Review – The Wedding Diary by Margaret James

My 87 year old mother tells me that The Silver Locket (free on Kindle at time of writing) is one of the best books she’s ever read – sadly I can’t endorse that because the book (along with its sequels The Golden Chain and The Penny Bangle) is still languishing on my Kindle, awaiting its turn. But I was intrigued to see that Margaret James had written a book with a present day setting, read it in two sittings, and have to say I absolutely loved it.

Cat Aston wins a fairytale wedding in a competition, but there is one big problem – her fiance Jack is no longer around, having gone away to “find himself”.  Cat plays along for a while – maybe Jack will come back and everything will work out.  Meanwhile, Adam Lawley proposes to his girlfriend and is rejected. When Adam meets Cat at the reclamation yard where she works – he renovates old houses – there is an immediate attraction. As he knows about the wedding, Adam believes Cat to be off limits, but they can’t stop thinking about each other.

There are no massive surprises in the way the story plays out (although there are many twists, turns and misunderstandings), but this is such a well written book, with immensely likeable main characters and a real feel good feeling about it.  The subsidiary characters are really well drawn too – the hapless Jack, Cat’s friends, and the wonderful Fanny from Supadoop Productions. I particularly loved the Italian setting for part of the story – vividly drawn, and wonderfully romantic.

This is one I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys a bit of escapism and romance, but likes it really well written.  Lots of funny moments, highly entertaining and a joy to read.  Don’t go on holiday without it – well done Margaret, and another winner from Choc Lit. (And sometime soon, I’ll have to see if my Mum was right about the others…)