The Marrying Type
By Laura Chapman
My Review 4.5 Stars!!
This book was so much fun to read! Elliot is the perfect wedding planner, what any bride wanting the very best day looks for and the one that is known for executing flawless events. But when she discovers the family business is sinking, she reluctantly agrees to take part in a reality tv series to save the family business; spending the wedding season with a camera crew watching her every step. Little does she know her biggest wedding of that season will change her whole life.
I don't often enjoy books surrounding wedding, they usually just aren't unique enough, but this one was one I simply loved! Elliot's story was heartbreaking, but fun to read! Not only does she get to help make the perfect day for so many brides, but all the bumps along the way kept the story moving and I truly could not put it down!
Excerpt:
Hello! Below please find your excerpt for Laura’s THE MARRYING TYPE tour. Thanks!
Her cell phone rang. Distracted by the reasonably priced moo shu pork and the rumbling in her stomach, she answered the phone. “Engagements, Elliot speaking.”
“I’m in trouble, and you’re my only hope.” Perching the phone between her ear and shoulder to keep her hands free so she could continue sifting through the papers, Elliot waited for her cousin, Marissa, to continue. “My TV show concept was green-lit, and we’ve been asked to shoot a full first season.”
“Congratulations,” Elliot answered without dropping a beat. “Which one?”
“It’s the one about wedding planners.”
“Which one?” Elliot repeated. When Marissa had brainstormed possibilities for her small production company’s next reality program, she’d come up with at least half a dozen ideas surrounding wedding planners. Elliot hoped the network hadn’t gone with the one that pit a bunch of wedding planners against each other to land a date with a handsome millionaire. It seemed too desperate and degrading.
“It’s the one that follows four wedding planners from across the country to document the ups and downs of the business for a summer,” Marissa said.
Elliot released a breath of relief on behalf of planners everywhere. “I remember that concept.” She’d given her cousin a little background on the wedding industry to develop the pitch.
“Do you need more information on the latest trends?”
“Actually, yes, but that’s not all.” Marissa paused, and Elliot stopped sorting while she waited for her cousin to ask for another favor. It didn’t take long. “There’s something else.”
Elliot shook her head in amusement, nearly dropping her phone in the process. “What do you need?”
“We have three planners lined up. One in Manhattan—he’s sassy and fabulous, and I love him. We found someone in L.A. She’s a mean little wench. People are going to love hating her. We have a cute old couple in Chicago. Their story is freaking adorable.” Marissa cleared her throat. “We need a planner from the south, and I figured . . .”
“No.” Elliot turned her focus back to sorting. “You cannot follow the Engagements team for the summer.”
“Come on. Our Dallas planner dropped out, and we need someone from the south.”
“Charleston and Dallas aren’t interchangeable,” Elliot said.
“It’s still a southern city.”
“A small southern city. They’re hardly the same.” Elliot dumped a stack of old wedding announcements and programs in a box to archive. “Besides, I’m not sure our gentlemanly forefathers would like to be put in the same category as cowboys. Find someone in Atlanta or New Orleans.”
“The network adores the idea of setting one of our planners outside of a major metropolitan area. When I told them about your family . . .”
“I appreciate you considering Engagements, but now isn’t the right time.” Elliot doubted her father or sister would ever agree there was a right time to air their dirty laundry on a reality TV show. Still, family was family, and she didn’t want to disappoint Marissa. Angering her cousin would undoubtedly make next Thanksgiving more than a little uncomfortable. “I can put you in touch with a few of my contacts.”
And that was as much as she would do. With Walter’s retirement, Elliot would be far too busy figuring out the transition with her sister. Negotiating the company’s future would pose plenty of its own challenges. While Libby had been quick to support their father’s announcement at dinner, she hadn’t been as fast to offer any business management ideas. After a nasty divorce,
Libby had devoted most of the last year to spending her paychecks rather than earning them.
Marissa pressed on. “I don’t have time to win over a complete stranger. We have to start filming in one week—two at the most. The execs want you.”
“Again, thank you, but I’m sure you can find someone a million times more interesting than us to film. We’re simple people. Boring, simple people.”
“We’ll provide a hefty lump sum for everyone who participates,” Marissa continued on, ignoring Elliot’s protests. “We have serious advertisers on board. They’re willing to pay big bucks for wedding-related entertainment.”
Elliot had no doubt. Weddings were a lucrative business.
While Marissa continued to spout out details about her TV show, Elliot found yet another shoebox filled with envelopes and receipts. Barely avoiding a grimace, she removed the lid. Her brow creased. Second notices. Third notices. Still balancing the phone, she reached for a calculator and tallied up the figures. The past due amounts grew higher and higher.
Why weren’t these bills being paid? The most recent carried yesterday’s date. Something was not right. Surely their accountant settled these bills promptly, or at least he’d better have a good explanation.
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