The Wedding Date Universe

 Dear Readers, 

It's been a while! 'Twas a rough few weeks, but I'm back! As I figured out what series to review next, I realized it may be feasible to group the reviews by genre. That makes sense, right? I started with Romance, so one more won't hurt. I'm excited though because I get to review The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory, and my favorite books that are subsequently in the same universe. I have never read multiple books, from the same author, that made me smile from cover to cover. Most authors lose that momentum after the first few books, especially in a series. These books are not the same. I was seriously rooting for each character, there was not one character in any of the pairings that I can say didn't deserve the other. Granted, I am only reviewing three of her books, but her stories and characters make me grab her books anytime I'm in heaven (You may see me refer to heaven frequently, please know that in my mind, Barnes & Noble is the earth equivalent to heaven). Since there are only three that I am reviewing, I'll give you a quick summary of each, then my favorite parts of each book, and why these books seem to stand out over the others. 

The Wedding Date follows Drew and Alexa's story. There is only one thing sweeter than a meet-cute, and that is a meet-cute with instant attraction. Their story starts with them being trapped in an elevator and Drew needing a last-minute wedding date. What started as a fake girlfriend needed to fill a dreadful weekend full of your ex's wedding bliss, ended with Drew uprooting his life to be with Alexa. Although my favorite trope is the enemies-to-lovers trope, opposites attract may be a close second. Alexa is a no-bullshit lawyer living in Berkley, actively working to make amends for one of her childhood mistakes. Drew, on the other hand, is a carefree pediatric doctor living in Los Angeles who has commitment issues. The best part of this story is that for months, they flew back and forth to be with each other, to make it work. The effort that was put into making their relationship work, made the quality time lover in me, squeal! One of the things that stuck with me is when Alexa checked Drew on his privilege, instead of arguing his point of view, he reflected on what she said and received it. This storyline revitalizes my jaded perception of dating strangers. 

The Wedding Party is Theo and Maddie’s story and let me tell you, the chemistry between these two characters is palpable. It's hilarious to see their relationship unfold behind the scenes because there were glimpses of it during The Wedding Date. They are both Alexa's best friends and from Alexa's point of view, they hate each other. It's the classic case of passion being so vibrant that it's hard to differentiate between love and hate. I think it's important to acknowledge that the opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. Which was why their chemistry was so electric. I digress, back to their story. They wanted to hide their situationship from Alexa while also trying to navigate their budding attraction to each other. What they learn in the end, though, is that they are more similar than they originally thought. Unlike Alexa, Maddie is confident in a way that makes you jealous and in awe simultaneously. She's the chaotic and charismatic best friend that everyone should aspire to be. However, the only person that she's insecure around is Theo. Confidence for Theo comes naturally. Especially through his identity at work. He worked hard to get there, and he is proud of it. So proud that he sometimes trivializes Maddie's career as a stylist. My favorite thing about this story is their need to be unapologetically themselves. Historically there is always been this stigma around Black people working twice as hard to be half as good, so it's always refreshing to see it realistically reflected in literature. 

Party of Two is Scandal if it was written by a Disney princess. Olivia, Alexa's big sister, is a hot-shot lawyer who coincidentally meets a handsome man at a hotel bar. Unbeknownst to Olivia, the hot guy from the bar is Senator Max Powell. Olivia knows exactly what it means to date a politician so she is against knowing him until he sends cake, which she loves. Olivia is calculated but fun, while Max may also be calculated, he is a short fuse. As you could imagine, it is hard enough dating a normal but with the added spotlight, it added an extra layer of insecurity that made Olivia uncertain. My favorite part is how Max, even if his actions were slightly misguided, respected and loved Olivia. Even when he was unsure of how deep his feelings went, he still went out of his way to make her feel seen. Listen, the hopeless romantic in me will always swoon over someone being unequivocally in love with their partner. Their obstacles were not embedded in insecurity, but the public scrutiny. Max's impulsive need to always be right or ahead of a problem, made Olivia's anxiety over their relationship deepen. Max's desire to fix his problematic traits to appeal to Olivia will forever live in my head rent-free. 

These books stand out because while they are swoon-worthy, they are still realistic. Romance novels tend to set unrealistic standards of love. Two people who have a mutual friend in common hate each other, but in reality the hate was so passionate it evolved into love. I swear I've lived that story. A woman meeting a hot-ass man at a bar just to find out he's a Senator? Okay let's be honest, how many Senators can you name in a lineup? This girly is not confident in that particular skill set. Even Drew and Alexa being stuck in an elevator so they bond over their shared love of snacks and alcohol is plausible. I have reread The Wedding Date four times, and each time I find another aspect of the book that draws me in. The realism in the stories make me want to find love, not the dramatized stories we are used to reading. 

As a child, I detested romance novels. Jane Austen is overrated, most of the characters were white women, and let's be honest, Fantasy is so much better. Twenty-Six year old me, however, can appreciate a great story that makes my heart melt. I guess stories like this make me appreciate the representation of Black love or Black characters in stories, more. I will never relate to porcelain skin and sky-blue eyes, but I can relate to Alexa's worry about humidity or Olivia knowing the public would be harder on her because she's Black. I know that I have said it before, but these books validate my dating experiences because of the representation. I have dated outside my race, I know what its like to think that fundamentally your partner may not understand how you are feeling because it is different. These books contain Black love and interracial love and it embodies both of those experiences very well. Overall, these books are the bomb. If you are ever in need of a good story, with great character development, and swoon-worthy relationships, Jasmine Guillory is the way to go.

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