Review: Sophie Kinsella – Wedding Night

The River reviews the newest release from chick-lit queen Sophie Kinsella.

Laura Rietz

The older she gets, the more Lottie has to accept that wedding material is hard to find – especially if your boyfriends refuse to give up their freedom.

One day Lottie is reminded of Ben, an ex with who she made a pact to marry if both are still single at 30. For once, she won’t think about the consequences and soon finds herself in a wedding dress. No, she won’t think about what friends and family will say. Unfortunately, it’s unavoidable when they constantly turn up to change her mind.

Heartwarming writing

Sophie Kinsella’s previous novels, such as Confessions of a Shopaholic or Can you keep a Secret, caused more than just chick-lit lovers to fall in love with her lighthearted writing style.

We can all relate to absurd arguments or deep conversations about the meaning of life, tempting one to say that the material in Wedding Night is another great example of the bestselling author’s talent.

Not the best Kinsella work

Unfortunately, the novel misses the criteria for quality literature on too many occasions.

The least dramatic detail is that the author’s story outline and characters are more or less the same in every novel: a young, female protagonist who is either single or trying to be single, lives a close-to-perfect life until denial hits her and she feels like something is missing.

That’s when her journey to a fulfilled ‘ever after’ begins and, in most cases, ends. This, however, is neither a good nor a bad thing. In fact, many readers love Kinsella for her consistent voice.

Moreover, there is Lottie’s older sister, Fliss. Usually, it is interesting to see shifts in point of view, but here it turns out that Fliss, at times, is telling the reader things already known from Lottie’s narration. The pace gets mixed up and a highly anticipated ending seems to come as less of a surprise.

Light summer read

Having mentioned all this, it is nevertheless important to remind ourselves what books are: pieces of art, and art is wholly based on personal views.

So if you are an absolute Kinsella lover or have simply read all of her novels, do not let me stop you from reading this one too. The best thing: with this 500-page thick book, nobody can complain that there is too little of Sophie Kinsella.

Wedding Night is released on April 25.