichole. That’s kinda where this story took a turn, for me. I was, mostly, really enjoying it. But once that character came in, the tone and absurdity shifted and it became, almost, an entirely different story and one I just couldn’t jive with. Not to mention the mother’s 180 was just…lacking. It fell so flat. I kept wanting Lane to lean in and explore the bigotry, the mother/son conflict it was causing, and her eye-opening transformation. But he shied away at every opportunity. It was just another disappointing factor for me. And I can’t even articulate my disdain for that last chapter. It seemed too desperate.

This book is perfect for fans of Schitt’s Creek. This story has many hurdles for the characters to face; mainly Barnett and his mother, Chrissy. It’s a love letter to your mom, and simultaneously a love letter to your son. This book is told in third person omniscient POV, which was a new one for me. I enjoyed that aspect, but also found it a bit challenging for my brain; it’s only made me want to find other stories written like this. The ending was so sad, and I can’t help but feel like that last chapter wasn’t necessary. Over all - I really enjoyed this book, and I love Barnett and Ezra’s love.

Three of my fave reads for Pride Month!⁣
* 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘾𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙗𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨, by Steven Rowley. (Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy for review!)⁣
* 𝘽𝙞𝙜 𝙂𝙖𝙮 𝙒𝙚𝙙𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜, by Byron Lane (Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy for review!)⁣
* 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙚𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙩 𝙇𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝘼𝙡𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙩 𝙀𝙣𝙩𝙬𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙡𝙚, by Matt Cain (MomAdvice Book Club June Pick!)⁣
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#thecelebrants #stevenrowley #biggaywedding #byronlane #thesecretlifeofalbertentwistle #mattcain #momadvicebookclub ⁣
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#pathologicallyliterate #TBCreads

Easily one of the funniest books I’ve read in a while— I LOLed constantly. This is such a fun summer beach read you’ll want to take on vacation.

Barnett, living in LA, heads back to his family farm an hour outside of New Orleans— as rural as it gets. He has big news to share with his mom, Chrissy, who has forever been in denial about his sexuality. He’s getting married— to a man. While funny, the humor really balanced out the struggles queer children face when trying to gain acceptance by their families. As a mom to a little boy, I really struggled with Chrissy’s POV, but I know it’s an important story to share.

I’ve seen a lot of people compare this book to Schitt’s Creek, which I am a huge fan of- and I totally agree. Barnett’s fiancé is Ezra, who comes from a family of NYC socialites who are rich rich and over the top in every way possible— meeting them is a HUGE culture shock to Chrissy.

The only reason I didn’t give this book 5 stars was because I felt like there were some more meaningful conversations to be had between Chrissy and Paw Paw (one of my favorite characters), and her neighbor. It felt like she flipped a switch from unsupportive to supportive just from a quick conversation or two, which just didn’t feel true to life.

Overall, a really enjoyable read!! Thanks for the ARC Netgalley + Henry Holt + Co.

First of all, thank you @netgalley @byronlanedotcom @henryholtbooks for my gifted physical ARC and e-ARC! It’s out now 🥳🥳

This was my most anticipated read last month second only to the author’s husband’s book that was released the same day 😯 (Steven Rowley’s The Celebrants). First of all, you had me at this title. Second, Byron Lane is a delight online. Third, when I found out this was the actual boo of my author boo (do I need to remind you guys how obsessed with The Guncle I was/still am?) obvs I was stoked.

This book gave so much grace to people who are still on their journey toward being loving, accepting people, at times more than I would’ve. The story was such a hopeful one, but realistic in acknowledging not everyone completes that journey.

If you want a light and funny read, I definitely recommend tossing this one in the beach bag. It’s full of these larger than life characters, sort of caricatures even, if people we’ve all met before and farm animals named after 90s sitcom characters. It’s just so wholesome.

❔do you like weddings?
I actually sort of loathe them. I’m introverted, not a huge drinker, not a dance at all and I’ve got a gaggle of kids 😆 it’s almost never a great time to attend, but I do love love!

#byronlane #theguncle #pridemonth #pridereads #queerbookstagram #lgbtqbooks #biggaywedding #bookreview #bookthoughts #netgalley #netgalleyreads #booksiread #gaybookstagram #finishedreading #lightreading #beachread #summerreading #booktography #bookishfeatures #bookcommunity #readersareleaders

Quick, but cute book. Nothing too heavy and puts you in a good mood while reading. Outrageously funny characters, human and animal!

My favorite quote between the 2 mothers: “You look so pretty,” Chrissy says, her eyes wide and bright. “You look so different. You have a strange glow.” “Well, my parents were socialists,” Victoria says.

