Calling It Off: Memoir of an Almost Bride

by Katherine Rose Woller

What happens when “I do” becomes “I don’t”?

In Calling It Off, Katherine Rose Woller, an “almost bride” herself, uses her hard-fought growth, honest reflection, vulnerability, and ultimately flawed human experience to highlight the realities of what it’s like to call off a wedding. By sharing her transformative journey through the fire of a failed engagement and back, she draws on the relatable yet profoundly stigmatized experience of calling off a wedding to illustrate the importance of trusting your gut, stepping through fear, and living authentically for you.

Katherine truthfully and humorously represents herself as one woman, offering one possible perspective, one possible course of action, and ultimately the one thing that makes it all worth the knowledge that if you choose yourself and trust your intuition, there is hope after all. Her mission is to further the conversation around this neglected topic, empower women to choose themselves, provide inspiration, and create a sense of belonging so that others in a similar situation don’t feel so alone in the world of weddings to come.

“Raw, heartfelt, and humorous.” - Carré Otis, Author of Beauty A Memoir, Supermodel, Activist

268 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 3, 2025

Reviews

[Savannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Felt like I was reading my diary. This was so honest and I am so happy to see someone sharing their story of calling their wedding off. Real. I was blubbering tears at various points, not because it was overly sad but because the advice and wisdom sprinkled in were exactly what I needed to hear. Called my wedding off almost 2 weeks ago (I’m also a Denver girly and I could just relate so hard to the authors experiences here) and I needed someone to tell me they’ve done it, it’s okay, and the steps you took to get there are human and you’re not a bad person for leaving. Thank you so much 🩷

[Mackenzie Koch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is vulnerable, well written, and just an insight to Katherine’s experience! As someone who has heard tid bits along her journey from her sisters, I was really excited and intrigued to read her full story in her own words.

[Maria Meitern · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished Calling It Off. An entertaining, honest and often thought-provoking account of the societal pressures women face, and of the lives we construct in the process of trying to meet them. There is something sobering about the possibility that we can do everything we are “supposed to do” and still end up deeply unhappy because we have lost sight of what we actually want.

Kudos to Katherine for having the courage to be true to herself. She may well have saved herself from her own Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? scenario, a fate that makes the case for honesty rather compelling.

A witty, candid and enjoyable read. Recommended.

[Kat Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s such a good read. There were moments where I felt the author was taking the words out of my month about the feelings and doubts that I have. As a non-native English speaker, I also really enjoyed the writing style and the vocabulary—it was engaging without feeling overly complicated. It’s a witty, honest story about something I’ve rarely, if ever, seen anyone talk about so openly.

[Heather Ferg Conklin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great memoir about calling off her wedding. The struggle mentally, physically, emotionally was palpable. Very vulnerable and real.