This is fantastic! Loved, loved, loved all of the Eng Lit references. Loved the Newport, RI setting. Will definitely re-read this at Narragansett this summer with my toes in the sand. The serious topics of mental health, suicide, death of spouse, divorce after infidelity, and death of parent are written with nuances that reflect real life. Through the grief and pain there is hope and healing. The characters were all unique and important to the story (Phoebe is truly special). As frustrating as Lila & Gary became, the author writes their choices believably, so I was sold on their reasoning and felt anticipation for the storyline more than frustration with their choices. There were so many engaging scenes, I think the ending absolutely worked, and I was surprised at how ok I was w/o an epilogue. I laughed, cried, and was continually impressed by the creativity woven throughout the story. I could not put this down and am looking forward to marking up my own copy.

Thank you, #Netgalley and #HenryHolt publishing for the arc e-book. Pub date July 2024.

Book Title: The Wedding Party
Author: Alison Espach
Publisher: Henry Holt & Company
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Pub Date: July 30, 2024
My Rating: 4 Stars!
Pages: 384

Phoebe Stone arrives at the Cornwall Inn on a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island.
Everyone in the lobby is there for a wedding and they assume she is as well.
However, Phoebe is there for a completely different reason; she is actually planning to end her life.
I went into this with mixed anticipation was hoping for a happy ending yet didn’t yet know Phoebe’s story and thought perhaps this may have a sad ending.
Bride Lila meets Phoebe and now is worried and certainly doesn’t want death ruin her wedding.

Lila and Phoebe both have a decision to make and need to figure out what they really want.

There was far more of a story or stories to this than I expect. This just be the summer reading hit!

Want to thank NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for granting me this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for July 30, 2024.

A suicidal English professor books her final hurrah at a luxury hotel on the coast, only to be thwarted by a headstrong bride and the rest of her ~wedding people~.

A little sweet, a little sentimental; I loved the intertextual references to some of the classics (Pride & Prejudice and the Age of Innocence being my favorite of the references). I felt deeply for the narrator, and the rest of the assorted group grew on me as the story progressed. The set-up to the ending was definitely very predictable, but I felt like the HEA was a nice balance to the heaviness of the opening chapters. I think this will be a great summer read when it officially comes out, but it was also exactly what I needed from a book right now (in the dead of winter).

Thank you to Henry Holt & Co. for the opportunity to read and review!

I was pleasantly surprised by The Wedding People. I feel like this book came into my life at the right time as I am feeling unsatisfied with certain aspects of my life. (Not quite on Phoebe’s level!) I appreciate the bravery and candor of the characters, particularly Phoebe and Lila. This story was fresh and bold. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and it’s inspired me to be more courageous in my own life and to take stock of what do I really want?

Thank you for allowing me to read and share my thoughts!

How cute! I loved how adorable this one. It was a journey for the main character and she gained so much strength. You’ll learn lessons and enjoy life in this one.

I absolutely loved this book! I laughed, I cried, I connected with a lot of the characters. It totally made me want to travel to Rhode Island!

I really loved this book. I haven't heard of this author before but I kept seeing this cover on Booksta for a bit. I think its a nice mix of literary fiction, with a bit of chick lit mixed in. It's deff a moody vibe kind of read. My only bone to pick is that the ending is a little vague but thats a personal preference.

My Take: 4 out of 5. This is a book that is hard to fit into a category. Lets leave it at literary fiction, and in that its a great exploration of character. All these characters are so flawed yet quite endearing and the growth they do together is lovely. It's a bit weird, a bit emotional and a quick read. Along with my obsession with the Gilded Age, this book is reiterating my need to go check out Newport, as I've never been! TW: there is quite a bit of mental illness that could be triggering, so proceed with caution.

