Bride Without A Groom By Amy Lynch

[amazon_link id=”B00V2VXACG” target=”_blank” ][/amazon_link]’Bride Without A Groom’ is Amy Lynch’s latest novel.

Rebecca has chosen the most luscious, five tiered, wedding cake. The engagement ring that she has selected is celebrity inspired. The wedding singer is on speed dial. He doesn’t usually do Michael Bolton, but as it’s for a first dance he’ll make an exception. Father Maguire is checking dates for the parish church as we speak. The deposit on the white sand honeymoon is paid for in full on Barry’s card. She has fallen for an ivory lace couture gown that is to die for. The down payment may require her to sell a left kidney, but it will be worth it. Isn’t that why you have two?

There’s one teeny tiny problem. It’s nothing, really. No need to panic! It’s just that Barry has yet to propose. Says he’s not ready! He can be a bit of a kill joy that way. It’s time to face the harsh reality – Rebecca is a bride without a groom!

I would have loved to have said that I enjoyed this book but to be honest I found it to be quite a frustrating story. Through the grapevine of Twitter, I had heard fellow book reviewers compare the book to the successful ‘Shopaholic’ series, so I was quite eager to start the book as I loved that bestselling series but as I read the story, I discovered that the only thing the leading ladies had in common was a love for shopping. Where Becky Bloomwood was fun and frivolous, Rebecca was selfish, vain and self absorbed, a character I couldn’t warm to at all.

The story is primarily seen through the narrative of Rebecca, a woman obsessed with getting married. Even though she isn’t engaged, she has planned everything, booked the honeymoon and paid for the dress. But when her sweet boyfriend Barry doesn’t propose on her boyfriend on her thirtieth birthday, all hell breaks loose. Desperate for a break from his obsessed girlfriend, Barry goes away to Bangkok on a work conference, where a fellow colleague Shelley catches his eye and he has to battle his emotions as he begins to wonder whether the grass is greener on the other side. Meanwhile back in Dublin, Rebecca is in the pits of despair, claiming sick days and going on expensive shopping sprees convinced that her relationship is in tatters.

The story then follows on the days that the couple are apart, where Rebecca wallows in self pity and counts down to Barry returning wondering whether she will die a sad old spinster with her cat. During these days, she indulges in overeating, overspending and over thinking.

To be truthful, I found Rebecca to be a very dislikable character which made the book hard to enjoy. She was irresponsible with her actions, immature and didn’t seem to consider others. Her quirky way of thinking as she tried to rationalise her behaviour, went past me and towards the end of the book, I just found her irritating.

I really hate it when I read a book and I don’t enjoy it and unfortunately this was the case with ‘Bride Without A Groom’. Even though the story is freshly written with snappy lines and a few funny moments and a little bit of Irish charm, regrettably it didn’t really hold my attention. But with its pretty cover and packed with tips for the wedding season, it may just be the book for you.

You can buy [amazon_link id=”B00V2VXACG” target=”_blank” ]Bride without a Groom from Amazon [/amazon_link]