It took me some time to get into Big Gay Wedding, but once I was there I was hooked. It's about Barnett and Ezra and their upcoming wedding in Barnett's small, Louisiana hometown farm. Problem is, his mother Chrissy does not know that the wedding will be in a week. Nor does she necessarily agree with gay marriage. I thought this was cheesy- but once I understood that that was kind of the point (think Shitt's Creek), I was hooked. Throw in sentient farm animals and a hilarious accidental edible scene, and you've got a winner.

As the mother of a recently married gay son, I knew I *had* to read this book! It was a little different than I expected, based on the publisher’s blurb, but I wound up really enjoying it. It took me a long time to warm up to Barnett’s mother, Chrissy. She’s the product of her upbringing (as an old country song goes) in rural Louisiana, and lights candles in her local Catholic church as prayers for her son’s soul. Chrissy is widowed and runs the Polite Society Ranch, which is full of rescued or misfit animals, many of which are named after TV characters, like Seinfeld and Elaine. Barnett grew up on the farm.

There are some really funny parts of the book, especially ones involving the mother of the other groom, Ezra. Victoria is a hoot, and far from down-to-earth. She’s also an alcoholic who doesn’t acknowledge that fact. Ezra’s sister Nichole was also a fun character, as was Paw-Paw, Barnett’s grandfather.

Chrissy eventually comes around, because she truly loves her son and I was happy to see her character grow and change. Her change of heart was a bit too sudden, in my opinion, though. The parts of the book focusing on Elaine, the elderly 3-legged sheep, didn’t appeal to me at all.

Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co. for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book, although I was a bit late to it. All opinions are my own.

Green vibes! This book was so entertaining. I wasn’t expecting omniscient POV because it doesn’t seem as popular in modern books, but after reading this and Lessons in Chemistry- I have to wonder why. When employed well, it’s super creative - as in this case where we hop between all the characters as well as the animals. Chrissy is the protagonist and I did want a bit more from her arc, but the mother and son moments were so tender and rang true. I liked that the book poked fun at both cultures (urban and rural) but was also endearing to both and insightful. It was fanciful and joyous. My main two critiques are that some things felt a bit cliche/too idealistic, and the ending was way too long by half. But on the whole, an enjoyable read with important insights.

Short summary: Nothing is more important to Chrissy than her rescued animals on Polite Society Ranch and her son, Barnett. However, being gay is not something that’s “done” in rural Louisiana so when he and his fiancé Ezra want to get married on the farm, Chrissy struggles. She loves her son but hates the sin and the family is pressured by their community. Will the men get their big gay wedding or will they be run out of town?

Thanks to Netgalley and Henry Holt & Co. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

Big Gay Wedding
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This review is so hard for me to write as I was really hoping to love it, but sadly it just wasn’t for me.

👍🏻 Things I liked:

👨🏼‍🤝‍👨🏻Ezra and Barnett were adorable
📖The overall plot was great
💭Great life lessons/messaging
🏳️‍🌈Obviously the LGBTQ+ rep
🐑Farm animals with funny names

👎🏻Things I didn’t like:

😵‍💫The writing style skipped around a lot. It was told in third person but told everyone’s thoughts at the same time and became hard to follow occasionally.
🙅🏻‍♀️Reading homophobia. I understand why it was done and appreciate the message, but was hard to read when you know so many people who think that way.
🎪It got a bit too outlandish for me. Maybe I’d like it more as a movie?

I think there are a lot of people who will like this book, but it just wasn’t a favorite for me. The message was great and most of the characters were too, but it was just a bit too much for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Henry Holt & Company for the E-ARC I got this book while reading The Celebrants and so glad I did. I enjoyed this book to the fullest. I loved all the characters especially Paw-Paw and Victoria. The growth of Chrissy was nothing short of remarkable its hard to be a mother as it is. I laughed out loud I face palmed but most of all I understood and resonated so much with this story.

✨ Review ✨ Big Gay Wedding by Byron Lane

This gives all the Schitt's Creek vibes. Funny, uncomfortable, ridiculous, with characters that grow on you.

Barnett is returning home to his family's small town Louisiana farm, planning to drop the news to his mom that he's planning to he's engaged to his partner Ezra. His mom thought he'd be announcing that he'd be planning to move home and live with her at the farm.

Things evolve quickly as Ezra and then his family arrive at the farm and a "Big Gay Wedding" is planned, even though Barnett's mom is struggling with the idea that her son's not only gay but planning to marry a man.