To be honest, it took me a while to really get into this story. Protagonist Phoebe is recently divorced and depressed, and I was pulled down by her in the early chapters; she was such a wet blanket of a character. But, I got sucked into her story and as she begins to interact with the bride, Lila, I found that their unusual relationship was compelling enough to continue reading. As at all weddings, there is an interesting cast of characters and the activities of the wedding week were pretty entertaining. In the end, this turned out to be a heartwarming story and I would recommend it to other readers. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

After an earth-shattering divorce and a slow-growing hatred of her job, Phoebe Stone makes an impromptu decision to fly to Rhode Island and stay at the Cornwall Inn so she can have a perfect last day before attempting suicide. However, her plans go awry after being mistaken as one of the wedding guests and the hotel and meeting the bride, Lila, who ropes her into the wedding as a means of begging her not to ruin her big day. Phoebe quickly gets wrapped up in the festivities, especially after meeting the groom Gary and his family.

I loved the writing; you really feel like you’re in Phoebe’s head as she falls into a depression after a seemingly-out-of-nowhere divorce. This book also touches on the pandemic, which usually bothers me, but it’s a necessary part of this story since it reinforces the isolation that she goes through that culminates in her decision to attempt suicide. Phoebe’s narration is also very witty amidst the awkward situations that come up during the wedding.

All of the characters felt so real too. Phoebe’s an English professor who is very good with people and just trying to find what makes her happy after she realizes that what she was told would complete her life won’t. Lila is a spoiled, neurotic bride who is used to getting anything she wants, but through Phoebe’s eyes, you also see how her need to control everything masks her insecurity. Gary is a widower and fundamentally a good man who understands everything Phoebe means without her having to say it.

This book is more introspective than a straight-up filled with hijinks, but I did find it to be funny at times because of how realistic it was. There are so many awkward, stilted moments that felt real and organic.

At its core, The Wedding People is about the realization that small interactions with people can change your life and that we need other people in order to feel like we’re actually living. Even when Phoebe (rightfully) can’t stand Lila, she also helps her realize that she does, in fact, does not want to die. With every passing moment and interaction come more reasons that Phoebe wants to live for. I was tearing up as she grew to realize this; I just really do enjoy books that remind you what it is to live and to love.

Potential readers should know going in that The Wedding People is not a rom-com or romance. It deals with some dark subject matter, including suicide, infidelity and infertility. But it also has a lot of heart and humor in it. It was a bit predictable, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

I really enjoyed the setting and the idea of serendipitously meeting people who just might end up changing your life.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

Phoebe Stone arrives at a beachfront hotel in Newport, Rhode Island with plans to end her life (not a spoiler), but her plans are quickly hijacked when she becomes entangled with a group of wedding guests staying at the hotel. Initially I was skeptical of some rom-com elements to the story, including a bridezilla character and an insta-love interest for Phoebe. But Alison Espach manages to take that backdrop and deliver a book full of depth and heart. Several characters (including the bridezilla character that I wanted to hate) have compelling development arcs, which was especially impressive given the book only takes place over a week. The Wedding People is a unique story about people that are real and whole…people you will want to root for. Out July 30, 2024, this will make a fantastic summer read.

This novel is hysterical and deeply satisfying at the same time. I am always amazed by Espach's writing and can't wait to pick up more from her.

Imagine planning a stay at a beautiful oceanside inn to end your life and instead you find life there? Phoebe does exactly that! Well-written characters and an engaging plot. I adored the novel.

The Wedding People by Alison Espach
5/5 Stars
July 30, 2024
Women’s Fiction

Touching, witty, and wise, The Wedding People by Alison Espach examines life, love, loss, and how life’s little moments can change a person’s life.

Phoebe is unhappy. Her IVF treatments failed. Her husband left her for their colleague. Her dissertation is going nowhere. She’s an adjunct professor with no benefits, teaching classes to students who may or may not care about what she’s saying. In short, Phoebe has forgotten what it means to be alive. For years, she’s been dreaming of visiting the Cornwall Inn, located in Newport, Rhode Island, with her husband. Instead, she finds herself visiting alone, with the intention of ending her life. The hotel is filled with “wedding people” and Phoebe is the only outlier. She soon befriends the bride, and becomes immersed in the lives of the wedding guests. In an environment where Phoebe has nothing to lose, she becomes more comfortable with herself, and quickly becomes a confidante for just about everyone attending the wedding.

