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Shannon McNear

Shannon McNear

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Review of A Wedding Invitation

October 12, 2011 by Shannon McNear Leave a Comment

Finally it’s time for the review of this lovely book! And I wanted to announce, there was some confusion with my last post about my hosting a giveaway, since so many bloggers do that … but Alice has graciously agreed to provide a signed copy of A Wedding Invitation to one commenter from either the interview post or this one!

Now, on to the review.

A Wedding Invitation is the story of a girl who attends a friend’s wedding—only to find it’s not her friend at all, and the events set in motion by her being there just might change her life forever.

Samantha Bravencourt has been happy enough working in her mother’s store since returning from teaching refugees in the Philippines years before. She thinks attending the wedding will be safe enough; after all, it’s a quick trip, and she’ll be able to stay with her aunt. What could go wrong?

She meets a man, who is nice enough and cute enough and again, safe enough, but then she comes face to face with her past—a refugee family whose children she once taught, and another man she’d once loved. She finds that she still does. Will her heart be broken again, or this time, will it be for real? And can she help realize her former student’s dearest wish, to locate her birth mother in time to attend her wedding?

The seemingly random details—the disappearance of Samantha’s mother’s cat, the butterflies that her aunt raises and then releases at special occasions—and the way they interweave with the story’s themes are half this story’s charm. The details are very sweet, as are the way the author weaves in bits of her own experience—from the teaching in the Philippines to the memorial service at the cemetery. I found the story soothing and comforting, with deep issues handled gently. I usually prefer a more serious read, but this was a very nice change of pace, and Wisler’s style is smooth and engaging.

The storyline reminded me a bit of another Southern fiction title, A Hundred Years of Happiness by Nicole Seitz, and those who enjoy her or Beth Webb Hart or Eva Marie Everson would enjoy Alice Wisler’s work.

My thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy. Don’t forget to leave a comment for a chance to win this book!

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Filed Under: A Wedding Invitation, Alice Wisler, book reviews, books, Southern fiction

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