This book is full of humor and will be sure to leave you laughing aloud. From the misfit animals to the chocolate and church wine to the silly cast of characters (Ezra's mom Victoria SLAYED lol).

The book at times felt a little jarring to read -- the POV shifted between characters, sometimes from paragraph to paragraph, and there were places where I felt a little lost.

While this book is definitely a story of evolution, I struggled a bit with some of the closed-mindedness of Chrissy, the mom, and other characters in their small town. In the end, I love where this book took the role of religion and the local church, but some of the earlier parts of the book definitely made me uncomfortable. If you're starting this book, you're in for a journey, but you do have to get over the hump of the cringiness of some of the characters at times.

It also felt like such a mix of genres, it's hard for me to identify it -- it brings together comedy with romance and contemporary fiction, while it doesn't fit squarely in any of those categories. And, maybe this is for the best, because it's anything but a square book.

Come to laugh out loud and end with all the feels!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: contemporary LGBTQIAP+
Setting: small-town rural Louisiana
Reminds me of: Schitt's Creek
Pub Date: out now!

Thanks to Henry Holt & Company and #netgalley for an advanced e-copy of this book!

Quickly becoming not just the feel good hit of the #Pride season but frankly of the damn year, #BigGayWedding is the exact antidote to the rash of hateful/hurtful legislation being drafted against the LGBTQIA community.

Tagged as a cross between #SchittsCreek and #FatherofTheBride or in this case, Mother of the Groom, writer Byron Lane in his sophomore outing has written a commercial feel good hit that is bound to tug at your heart strings, while tickling your funny bone.
Barnett Durang returns to his mother Chrissy’s home in rural Louisiana to announce his plans to marry his boyfriend Ezra. But things don’t go as smoothly as he would hope beginning with his mother grappling with what this means and how the greater town will react to it. Add to that his fiancées family that sweeps in from Manhattan with a Mother who makes Moira Rose look positively quaint, and you get the source of the drama and the laughs.

But as much as this is about Barnett and Ezra, to me the book was really about Chrissy, his mother, and her journey towards acceptance. It hammers home the idea that change happens one person at a time solidifying to me the importance of coming out, being your authentic self, and sharing who you are and whom you love with the people closest to you. It’s a sweet book that as a bonus matches my own wedding pictures. Who knew blue was so in?! #Pride every day, and big thanks to @henryholt and @netgalley for the review copy.

Barnett Durang is coming home to his mother’s farm in Louisiana. He’s been out for years, his mother refuses to accept that part of him, and he’s home to tell her he’s engaged. Forces within their family and in their small town are at play that are at odds with the young couple’s love and happiness.

😭😭😭 <- my reaction to the last 20% of this book! Not even joking, @zac_smiles has video proof. 🫠

It needs to be said - the first part of this book was hard. I was uncomfortable by the blatant homophobia; however, given the state of the world today, it’s an accurate representation of real life for more than you’d want to think. Work through the discomfort here and get to the hilarious and heartwarming journey of change.

This is the Pride read we all need right now. It’s filled with so much love and light to be held up against all the darkness in the world. There’s so much hate in the world, especially politically these days, and the way a community rallied for gay love here made me…well, cry even more. There’s also so much humor here, which definitely helps cut the tension.

Talk about a cast of characters to love…Victoria, Nichole, Miss Chrissy (eventually 🤷🏻‍♂️), PAWPAW, ELAINE! Gah! Honestly, PawPaw made me cry so much, especially when he met Ezra and the last conversation with him in the book. Chrissy and Elaine at the…I was WEEPING! I love Barnett & Ezra so much and I want nothing but happiness for those two lovebirds 🥰

I could say so much more, but you really need to check it out yourself.

Step into a world filled with laughter, love, and fabulousness! Byron Lane's "Big Gay Wedding" is an absolute gem that will warm your heart, tickle your funny bone, and remind you of the power of love in all its glorious forms.

From the moment I picked up this book, I knew I was in for an entertaining and heartfelt ride. Lane's writing is as vibrant as a rainbow, sprinkled with wit and charm that makes you want to keep turning the pages, eager to see what delightful surprises await.

The story centers around a whirlwind adventure of wedding planning, following the lovable characters as they navigate the chaos and joy of organizing a big, extravagant gay wedding. Lane expertly weaves together a tapestry of diverse personalities, each bringing their own flair and uniqueness to the table. From the flamboyant wedding planner to the feisty best friend, you'll fall head over heels for every single one of them.