The characters in this book are so well-written that I felt like they were real people. Like the friends of friends that you hear about through casual conversation.A ability to capture the way people are so forthcoming with strangers is reflected in the organic interactions between the wedding people and Phoebe.

The setting of Newport is another prominent character, giving Phoebe an opportunity to see and experience a life quite unlike the one she had in St. Louis, Missouri. The juxtaposition of the ordinary life with which Phoebe is accustomed and the opulence she experiences in Newport allows her to appreciate the little things in life, such as the saltiness of the ocean, or the way she is able to feel present in any situation.

For me, the most moving part of the book occurs when Phoebe goes surfing with Gary and Juice. It seems to me that Espoch uses the ocean as a symbol of Phoebe’s unhappiness. It’s noted that Phoebe sees how easy it would be to just float away in the ocean, but she continues to ride the waves on her surfboard: “Each time she falls, she’s overwhelmed by the white foam, the sand in her ear. But she emerges.” Little moving scenes like this are sprinkled throughout the novel, such as Phoebe’s repeated use of the phrase, “I am here,” serving as a reminder that she almost lost everything by taking her own life.

While not a romance, this book is undoubtedly a love story - a book about falling in love with life, and all of the little (and big) things it has to offer.

I loved Alison Espach's previous book, "Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance," so "The Wedding People" was a must-read for me. The characters she creates in this novel are on par with her other in that they are relatable, messy, and authentic. Although the setting and circumstances are different, Espach's writing style and general insight into the human experience kept me interested until the lasts page. Highly recommended. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

The Wedding People by Alison Espach. Witty dialogue, mental/emotional growth, and developed characters.

I rate this 4.25 stars.

Originally went into this book thinking of a silly little wedding crasher story. But it is so much more than that. Our main character, Phoebe, arrives to a hotel in Newport, RI and is mistaken as a wedding guest but is the only real guest at the hotel not apart of the wedding. Unbeknownst to the other wedding guests Phoebe was not there to celebrate the Bride and Groom but to end her own life.

Alison did a wonderful job creating a story with tough topics without making this too heavy. An immersive story to make you feel all the emotions. Love, loss, grief, new relationships and finding happiness in yourself.

Thank you, NetGalley and Henry Holt and Company for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

It's amazing how one incident can change a person's life while setting off a domino effect. Phoebe was living her married life, thinking all was going to plan. Until she got news that completely gutted her. In an effort to take action, she take, what she thinks is one last trip to a place she's dreamed of. Arriving at the Cornwall, she discovers she's the only hotel guest not attending the wedding that has overtaken the hotel. The bride, Lila, now feels Phoebe's presence creates a wrinkle in her perfect wedding week. Yes, an entire week of activities and celebrations leading up to her nuptials.

Lila wants nothing to distract from her wedding and Phoebe wants nothing to do with it. However, after another turn of events, the two women start to confide in one another. Life is complex and , no how hard we try, we just need to accept the simple truth. I loved the beautiful journey of each character. Alison Espach's exquisite writing is smart and funny at the most unexpected times..

A journey through heartache, self-loathe, and ultimately redemption and reformation of spirit and of self. This book doesn't shy away from hard topics, and it could be sensitive content for some readers. But if you stick it out and get through the struggles, the story is beautiful at the end. Phoebe is all of us in some way or another, and this book ends with so much hope that no matter what point you are in your life, there is always a future ahead. The characters, even though fictional, are so familiar. We all know someone like each of the characters, and it helps to think of their personalities from different perspectives. Not everything is as it seems on the surface level, but it can all work out if we are honest with ourselves and those around us.

Oh, I loved this. It was so quirky. The setup was unique and unexpected. I went in thinking I’d hate all the “wedding people” but the author gave each character endearing qualities and rich histories. I want a sequel! I need to know more about who these people are outside the walls of a six-day wedding.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sharing an early arc, which turned into my first solid five-star read of 2024.