You're cordially invited: Emma's wedding to...?

 

"Whip-smart, subversive, and infinitely charming. An ode to the beautifully messy work of falling in love on purpose." —Becky Albertalli, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda 

You are cordially invited to the wedding of Emma Moskowitz and…someone… 

When couples therapist Emma Moskowitz is unceremoniously dumped by her fiancé six months before their wedding, her world comes crashing down: her thriving private practice, her status as a popular online creator, even her book deal all hinge on the fact that Emma is an expert when it comes to romantic relationships. Not to mention her heart is ripped in half. 

It isn't fair. She worked so hard to be ready for marriage. If only Emma could find a different groom by her planned wedding day, nothing would have to change.... So commences Operation: Save My Date. 

 As Emma publicly shares her untraditional journey to the altar online, things get complicated quickly. She finds herself caught between Will, a charismatic podcast producer who is not interested in being a replacement groom; and Matt, a sweet, recent divorcee eagerly looking to settle down. 

 As the wedding day approaches, Emma must decide what future she truly wants for herself. After all, her family, her book editor, and a large portion of the internet are watching...

My Take:

I enjoyed this novel very much. I found it fascinating what the author chose to focus on: Emma and her why: Why should she keep her wedding date and venue and caterer and...all the wedding-y things, besides money? Why is it so important to her? Knowing from the preface that the author went through a similar situation was a clue.

I also found it interesting that Emma, in her character development, was focused on clear communication in spite of, and aided by, her anxiety issues. The honesty around that was very well done. 

The middle part of the book, when she was building her relationship with Matt, tended to drag a bit for me (maybe because I was Team Will the whole time--give me banter over beauty any day). However, the things that were red flags for me were not for Emma, and getting into her head about it was an interesting process also. I would also have enjoyed a bit more about Emma's family's Jewish faith. It was just sort of ... there. 

The end was very well done; no spoilers, though!

Closed door romance, but rated R for language.

Thank you to Harlequin, the author, and NetGalley for an eARC for review. All thoughts are my own.