‘The Secret Bridesmaid’
By: Katy Birchall
(2021, 400 pages, romance)
Sophie Breeze is a bridesmaid who lives in London. She is not your average bridesmaid, though, she is a professional. That’s right – not a wedding planner but a professional bridesmaid. Her job is to let brides and their families make the plans they want while she unobtrusively works out all of the details so that the wedding goes off without a hitch. She is so good at her job and so discreet, that she has been recommended to Lady Victoria Swann to help with her daughter, Cornelia’s, upcoming nuptials. Second only to the royal family, the Swanns are the IT society family and Sophie jumps at the chance. The only fly in the ointment is that Lady Cornelia hates the idea. She really hates the idea. As Sophie juggles her full slate of brides and their many wacky requests (a Star Wars themed wedding, among other things), she has to figure out how to handle the most challenging bride of her career. Keeping her head above water, her dignity intact, and an eye on Lady Cornelia’s charming brother, Lord Swann, prove to be more than she bargained for!
I regularly burst into laughter as I listened to the audiobook version of this book. Narrator Nathalie Buscombe does a brilliant job of bringing out both the tender and hilarious aspects of the story. This is definitely a romance book, but it is equally, if not more, a book about female friendship, which I found very compelling and well-written. If you are a fan of “closed-door” romance – romance that leaves a bit to the imagination, check this one out. You might also try books by authors Katherine Center and Sarah Adams.
Visit Concord Public Library at http://www.concordpubliclibrary.net
Becky Kasten
