🎧 The Wedding People by Alison Espach
It took me years to finish this book.
I first picked it up as an eBook from the library back in 2024, but I couldn’t get into it. This month, I gave it another try as an audiobook and was pleasantly surprised.
And when I say pleasantly surprised, I should probably clarify that the beginning of the book is not exactly cheerful.
The main character, Phoebe, is reeling from her divorce and planning to end her life. She checks into a hotel she has seen online, only to discover that a wedding party has taken over the entire place.
And that’s when things get interesting.
I’m still not quite sure what genre this book is supposed to be. I’ve seen it listed as book club fiction, romance, contemporary fiction, literary fiction, chick lit, summer reading and humor. Personally, I didn’t get a strong literary fiction vibe from it, but that could just be me.
Regardless, I’m glad I gave it another chance. The audiobook was worth it.
🎧 James by Percival Everett
Now this one? I understand the literary fiction label.
James is a satirical retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn told from Jim’s point of view.
Historical fiction isn’t usually my favorite genre, but this book definitely made me think. It also made me angry about how often people seem determined not to learn from the past.
Enough said.
🎧 Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth
Apparently octogenarians are having a moment, because this is the fifth book I’ve read this year featuring a main character in their eighties.
Mad Mabel alternates between Mabel as an old lady, her words, not mine, and Mabel as a child. I really enjoyed getting to understand her history from both perspectives and seeing how the events of her childhood shaped the woman she became.
That being said, I am officially taking a break from octogenarian fiction for the remainder of 2026.
Nothing against eighty-something protagonists, but spoiler alert! I’m tired of getting attached to characters who die.
My heart needs a vacation.
My Watch List
📺 Big Mistakes
Dan Levy is amazing.
In case you didn’t already know.
Big Mistakes made me laugh ridiculously hard at some very inappropriate things, and apparently that was exactly what I needed.
Levy plays Nicky, an openly gay pastor whose family is…well…interesting. The cast is fantastic, the humor is wonderfully offbeat, and my only complaint is that there is just one season with eight episodes.
Eight?
I need more.
📺 Practical Magic
An oldie, but definitely a goodie.
I rewatched Practical Magic to get in the mood for Practical Magic 2, which comes out September 10.
But I also had a little ulterior motive.
I watched it while working on The Way Light Found Her, my story in Hex & Hearth, which releases August 27.
Hex & Hearth is a 10-author, 10-story paranormal romance anthology set in the magical coastal town of Driftwood Pointe, Massachusetts. Writing my little corner of this world was so much fun, and I can’t wait for readers to visit.
If you missed any of my previous What to Read posts and are always looking for your next book, you can find them all in my monthly reading archive.
Happy reading, and apparently, happy watching too. 📚✨
Until next time…