The Good Bride by Jen Marie Wiggins @jenmariewiggins @theladyhamlet @dreamscape_media #TheGoodBride

the setup…
It’s been a year since Hurricane Carrie ravaged the coastal town of Blue Compass, Georgia and they’re still struggling to recover. But the upcoming wedding of Ruth Bancroft, the youngest daughter of wealthy matron Caroline Bancroft and her ex-husband Thad, who is estranged from his three daughters, should infuse some much needed revenue for the small business community. It’s going to be the event of the year and there’s a lot at stake for many. There’s Kayla the wedding planner who is counting on this providing a much needed boost to her business; there’s Ruth’s oldest sister Sophie who’s counting on it to further race her Instagram influencer profile; and Caroline who wants to be the real main attraction, just to name a few.

the heart of the story…
I got a strong sense of each of the characters and always felt like everything was building to some main event other than the wedding. My instincts were right on as something catastrophic happens the night before at the rehearsal dinner. I was also expecting Ruth to be a bridezilla but Caroline wore that mantle and well! It’s a really slow burn getting there, however, and it took some patience. There aren’t a lot of likable characters here and the lifestyle and behavior of the rich is quite off putting. But the last half of the story was a page turner.

the narration…
Marni Penning was great at creating distinctive voices for the critical characters and especially nailed Caroline and Sophie. Her storytelling skills were really strong, particularly as this took a while to come together.

the bottom line…
Despite all of the events, mystery, intrigue and excitement of the second half, the build up and character development of the first half is what made this a success in the end. Have patience as the payoff came. And, opt for the audio version if you can.

Book Info

• Release Date: December 10, 2024
• Narrator: Marni Penning
• Audio Length: 8 hours, 22 minutes
• Publisher: Dreamscape Media

Listen to a Sample!

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(Thanks to NetGalley and the Dreamscape Media for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.)