This was SO good. Between the travel mishaps, the reasons they were both reluctant to get together, and their opposition to the wedding, this book works unbelievably well. I enjoyed it enormously and can't wait for more.

Wedding Dashers by Heather McBreen is a charming and highly entertaining debut romance novel. When a case of mistaken identity leads to a near one-night stand, two wedding guests find themselves stranded and compelled to journey together to their intended destination. The story masterfully combines all the ingredients of a great romantic comedy: sharp, witty dialogue, undeniable chemistry, and two irresistible protagonists who had me hooked from the very first page.

There’s something about a messy romance between messy people that feels all the more rewarding in the end. While this romance didn’t give me butterflies, it did make me feel happy and hopeful by the end, and I’d definitely recommend it to any romance readers.

A fantastic romcom! I haven't had so much fun and laughed so hard in a while.

Ada and Jack were hysterical. They're witty and sarcastic which is my type of humor. Ada and Jack are such great characters too. Think green flags. They are compassionate and communicate. How awesome is that? They have fantastic chemistry too. Plus we get to travel along with them while they try to make it to a wedding in Ireland. I found the travel shenanigans to be entertaining.

A wonderful romcom book that's good time! Fans of Planes, Trains, and All the Feels by Livy Hart will devour this.

This one did not work for me, unfortunately! I love the premise and the cover, but I struggled to connect with the writing style. I am not this book's ideal reader, but I'm glad I gave it a shot!

This was my first read of 2025 and I absolutely LOVED it! Wedding Dashers is everything I love about road trip/forced proximity romance. The tension! The banter! The slow burn! What a great debut, I cannot recommend this romance highly enough! An easy 5 star read.

My only complaint is I think the book deserves a much better cover than it received!

This is one of those books where I couldn’t connect to either character and didn’t really find either one of them likable. That doesn’t mean this book is bad but it is just not for me. The premise of the main girl being the maid of honor and the main guy being the best man is what drew me into this book to begin with. I liked how each chapter was counting down until the main event. You got to feel like you were along for the journey with that little aspect. Throughout the book you could feel the lust the characters had for each other but they lacked chemistry in my opinion. It’s hard to root for them when Jack would say a lot of things that screamed red flag to me and Ada just lacked depth. This was not for me but I would still read books by this author in the future.

4.5 delightful stars - A road trip romance done right!

Road trip stories can be hit or miss for me, but this one nailed it with the perfect mix of hilarious hijinks, witty banter, and heartfelt moments. I was so hooked, I devoured the entire audiobook in one sitting and it made my workday fly by!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

What a fun, steamy debut from Heather McBreen!

Plot
28 year old Ada is experiencing the worst of travel woes en route to Ireland for her younger sister's wedding, where Ada is the maid of honor. Cancelled flights, expired hotel vouchers, pennies in her bank account... and on top of that she's "on a break" (a la Ross and Rachel) from her boyfriend of 8 years. She's basically walking bad luck. But things are looking up when she meets a man named Jack in the hotel lobby (see above expired voucher) who, as it turns out, is also trying to get to an international wedding where he's going to be the best man.... I think you can see where this is going? Yes, yes, surprise: they're going to the SAME wedding! Jack's best friend Collin is marrying Ada's sister Allison. After an almost one night stand that Ada was hilariously oblivious to, the pair awkwardly, begrudgingly, fitfully make their way to Ireland together Planes, Trains and Automobiles style.

Review
I am feeling incredibly conflicted over this book. I really enjoyed certain aspects but it also featured one of my least favorite tropes in all of literature. I hate hate HATE when one (or both?) of the main characters are actively in relationships at the beginning of the book. Although Ada and her long-time boyfriend are technically "on a break," they are decidedly NOT broken up, and Ada is still insistent that she wants to be with him even past the halfway point in the book. I was increasingly exhausted as the book went on at Ada's inner monologue but honestly, maybe I'm the problem? It's quite possible that I'm just too hyperaware of this trope and it might not bother another reader as much as it did me. I just couldn't get past the fact that we're 58% through a romance book before she actually breaks up with her boyfriend.

Character-wise, I felt like neither Ada or Jack was specifically well developed. Ada had her moments but for the most part, I feel like we really know nothing about Jack. I'm sure that's largely in part to his I-hate-love-bad-boy-you-can't-hurt-me-if-you-don't-know-me-player persona, but even by the end I just didn't feel that tug of understanding for him. Their reunion after the third act breakup was SO adorable though, and I couldn't stop smiling. Despite all I've said before, I really DID like Jack and Ada together. They had great banter and I loved seeing them come together instead of apart despite all the travel failures and stress. I just wish I cared more about them each individually instead of only rooting for them as a couple.

McBreen's voice really shines in this book. Truthfully, this was the bright spot for me. I loved the writing style and the detail and care with which she wrote the settings in this story. It was simultaneously whimsical and vivid and hilarious and infuriating, and so well done that I felt like I was trudging through the airport or running to catch a train or eating pizza in bed right along with Ada and Jack. I flew through this in just about 24 hours and overall, I did enjoy the reading experience. I would definitely read more from this author in the future because I'm intrigued to see what she may do with some tropes I enjoy and some characters I'm more connected to.

