Review: "The Wedding Diaries" by Sam Binnie

Kiki Carlow is shocked when her boyfriend Thom proposes. In fact, instead of the required response Kiki asks "Is this a joke?" when he pops the question. Hmmm....Kiki will have to come up with an edited version for the grand kids! Once Kiki realizes that this is not, in fact, a joke, she starts to plan the wedding to the man of her dreams, figuring it can't be that hard, right??

Wrong! Considering that the price of "the" dress is astronomical, none of the venues are quite right, the cake is a disaster and one of the bridesmaids is pregnant, Kiki's dream wedding turns into a nightmare overnight. As she covers the wedding of a famous celebrity for work, Kiki wonders why her wedding can't come together quite that effortlessly, but when plans change unexpectedly can Kiki stop being a bridezilla in time to marry the love of her life??

I love books about weddings. I love humorous chick lit. I also love books set in the UK. The Wedding Diaries fits all three of these criteria, so it should come as no surprise that I thoroughly enjoyed it! It was written in a journal style, offering us a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the life of Kiki Carlow, frazzled bride-to-be. It was chock-full of humour, and I found myself laughing to myself several times while reading. I adored Kiki who was unique and lovable, and I especially loved how clear it was that Thom and Kiki were in love. He adored her and that showed in every page!

I had a few minor complaints. Parts of the diary were boring, as the author was bringing authenticity to it and treating it like it really was a wedding diary (ie. including guest lists). However, let me make it very clear that these boring bits were few and far between. The author also chose to include quotes from classic literary weddings and while they were interesting, they didn't fit the tone of the book, nor did they add anything of value to the story. I could have done without those altogether.

The Wedding Diaries is funny and quirky, filled with lovable characters and an enjoyable plot line. I had a hard time putting it down! Fans of Sophie Kinsella are sure to enjoy this one, and I can't wait to read the next in the series The Baby Diaries (did I mention that I also love books about pregnancy?). My thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy.