Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Katie Fforde - Wedding Season

Sarah Stratford is a wedding planner hiding a rather inconvenient truth -- she doesn’t believe in love. But as the confetti flutters away on the June breeze of yet another successful wedding season she finds herself agreeing to organize two more events, on the same day, and only two months away. And while her celebrity bride is all sweetness and light, the other bride, Sarah’s own sister, quickly starts driving her crazy with her high expectations and very limited budget. Luckily, Sarah is aided in her seemingly impossible task by two best friends, Elsa, an accomplished dress designer, and Bron, a multitalented hairdresser. All three are very good at their jobs, but romance doesn’t feature very prominently in any of their lives. As the big day draws near, every moment is spent preparing for the weddings, and they certainly haven’t got any time to even think about love; or have they?

Comment: I have no idea how I came to get this book. I'm not sure why exactly I decided to get it, there must have been something about it somewhere that made me do it. It's one of those books we're never sure how ended up in our TBR list.
Well, after a long time like it happens with most my books, I decided to read it.
The story follows Sarah, Bron and Elsa, three British friends who work in the wedding business, each one with a different task. Sarah and Elsa are single and Bron lives with her boyfriend but their relationship isn't wat it used to be. We start the book in a client's wedding and how each girl helped and because of it, all of them kind of meet someone that will have a key role in their personal life. After the wedding, Sarah, as wedding planner learns that her younger sister is pregnant and will marry in two months, she has to before showing. However, at the same time an american actress wants Sarah to organize her wedding because she wants something classy. This means Sarah has to prepare two weddings and still finds time to start falling in love with Hugo, a photographer.
First of all, I just have to mention how strange it felt to read this story. This is a british author writing about british people in a british setting with british words. After so much American English in books, to read one where there are no "americanisms", if I can call them that, is very weird. I know it helps us to get into the story and the whole environment but it still sounds strange. Then, the thing that kind of bothered me a bit, it's a cultural thing I'm sure, and it shows but it's very annoying. Every single time any character would meet with another person whether to talk or discuss something, whether in a friendly or professional way, there wasn't a single time, not once, they didn't drink wine or champagne or some kind of alcoholic drink! How annoying to have to read what they were drinking, how many glasses of it all the time! I guess it must e true because in all the movies in contemporary England I've watched they did this same thing but after the first two or three meetings it starts to get so annoying, can't they see each other without some wine to go with them?? Very annoying indeed.
Apart from this, the story felt a little bit too medium. The characters had reasons to act the way they did, I understand it, but it was all a bit too distanced, too automatic. I'd guess also a cultural thing, but it made the whole thing seem to controlled. I liked seeing the characters fall in love but I wasn't convinced of their love, not in the same way I am when reading a american novel in the same style. The writing wasn't that bad, but there's nothing in it that makes me eager to want to read more. If I were to grade it, I'd say a 3 out of 5 because it delivers but it's not wow, even putting aside the annoying things.
I have another book by the author, but I'm not reading so soon...Oh and another word for the cover. It's sweet as are all the author's covers...just proves that not everything that's sweet is perfect.

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