Always the Bridesmaid is the 4th book in Laura Carter’s Brits in Manhattan series. It features Sarah, who has appeared in the 3 previous books, and Charlie, who made a brief appearance in Friends With Benefits. It’s really not necessary to read the other books in the series to enjoy this book, though I have enjoyed following the stories of this group of characters across the series.

Always the Bridesmaid mostly takes place in England, divided between Surrey and London. The characters from the previous books have gathered together for Jess and Jake’s wedding, which is how Sarah and Charlie meet. These two characters have a bit of a rough introduction though since they are both dealing with some feelings brought up by the marriage of their friends (Sarah is a widow and misses her late husband, while Charlie never feels good enough after years in the foster system). It takes a while for both characters to break down their walls, so this is definitely a very slow-burn romance, but there’s plenty of funny and sweet moments along the way.

I think some of my favorite parts were touring through London, since it’s one of my favorite cities in the world, and many of the destinations in the book were ones I visited there myself. I enjoyed both of the main characters as well as seeing the other couples again from the previous books. It was another quick read, and I think the series has only gotten better as it’s continued.

Great romcom read! A slow burn but a quick read. Charlie was so relatable using comedy to hide pain from his past. Him and Sarah had a beautiful story!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

I really wish I could have enjoyed this book. What drew me in from the synopsis was that the characters are supposed to have great chemistry and banter. I spent the whole book waiting for the moment I would feel something between the characters... nothing.

I understand that it was a slow burn romance, but this was a snail's pace. Some may find that enjoyable, but it got a bit too slow for my liking.

Now this book is part of a series so I understood that the MC's from the other books would make appearances, but it wasn't executed well in my opinion. I did like that this book can be read as a standalone though.

The MC's in this book were not likeable, I unfortunately was looking forward to the book ending.

I think this author's writing style is just not for me, it initially made it hard to read the book, but I found a way to look past it while reading.

Unfortunately, this book really was not for me, and I wish that wasn't the case because the book had a lot of potential.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc eBook in exchange for an honest review.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. So thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this opportunity!

A new fav of the year!
Amazing love story with hilarious characters that have great banter and genuine love and interest towards one another.
I love this cover by the way.
5/5

This isn't the first book in the series, but that does not detract from the story itself - it worked perfectly as a standalone. This is a slowburn romance between Sarah, a young American widow, and Charlie, an up-and-coming British comedian. They both hit it off on a bad foot to begin with so it was interesting to read how they ended up seeing their 'real' personalities and falling for each other. Their backgrounds - losing a husband too soon, and for Charlie, growing up in the care system - were both dealt with sensitively and it certainly made you root for both characters.
The only thing I wasn't keen on was the book's title - I'm not sure it completely fits the story it tells?

**Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read an advanced e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own **

Really enjoyable read. I’ve read a few from this series but they could easily be read as standalone books. A slow burning romance with two characters who seem totally opposites to each other when first meeting but they both have back stories which being them closer. I enjoyed it. I liked the movie references at the end and I loved the happy ending!!

Overall impression: A pleasant, closed door, slow-burn romance between an early-in-life widow and an awkward yet charming comedian. I found myself rooting for both characters fairly early on, and my curiosity as to how they ended up together was the thing that kept me reading.

Pros: I love a slow-burn, found myself invested in Sarah’s story, and genuinely enjoyed the good chemistry between the lead characters. Charlie grows on both the audience and Sarah. The plot itself is also strong — it’s the kind of story we should hear more about.

Cons: There was a bit too much internal dialogue (distracted a bit from the tension in the story), and I was similarly distracted by the awkward British phrasing on the part of the American narrator (Sarah). Randomly, I also found the title to be a bit inconsistent with the premise of the story, but maybe that’s just me.

A beautiful story that had me in tears; both from laughing and crying. It's the fourth book in a series (that I haven't read any of the other books from), but it works wonderfully as its own stand alone book. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it. There are many tender moments within, and refreshingly they quite openly talk about losing a loved one, the grief that comes along with that and how it often stays for a very long time. It really pulls on your heart strings and I think it will stay with me forever. A truly lovely story, full of special moments, love and laughter.

