This collection of five tales has one thing in common --
yep, cold feet. Should they take the big plunge or
shouldn't they? What is happiness anyway? More importantly,
are they going to have it with this person for the rest of
their lives?
In Ms. Juska's story, PERFECT WEATHER FOR DRIVING,
it's the knots of fear that come up as a long-term
relationship doesn't seem to move on. Megan meets a new man
at a cooking class she took to keep herself busy and to
meet new people while Joel works all the time. But is that
attraction just a way to avoid the problems in her
relationship with Joel?
Ms. McCarthy tells my favorite story in the book, LOSING
CALIFORNIA, about Alison who's engaged to be married
but is infatuated with a member of her favorite band, the
Deductibles. When her mother dies right before the wedding,
causing a postponement, she's left stumbling around,
fighting the unreasonable feelings she has for the band
guy, Michael. Instead, she finds herself traveling across
the world to meet him, determined to set her feelings to
rest once and for all.
In Ms. Ribon's story, SARA KING GOES BAD, the bride-
to-be can't bear the thought of getting married. Two weeks
before the wedding, she packs up her things (they live
together) and breaks her goody two shoes mold for a night
of bad behavior. And boy, she doesn't do things by halves,
ending up in trouble with the law. But the real question
is -- does she know what her heart wants?
Ms. Swain deals with the classic wedding challenge in her
story, THE HAPPIEST DAY OF YOUR LIFE. Annie and Ben
have planned a simple wedding, but things begin to happen
and the wedding, as weddings are wont to do, gets out of
control. What is this getting married stuff really about
anyway?
In Ms. Tucker's EMILY AND JULES, you'll meet Emily,
who retreated into her home with panic attacks, gradually
convincing herself she is agoraphobic. Somewhat. She starts
writing to an online support group, feeling welcome and
comforted there. She also meets Jules in that group, and
they begin communicating online and then talking on the
phone all the time. As their feelings grow, so does Emily's
feeling that she is wronging Jules. She's not agoraphobic
and how can she confess that?
This book was an interesting read, partly because each
writer had such a different style. And although there's a
common theme, it's approached in such different ways,
there's sure to be a story to appeal to everyone. It sure
makes you think about marriage, and the millions of myriad
details that go into selecting a life mate. And then
there's certainly no guarantee on the "happily ever
after."
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