Always The Bridesmaid by Lindsey Kelk

I found this to be a perfectly acceptable example of the genre - wow, that really is damning with faint praise (and pretentious to boot) isn't it.  Sadly, it is true.  There is nothing here to lift this above the serried ranks of chick lit but it was an undeniably fun read.  Not laugh out loud funny but amusing in places.

Maddie might feel like the perpetual bridesmaid but it was more her encounters with her boss that lit the book up for me.  I've had a boss like that, not quite so extreme, but close enough to make me wince and cheer Maddie on in her rebellion.  The friendship ups and downs between Maddie, Lauren and Sarah are well realised and their falling outs and avoidance of each other are very true to life.  For once friendship takes centre stage rather than romance and that was quite refreshing.  Maybe this is as well because the plotting of Maddie's romantic life was rather predictable and dull.

The characterisations are rather sparse and although we get to know Maddie she is still quite flat on the page and I never really felt like I got to know her.  Lauren is a mere cipher and Sarah is definitely a cardboard cut out.  Both girls are defined by their marital status - Sarah about to become divorced and Lauren about to be married and there is little else about them.  Maddie is defined by her job more than anything else, even her disastrous relationship with the two timing Luke (?) and her obliviousness in the face of Tom's rather olde worlde courtship. 

I did enjoy reading the book but it wasn't a gripping page turner (yes, chick lit can be that - see Heidi Swann and Trisha Ashley) and was quite easy to pick up and put down at odd points during the day.  This makes it ideal for the commute or for grabbing a few pages during your lunch break - or desperately slow night shift.

I am now convinced that there is a whole genre of chick lit devoted to event and wedding planners.  We are only 4 months in to the year and I have read as many books with the heroine in that profession.  Not necessarily a bad thing as it is a genuine job but I am starting to ponder on the propensity of authors to use this as a tool to bring love in to the equation.