The second book I read in 2025 was The Wedding People by Allison Espach. This book has been featured on quite a few “must read” lists. While I typically stay away from those until the hype has died down a bit and they’re easier to rent from the library, I decided to give it a try right away and just so happened to get it pretty quickly from the library.

As a trigger warning, this book does focus heavily on the topic of suicide and depression. While it’s told in a more “light hearted” way, it is a very prevalent topic. So if that’s something that is triggering to you, I would recommend staying away from this book.

The Plot

One beautiful day, Phoebe Stone arrives at the glamourous Cornwall Inn, the spot she always dreamed of visiting with her husband. But after she divorced his cheating ass, she ended up visiting alone with the goal of ending her life. However, she quickly discovered the entire hotel has been booked for a wedding.

After running into the bride in the elevator, Phoebe admits to why she’s there, which has the bride obviously upset — but mostly because a death would hamper her wedding. After this encounter, Phoebe strikes up an unlikely friendship with the bride and becomes deeply entangled in their wedding party.

The Wedding People is a very funny and tender story that shows life can take us down different paths than we ever imagined — sometimes all it takes is a chance encounter.

Was the Book Good/Bad?

I really enjoyed how this book dove into the characters and really highlighted the humanity of each person. It was a really well written book with an interesting plot and strong character development.

I would definitely recommend giving this one a try if you’re looking for a new book to read. It’s worth the hype.