Review: Save the Date by Morgan Matson

Hey all, Dani here.

Wow…I read this book last July…and then never got around to writing the review. Bad blogger. Anyway, I’m still working on trying to catch up on my review backlist, and I’m doing better than I thought I would, so I guess that’s a good thing. With any luck I’ll be able to keep writing up a post a day until I actually do catch up on my backlog.

So today I’m bringing you a summer-y contemporary romance.

Summary

Charlie Grant’s older sister is getting married this weekend at their family home, and Charlie can’t wait for the first time in years, all four of her older siblings will be under one roof. Charlie is desperate for one last perfect weekend, before the house is sold and everything changes. The house will be filled with jokes and games and laughs again. Making decisions about things like what college to attend and reuniting with longstanding crush Jesse Foster all that can wait. She wants to focus on making the weekend perfect.

The only problem? The weekend is shaping up to be an absolute disaster. There’s the unexpected dog with a penchant for howling, house alarm that won’t stop going off, and a papergirl with a grudge.

There are the relatives who aren’t speaking, the (awful) girl her favorite brother brought home unannounced, and a missing tuxedo. Not to mention the neighbor who seems to be bent on sabotage and a storm that is bent on drenching everything. The justice of the peace is missing. The band will only play covers. The guests are all crazy. And the wedding planner’s nephew is unexpectedly, distractedly cute.

Over the course of three ridiculously chaotic days, Charlie will learn more than she ever expected about the family she thought she knew by heart. And she’ll realize that sometimes, trying to keep everything like it was in the past means missing out on the future.

My Thoughts

Rating: 4.5 stars

This has been my least favorite Morgan Matson book so far. Sorry, but The Unexpected Everything still ranks at the top, followed by Since You’ve Been Gone. I haven’t read her first couple novels yet. Maybe someday.

The first third was a little slow. I didn’t connect with the story or the characters as easily. Frankly, I’m thinking that it is because this story is set up to take place over just three days. It forced certain scenarios or encounters in a way that didn’t feel as organic to me. Those didn’t make the story bad or anything; it was just harder to feel attached to what was going on.

But then the story picked up and I was hooked. I love Matson’s ability to have a fun summer contemporary that also has this underlying serious and/or emotional vein in it. I feel like she has done this with each of her books that I’ve read. You feel like you’re just enjoying the story and the summer fun, and then wham! There is an unexpected scene with some serious emotional ramifications. It’s fantastic.

Oh, and I love that there are cameos from characters of her previous books. Yes, Andie and Clark are in this one, which I loved. It was nice to see how they were doing a year later.

There was one point when I was reading this book (at the end of my lunch break, actually) that pretty much punched me in the gut. I teared up a bit. I’m not going to say any more, because I definitely don’t want to get into spoiler territory. All I can say is that I can’t wait to see what Matson comes up with next.

Where to Buy

You can pick up this newest Morgan Matson release from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-million, Book Depository, or your local indie bookstore.