This author is not for me. I read the previous book in the series and it's the same vibe, nothing really exciting. Also I really hate when books make reference to things in the real world like tiktok, or Facebook, or real people, gives me the ick

I enjoyed this book even though it is the 3rd in a series but i read it as a standalone. The cover is nice and goes well with the book. I look forward to reading more by this Author.

First off, I LOVE that the author has given us the image of two very average-looking main characters! I mean, it isn’t often you read about a male main character who is chubby, with sweat running down between his moobs!! ;) I mean, how NORMAL for a man in his 30s (?) to have a soft body!

Also, in the first meeting, there was none of the “he’s so hot, but he’s being a jerk. But still I can’t help but be attracted to him” schtick. She doesn’t find him attractive at first, only annoying! (The feeling was mutual!)

Both the main characters are real people, with real trauma that is holding them back from truly living well. When they both get the kind of closure and affirmation they need, they are able to find their way back to one another.

All the supporting characters are fun, and have compelling stories of their own. This is the first book I’ve read by Laura Carter, but I am interested enough in these other characters that I will be happy to read other books in this series!

This is a REALLY slow burn! It wasn’t until I was about 75% into the book that the FMC realized she had feelings for the MMC! For a bit, through about 85-90%, I was beginning to think it was going to end up unfinished, and I’d need to read a second book to get the rest of the story!

Ultimately, of course, we get our happily ever after…or at least the beginnings of it.

Oh, also wanted to mention that this was completely closed-door!

Always the Bridesmaid is about the two singles of an international friend group: the people-pleasing widow and the anxiety-ridden comedian. This book was a tough read for me. I was thrown off by the writing style at first but eventually I was able to get into the book. I wanted to buy this love story so bad, but I can't understand why either of them would want to pursue this, especially Charlie. I'm sad to say this simply wasn't the book for me.

I was so excited for Sarah's story, the series as a whole has been great (1 and 3 were my favs) but this one fell flat. Sarah's the matron of honor in Jake and Jess's wedding and Charlie is one of the ushers. The have a meet not cute in the airport pick up line and really started off in the wrong foot. Between wedding festivities and her staying an extra week to see the London sites an animosity then friendship then lovers starts to develop.

I loved the scenery, having just returned from London a few days ago it was quite easy to immerse myself back in the food and site seeing that was going on and I for sure did not hate it 😀.

We've had glimpses of Sarah through the other books and what we saw was very suits/Donna-esque, this story showed the heavier side of her backstory and being a young widow. She's set to bunk with Charlie, a comedian and friend of Jake/Jess, for the week leading up to the wedding. Charlie said at one point that the group was a tad incestuous, and while he technically isn't wrong, because of that I would have loved to see more of his friendship with Jake/Jess. Sarah and Charlie run hot and cold the entire story. Sweet moments and loathing moments and because the extremes were so drastic, it was ultimately hard to root for them as a couple. (Though the third act grand gesture was pretty epic). Granted the reconciliation was very abrupt and then the book ended! Not sure if this was the last book in the series but I wish things would have been summed up a bit (re: A LOT) more.

While this could be a series of standalones, I highly reccomend reading all 4 together and in order to fully immerse in one heck of a found family 🥰. All in all a fun read and good series.


Thank you Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC in exchange for my review!

I found Always the Bridesmaid by Laura Carter a perplexing book. I wish it had been better edited and better written. The tenses were all over the place (and it was written in the present continuous for the most part, a trend I deplore), some vocabulary was used incorrectly, and supposedly British colloquialisms were used willy-nilly regardless of the dialect to which they belong).

Secondly, it read like two entirely different books. The first part, dealing with a group trip to England for an extravagant wedding, was banal and tedious in my opinion. I was also completely confused by the characters and their relationships. I'm still not sure how Charlie, one of the leads, knew the bride and groom. The set up for him and Sarah (oh, there are too many people for the rooms available in the house we've rented) was unconvincing. Why couldn't she have shared a room with the other single woman, rather than Charlie? Who knows. I almost gave up reading at this point but I am glad I persevered. The second part of the book, detailing Sarah's holiday in London when Charlie acts as tour guide was funny and entertaining and page-turning. And the conclusion was cleverly left open.

