Don’t kiss the bride – review
“You ain’t tall enough to get on this ride, Sparkles.”
Jude & Skylar
A flirty smile plays on her lips. “You talking about the bike, or you? ’Cuz I think I can handle both.”
Synopsis
Skylar, a 18-year-old high school student, doesn’t really have the time of her life. Her car just broke down and she barely has a place to live. But her health problems and her eating disorder are her biggest worry, because she can’t afford to fill the prescriptions or to follow a treatment plan. Here is where Jude Lucketti, a 34-year-old construction worker intervenes.
Jude/Lucky recently befriended Skylar and witnessed all her bad luck. When he finds out about Skylar’s health issues, he wants to help her, so he offers her the perfect solution: an arranged marriage. The marriage would be only on paper, so that Lucky can put Skylar on his insurance. Skylar agrees, but she has a rule for their agreement: “No kissing the bride at the ceremony.”
But what will happen with their arranged marriage after they break the rule?
Don’t kiss the bride by Carian Cole – book review
Carian Cole is one of my favourite authors. I like her writing style, but mostly I loveeee that every book of hers has at least one cute little pet character. If you are an animal lover, you will love Carian Cole, because she attaches so much importance to pets in her stories. I read all her books and I liked them all. Don’t kiss the bride is one of my favourites, along with Tied and No Tomorrow.
Don’t kiss the bride is a stand-alone novel, with a dual perspective narrative, both from Skylar’s and Lucky’s points of view. At first, the story follows the first interactions between the main characters and the beginning of a friendship between the two. The climax of the narrative is marked by the marriage ceremony, when Lucky brakes the only rule of their agreement.
The story combines two of my favourite romance tropes: age gap relationship and marriage of convenience. The characters were pretty memorable. Lucky is the broody type of hero, with tattoos, long hair and a pretty troubled past. Skylar is the type of heroine I really appreciate in books: she is sassy, smart, hardworking, has a strong personality and doesn’t give up easy on things.
Despite the fact that Skylar is 16 years younger than Lucky, I felt that she was always more mature, more determined and more engaged in their relationship.
“I love him.
Skylar
Enough to stay, enough to go, enough to wait.”
I didn’t like that Lucky was always undecided, although I understood his motives. Because of Lucky’s insecurities, their relationship is full of ups and downs and back and forth. Even though at times is frustrating, it also makes the story more interesting and angstier.
I also loved the side characters, especially Fluffle-Up-A-Gus (Fupagus 😂) and Cassie. They were adorable.
If you are a fan of age gap relationships, arranged marriages and cute little pets who enlighten the story plot, I recommend you to read Don’t kiss the bride. I hope you will like it as much as I did.
