Karen's Reviews > The Wedding People

I remember when my sons reached a certain age and we were having a discussion about weddings and homes and futures. I said, “I will gladly support you with a down payment on a home, but please don’t ask me to contribute to a wedding event.” I guess I am one of those people that was never attracted to them. I thought they were overly expensive parties. Now, granted, I am not saying anything against anyone’s wedding. I know how meaningful and memorable they can be. But when it came to a financial investment in my sons, I felt having their own home was something they could appreciate beyond one day in their life. Interestingly enough, neither of my sons opted for a formal wedding, and were grateful for the support towards their first homes.

But here we have a story about a wedding. A messy entanglement that showcases all the things that make me cringe about weddings. But the way the author writes it, she incorporates humor and an interesting perception.

“I just mean, a story can be beautiful not because of the way it ends. But because of the way it’s written.”

This wedding is set in Newport, Rhode Island. It is a week-long celebration for Lila, a young heiress, and Gary, a widow and doctor who happened to treat her father for cancer before his death.

But then there is Phoebe. She doesn’t know the bride or groom, but she has booked the one last vacant room at the hotel. Her arrival is at the same time as the wedding guests.

So, who is Phoebe? Readers come to understand her as an academic who focuses on British marriage plot novels. Hmmm…. Does this current setting fit her research? Or, is there something else that Phoebe has in mind for herself? When Lila learns of Phoebe’s true reason for being at the hotel, she decides to include Phoebe in her wedding. As her Maid of Honor. What?

As the novel unfolds over the week leading to Lila’s wedding, readers are given playful comedic bits throughout.

“You honestly expect me to believe that people go on vacations without making a spreadsheet of fun first?”

Is the humor a way to waylay the seriousness of Phoebe’s intentions for being at the hotel in the first place? Is there a mystery to Phoebe that needs to be solved? What brought Phoebe to such a conclusion about her own life anyway?

This story is complex, twisted, sad, humorous, entertaining and unexpected.

“She is so good at predicting what will happen in books, so bad at predicting what will happen in life. That is why she has always preferred books - because to be alive is so much harder.”

Phoebe’s character is likable and readers will be intrigued and empathetic with her. The opening to this story is enticing. But as it moves on, and readers are let in to more backstory, the narrative slows, and becomes a bit tedious. As are the endless wedding parties. (But that could be just me!) Still, there are a wonderful cast of characters to follow that are fully formed by the author. Leading readers to an anxious conclusion.

Trigger warning: discussion of suicide.