The book tackles important themes with a perfect balance of humor and sensitivity. Lane handles topics like acceptance, equality, and the power of chosen families with such grace that you can't help but feel a deep connection with the characters. He effortlessly breaks down barriers and reminds us that love knows no bounds or labels – it simply exists, and it deserves to be celebrated.

Prepare yourself for an abundance of laugh-out-loud moments that will have you snickering uncontrollably. The witty banter and hilarious mishaps will leave you grinning from ear to ear. But be warned: this book is also a certified tear-jerker. Lane masterfully taps into the emotional core of the story, making you shed tears of both laughter and heartfelt sentimentality.

"Big Gay Wedding" is a celebration of love, friendship, and the power of being unapologetically true to oneself. It's a book that spreads joy and warmth, reminding us of the importance of embracing diversity and celebrating love in all its beautiful forms. Lane has crafted a delightful manuscript that will leave a lasting impression on your heart.

Grab a rainbow-colored cocktail, put on your dancing shoes, and get ready for an unforgettable journey down the aisle. Whether you are LGBTQ+ or simply believe in the magic of love, "Big Gay Wedding" is a must-read that will leave you feeling uplifted, inspired, and ready to embrace the world with open arms. Love is love, and this book is a testament to that.

I had very high expectations for this book and while I enjoyed parts of it, overall it was a much slower paced and unexpected book than I anticipated.

Barnett is traveling home to his mother's farm to introduce her to his fiancé, Ezra. Chrissy has always known on some level that Barnett is gay but does not want to accept it. It made me so sad how Chrissy treated Barnett initially - and then when she did become supportive it felt like it happened all of a sudden and not very realistically.

I enjoyed both Barnett and Ezra quite a lot -- they are very endearing and their love was very sweet. I also loved Ezra's twin sister, Nichole. She added a very entertaining element to the story. Overall a lot of the characters felt exaggerated and like caricatures.

I did enjoy the descriptions of the farm and Chrissy's relationship to the animals - and especially their 80s and 90s tv based names. Her father-in-law Paw-Paw was also a very sweet character but I would have liked a little more about him.

When we finally do get to the wedding -- parts of it were very sweet, but then there were some tangents thrown in that I really did not understand -- it took away from the anticipation and excitement of the wedding itself.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

This book really exceeded my expectations. I went in certain that it would be funny and campy which it is, but it's also wise and tender and sprinkled with sentences that made me pause to think and absorb. I definitely did not expect to cry but I did that too and any book that can make me laugh, cry and think is an automatic 5 stars.

Chrissy is a Farmer Mom, and she adores the animals on her Polite Society Ranch where she cares for all different species and hosts school tours for local kids. Her beloved son, Barnett, is coming home from the awful town of Los Angeles to finally take over the farm. Except in reality, Barnett is coming home to introduce Chrissy to his “roommate” of five years, Ezra. They’re getting married and they want to do it at the farm. What follows is a week of fabulous chaos, hilarious encounters of small town meets big city, and a lot of love.

This book was absolutely hilarious! I loved Chrissy so much, who throughout the book struggled with her immense love for her son and her strong Catholic belief that homosexuality is a sin, but by the end she had the most amazing growth 💕

We are introduced to such an array of characters, including Elaine the Louisiana heritage sheep, and Bitcoin the friendly canine. I really enjoyed the omniscient writing style this book had, seamlessly transitioning from one character’s mind to another.

🎥 My dream cast! 🎬
Margo Martindale as Chrissy
Colton Haynes as Barnett
Andrew Rannells as Ezra
Robert Duvall as Paw-Paw
Marin Hinkle as Victoria
Annie Murphy as Nichole
Fortune Feimster as Linda
Condola Rashad as Jessica

Big Gay Wedding - 5⭐️

Quick synopsis: Barnett returns home to Polite Society Ranch, the farm he grew up, and deals with the fact that he’s not living the life that his beloved mom expected of him.

My thoughts: This was incredible- I went from laughing out loud, to crying, to cheering, and fuming. I was instantly hooked from the first few pages, and the farm setting was so fun. Characters were well developed, which helped get readers quickly invested in the family’s drama. While hard to pick a favorite character, Elaine, Bitcoin, and Paw Paw were up there; for others, my opinion on them changed as they experienced major growth during the book. There were so many good quotes, and while I’m so different from Barnett, his character was so relatable. His struggle with religion in particular, hit really close to home. This story would also make an excellent movie!

this book was such a delight! I related a lot to Barnett and Chrissy’s relationship and appreciated that commentary (a lot of books focus on characters either being shunned by their families for being gay or fully accepted but not really in the middle). Lane writes with such wit and charm that really brought these characters to life, and made me laugh out loud multiple times.