It forges into territory where the romance genre rarely goes: its main character, Phoebe, is planning to die by suicide at the start of the novel. The author doesn’t shy away from discussing Phoebe’s depression, and the darkness in this novel is what makes it so original, and so brilliant; we feel real joy and connection as Phoebe manages to find her inner strength again.
The love story is very much there, and it is central enough that I would still call this a romance, but it’s perhaps equally a book about loving and caring for yourself. It’s also very, very funny − there is a dark, wry humour to it that really sets it apart.
It's a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at a grand beachside hotel wearing her best dress and least comfortable shoes. Immediately she is mistaken for one of the wedding people - but she's actually the only guest at the Cornwall Inn who isn't here for the big event.
Phoebe has dreamed of coming here for years. She hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband but now she is divorced and depressed, and not sure how to go on. She's not been sure how to do anything, lately, except climb into bed and drink gin and tonics and listen to the sound of the refrigerator making ice.
When the bride discovers her elaborate destination wedding could be ruined by this sad stranger, she is furious. She has spent months accounting for every detail and every possible disaster - except for, well, Phoebe . . . Soon, both women find their best-laid plans derailed and an unlikely confidante in one another.
Uproariously funny and devastatingly tender, The Wedding People is an irresistible novel about love, friendship, dysfunctional families, and the unexpected paths that lead to happiness.
Alison Espach is the author of two previous novels, though The Wedding People is the first to be published in the UK. Her short stories and essays have appeared in a wide range of publications, including McSweeney's and Vogue. She is a professor of creative writing at Providence College in Rhode Island.