Always the Bridesmaid is the fourth book in the Brits in Manhattan series by Laura Carter. It centers around Sarah, a legal assistant (I think) and Charlie, a comedian, who meet at their mutual friends' wedding.

To me, this book deserves a good 3.5/5, that I'll round up to 4/5, because I want to and because I can.

I liked both MCs whom I found endearing, their backstories were moving -Sarah is a widower and Charlie grew up in foster care. Writing about those topics can be a tricky business given their sensitive nature, but I find that the author addressed them the right way, making sure it wasn't over-dramatic or pathetic. The dynamics between Sarah and Charlie was really interesting, I found them quite mature and I liked all the efforts they made to understand each other better.

I have a weakness for emotionally insecure (but not toxic in any way) MMCs, and also for stories where the protagonists don't make their feelings obvious, so this book was made for me !

I found however that some parts of the book were unnecessarily long and boring, especially the London tour.
Also, the MCs of the previous books in the series (Jake, Jess, Becky blah blah blah) took too much space and made it difficult for me to follow who was who (I didn't read the other books), or to care quite frankly (... this "cameo" trend has to stop).
Also ... I HAVE TO say it : Charlie wasn’t funny at all :'D

In conclusion, I'll say that I enjoyed this book very much. It made my heart ache and I was invested in it. Would totally recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for giving me access to this e-ARC for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This book is a captivating journey through the depths of imagination. Its rich storytelling and well-developed characters kept me engaged from start to finish. With its thought-provoking themes, it transcends genres and offers something for every reader. A must-read for anyone seeking a literary adventure.

The overall plot of the book was sentimental. I thought the plot was refreshing compared to post romcoms I read but what fell short with me was the writing. Specifically how specific items were detailed when it didn’t add the the story in any way. For ex. it would take away from me getting into the story when every single specific breakfast item was listed. It made it hard to emerse myself in the book

Sadly I never really vibed with this book! From centring around an absolutely unhinged week-long wedding for a bride who 'doesn't want a fuss' to comedian love interest whose jokes were never funny to undeveloped secondary characters, a lot of this doesn't work for me. There were so many little things I found quite weird and a bit off-putting, but it was otherwise a fairly decent rom-com and I'm sure would be appreciated by other people than me.

I didn’t enjoy this book. The banter that was advertised was lacking ( in my opinion.) The comedic touch was too slight. The writing was not engaging and my feelings were not enthusiastic.

The extra characters had little backstory but because this is part of a series, I understood why they needed to be mentioned within every chapter. It just got a little crowded.

It’s fine only if you are someone who moves forward and does not get lost in the details.

I don’t typically like books like this which have a series of books following a different couple*. I only read this one because I was won over by the wit and banter mentioned in the synopsis.

Sarah was not the most likeable, she was a bit hot and cold. Charlie was a bit too crass towards the end of the book. I rather wish I had skipped this one.

*This book, however, can be read as a standalone.

I received this book from Netgalley UK for review consideration.

DNF

The forced proximity romance in Always The Bridesmaids by Laura Carter centers on comedian Charlie Cook and secretary Sarah.

I didn’t really like the writing from the beginning since it seemed to infantile and like the author was trying so hard to be funny through her characters, but it came off as weird rather than funny.

After realizing that the characters didn’t really get along, I decided to finish it in the hopes that things would get better. Like I knew this was meant to be dislike to lovers, but their interactions and banter was uninteresting and lacked the chemistry, and things only continued to get worse.

There’s also the fact that there were so many characters which made it difficult to follow along and understand what was happening.

Overall, this book was not for me, since it did not feel that it was well-written.

*Thank you to Netgalley, Boldwood Books and to the author, Laura Carter, for providing me with this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.*