What Fresh Hell by Lucy Vine

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, despite not being able to relate to the main character in any way, shape or form.  I have never attended a wedding since my own and have no great urge to do so and the thought of a hen do brings me out in hives - so much so I just plain didn't have one.  From friends that have been on them and casual observance in a local seaside town I have to say that Lucy Vine has hit the nail on the head about the extravagance of them and the sheer inanity of them is well described with a humour that tickled my funny bone and did make me snort rather unattractively on more than one occasion.  No mean feat as most supposedly humourous books leave me rather flat.

The intensity of Lilah's relationship with her friends and family is on point and makes it all feel somewhat relatable.  The little asides for each wedding she went to, with their identical menus and sliding scale of presents as she plunges further and further in to debt are a joy.  Sadly the numerous cultural references make this a book which will date rather rapidly and I probably caught this one at the right moment in time for it to feel fresh and fun rather than dated and hackneyed.

The story is told at a rather fast pace and you do have to race to keep up sometimes, but I suppose that speaks to they way most of us live our lives these days.  Including the pre-ponderence of the use of Reply All to the frustrations of everyone concerned.  Everything is all rather throwaway these days and ultimately this story is too but boy did it entertain me and put a genuine grin on my face - for that alone it deserves 5 Stars.

The characterisations are carefully wrought and bring the characters to life on the page.  I think we all know a people pleaser like Lilah, or a Bridezilla like Lauren.  Joely comes out of it all rather less well being self-centred and only seemingly concerned about superficialities but somehow it all works.  Whether or not you like the characters is pretty much irrelevant and I found they all irritated the heck out of me most of the time but I still enjoyed every word on the page.