The best romance books involve both people becoming better versions of themselves. In Wedding Dashers, Ada and Jack both have very satisfying character arcs. I was rooting for them as individuals and for them to get together. This book was an unexpected delight.

This book was hilarious from beginning to end, and there's nothing I wouldn't change about it. It's full of banter, tension, and not only is it a perfect rom-com but it's also a great coming of age story.

This was a super fun forced proximity travel romance with a great meet cute that sees Ada and Jack trying to get to the same destination wedding in Belfast despite a number of obstacles along the way. With a case of mistaken identity, only one bed, deeply emotional conversations and tons of chemistry, I really enjoyed this debut and highly recommend it for fans of books like Off the map by Trish Doller or Maya's laws of love by Alina Khawaja. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review! (It was also excellent on audio read by my very favorite narrator, Brittany Pressley)!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you #NetGalley for an arc of The Wedding Dashers in exchange for an honest review.

🧳 Forced proximity
🧳 One bed
🧳 Opposites attract
🧳 Fake relationships
🧳 Grand gestures

Started off 2025 with wrapping up such a great read! The Wedding Dashers was McBreen’s debut novel and it was super entertaining.

Our MCs Ada and Jack were written with such a complementary dynamic. There’s great banter between these two. We also get a good grasp behind what makes these two tick which is always something I look for. While these two find themselves in some wild situations I think it adds such a great charm to the story. There are heavy topics so worth checking over the trigger warnings.

TW: Loss of a parent (off page), divorce, abusive relationship, and alcohol consumption

I couldn't love this book more if I tried! McBreen's writing is gorgeous and the chemistry between Jack and Ada shines through the pages. Highly recommend!

This is what I mean when I say I love romcoms. Wedding Dashers has a perfect balance between the banter, spice and humor, making it an enjoyable read from start to finish.

Our main characters find themselves stuck in this seemingly unlucky traveling arrangement, but little did they know it’ll all lead to their soulmate.

Honestly, If I could wipe my memory and read it again, I absolutely would.

What a fantastic book, and to think it’s a debut - mind blown! I loved so much about this book and don’t even know where to start. I couldn’t put it down.

As a lover of traveling, I love a traveling romance and travel gone wrong trope. Ada is hit with a series of unfortunate events on the way to her sisters wedding, and ends up cooped up with the best-man. It had heat, slow burn, passion, a ton of depth and a romcom-perfect ending. It felt like a movie and I found myself thinking about the movie Leap Year.

Thank you to Forever pub, Heather and NetGalley for the arc. I’ll read anything Heather writes as this was so fantastic.

This was a really solid debut! It featured lots of my favorite tropes and I thought the more emotional moments were balanced well with humor. The slowish burn romance between Ada and Jack was a big part of the story, but both characters have growing to do, and so this leaned a bit more towards women's fiction for me.

Things to expect:
- a twist of fate
- an awkward almost one night stand
- forced proximity
- road trip shenanigans
- only one bed
- a dash of fake dating
- right person wrong time
- a pizza date with destiny

I really liked how the third act conflict was handled. It made sense for the characters and also gave them time to grow and heal. The overall message of learning to be enough all on your own was very powerful and well done. I also appreciated the message that there aren't perfect relationships or marriages. That perhaps it's more about finding someone to face whatever comes with and choosing them over and over again. That you can grow together without growing apart. The epilogue brought everything full circle and left me with a huge smile on my face.

I both listened to the audiobook and read the ebook of Wedding Dashers and really enjoyed the narration by Brittany Pressley. She voiced all the characters distinctly and I had no issues determining who was speaking. Her comedic timing was amazing as well and this was a great listening experience.

Audiobook Review
Overall 4.5 stars
Performance 5 stars
Story 4 stars

CW (from the author): alcohol consumption, divorce, death of a parent (not on page, but referred to), and an abusive romantic relationship (not on page, but referred to).

*I voluntarily read and listened to a review copy of this book*

This was much more fun than I expected! I don't usually enjoy road trip romances, but these two characters brought enough depth and authenticity to the story that I was rooting for them regardless of the road trip mishaps. I loved that they took time to figure their own stuff out. I really liked how they came together. I was horribly uncomfortable the first third of the book. But I think I was meant to be. lol

HI HELLO THIS BOOK IS NOW MY ENTIRE PERSONALITY. Our purple-haired heroine was written specifically for me—an eldest daughter with purple hair(!!!) who has to protect siblings and keep the world spinning. I was sucked into this book and just wanted to stay with these characters long after I hit The End. The quirky stops and lush scenery and travel mayhem all came together for a perfect travel romance.

A round of applause for Heather McBreen’s delightfully chaotic debut rom-com. WEDDING DASHERS has it all - mistaken identity, travel mishaps, forced proximity, and sizzling chemistry. It was a joy from start to finish.

Ada is having the worst string of luck. A failed business, and an eight-year relationship on the rocks should have prepared her for a hiccup in the trans-Atlantic travel plans for her sister’s wedding. A cancelled flight finds her stranded with nowhere to stay until a handsome stranger comes to her rescue. What follows is a madcap adventure with Jack who is no fan of romance or relationships. Except — what happens if you meet the right person at the wrong time?

This is the right mix of hilarity and depth. The writing is sharp and the characters well developed. Ms. MsBreen had me laughing and emotional at the same time which is no easy feat. I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.