4 Star
On the surface, Olivia has it all: a high-powered career, a loving family, and a handsome fiancé. She even seems to be coming to terms with her mother Jane’s premature death from cancer. But when Jane’s final wish is revealed, Olivia and her elder sister Georgia are mystified. Their mother rarely spoke of her rural Southern hometown, and never went back to visit—so why does she want them to return to Huntley, Georgia, to scatter her ashes?
Jane’s request offers Olivia a temporary escape from the reality she’s long been denying: she hates her “dream” job, and she’s not really sure she wants to marry her groom-to-be. With her 14-year-old niece, Logan, riding shotgun, she heads South on a summer road trip looking for answers about her mother.
As Olivia gets to know the town’s inhabitants, she begins to peel back the secrets of her mother’s early life—truths that force her to finally question her own future. But when Olivia is confronted with a tragedy and finds an opportunity to right a terrible wrong, will it give her the courage to accept her mother’s past—and say yes to her own desire to start over?
Sabrina-Kate - 4 Star
The story of Olivia was pretty interesting and emotional as it involved her coming to terms with the death of her mother, Jane, to cancer and her dying wishes. Olivia has to not only deal with her feelings over losing her mother but she also begins to discover a whole other life and experiences that her mother had that she knew nothing about which must have been somewhat heartbreaking to discover.
I would have rated Cancel the Wedding higher if I didn't find that the beginning was a bit confusing during the period when Olivia started to discover and understand her mother's past. If the details had to be revealed a little bit at a time then it could have been done in a way that was more logical or at least not so trying at times to follow.
The story of Olivia's life becomes as tangled and complicated as her mother's past, which is saying something. Riddled by doubts, the revelations about her mother's life help her to ultimately come to terms with her own and make some important decisions.
A fascinating read with complex twists and turns, Cancel the Wedding is a book for someone who likes a little mystery in their story.
Thank you to Harper Paperbacks for our review copy. All opinions are our own.
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