A Wedding in Provence

by Ellen Sussman

published by Balantine Books

2014

I received this book from the publisher through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

My Review

I was very excited to read this book, but about half way in I lost a little.  I love the premise of a family gathering in France for a wedding- must be so many interesting characters and scenes!  Olivia is marrying Brody at her best friends’ inn in Provence, and is expecting her two adult daughters and Brody’s mother to attend.  Her daughters Nell and Carly as as different as night and day and really don’t get along that well.  As the weekend unfolds there are many tears and revelations.

This was a fun book to read and it went very quickly. At first, I really didn’t like any of the characters- Olivia and Brady weren’t really fleshed out, and Carley and Nell just annoyed me.  As the story moved on, I found the characters of the sisters develop and open up and this made the book worth reading.

Summary

What could be more idyllic than a wedding in Provence? That’s what Olivia and Brody think when they invite their closest friends and family to spend their wedding weekend with them. But when Olivia’s older daughter from her first marriage invites a man she met on the plane to join her, the delicate balance of the entire weekend is upset. Soon Olivia’s best friend, the owner of the inn who is hosting the wedding, discovers that her husband has cheated on her. Then Brody’s mother shows up without his father, who has gone into hiding. How can one choose love in the midst of chaos? Told from the point of view of Olivia and her two daughters, A Wedding in Provence is a moving novel about love, trust, secrets and family.