"It’s taken Audrey Regan years to establish herself as a wedding dress designer, and to date she’s been roped into creating dresses for nine of her girlfriends. Request #10 follows her vow to “Just say no!” and comes from her very best friend. She can hardly turn Carly down! Audrey arrives in Atlanta early to perform all of her maid-of-honor duties along with final fittings for a one-of-a-kind dress. But Carly’s wedding is nothing short of an event, complete with Prince Charming, and the festivities make Audrey question whether there’s a prince of her own anywhere in her future. Enter the groom’s brother and best man. Shaggy-haired, tattooed bad boy J.R. Hunt couldn’t be any more different from Prince Charming if he rode in on a Harley Davidson. Oh, wait. He actually did ride in on a Harley!" - Amazon Blurb
*May Contain Spoilers*
After absolutely loving the first two novels in the "Never the Bride" series by Sandra D. Bricker, I knew that I could not resist Always the Designer, Never the Bride. And happily, I was right. (This doesn't happen as often as I would like...)
Everyone from The Tanglewood Inn is back in this side-splitting-hilarious, romantically involved novel. For the first time in the series, the main character is not previously connected with anyone at the dream-wedding destination hotel. It was incredibly refreshing to see Bricker bring in outsiders and throw them in with the crazy crew of The Tanglewood.
Audrey is the new main character, though Bricker does a great job at sharing the stage with the other characters. Audrey has always wanted to be a designer and nothing has stopped her from pursuing her goal, but it seems as if the last thread of her career is about to be severed.
Readers will connect with Audrey through her success and failure at doing what she loves. This passion to obtain her dream job is something everyone can relate with and Bricker does a fantastic job at making sure that happens. As Bricker throws roadblock after roadblock at Audrey, her friends and new acquaintances make sure she knows that she can't give up.
Did I mention there's a love story involved? Could you tell from the cover or the blurb above? :) I absolutely adore the way that Bricker tells a love story. It never seems cheesy or forced. She doesn't go over the top. It's all in all a simple lovely love story. Though, I have to admit that when I was nearing the end of the novel, I had no idea how Bricker was going to tie up all the loose ends.
The only thing that bothered me was that I waited too long between this novel and the first two. It was hard remembering the characters and the references Bricker makes to past stories. But that's my own fault...
However, this novel completely met my expectations and if you haven't read the first two in the series, I highly recommend them. These three books combined will have you laughing out loud and making new friends for life while also enjoying the free recipes included in every novel.
on Amazon
rating: 4/5 cups
See also:
Always the Baker, Always the Wedding Planner,
Never the Bride Never the Bride
