Our Ex's Wedding

by Taleen Voskuni

Two people who can’t stand each other must come together to plan their mutual ex’s wedding in this new romantic comedy by Taleen Voskuni, author of Lavash at First Sight.

Ani Avakian was supposed to be the Bay Area’s premier Armenian wedding planner by now. But after a huge blow to her business, she’s determined to redeem herself by taking on the biggest job of her career: a wedding for an indie movie star. The wedding is set at a stunning Armenian-owned winery, and Ani is eager to connect with the owner, who she’ll be working closely with. But then she actually meets him. Sure, Raffi is ridiculously hot and charming, but he’s also insufferably smug. Though the real gut punch comes when Ani meets the happy couple—because the actress’s fiancée is none other than the woman who shattered her heart two years ago: her ex-girlfriend, Kami.

All Raffi Garabedian has ever wanted is to make his father proud. Taking over the family winery should be his dream come true—but its first major event is off to a rocky start, thanks to one irritating(-ly beautiful) wedding planner who challenges him at every turn. He’s shocked to find that they have one thing in common, however: their mutual ex, Kami. Despite the record level of awkwardness, they’ll have to work together to make sure this wedding goes perfectly. But first, they’ll have to deal with the tension sizzling between them—before it turns their ex’s nuptials into a full-blown disaster…or something much more scandalous.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Audiobook, Fiction, Queer, LGBT, Contemporary Romance

416 pages, Paperback

First published January 20, 2026

About the author

Taleen Voskuni is an Armenian-American writer who grew up in the Bay Area diaspora surrounded by a rich Armenian community and her ebullient family. She graduated from UC Berkeley with a BA in English and currently lives in San Francisco, working in tech. Her work has appeared in Cleaver Magazine, The Bold Italic, and Cal Literature & Arts Magazine. Other than a newfound obsession with writing romcoms, she spends her free time cultivating her kids, her garden, and her dark chocolate addiction. Sorry, Bro is her first published novel.

Reviews

[Sylvie {Semi-Hiatus} · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 out of 5 stars!

Everybody, brace yourselves — the newest book boyfriend of 2026 has already arrived.
_________________
I can’t believe I get to read an early copy for one of my favorite anticipated books of next year!!! 🥹

[Taleen Voskuni]

If writing this book was a wedding, I was the tipsy auntie dancing barefoot before page 50. That is to say, I had a blast.
On that note—of me overdoing things for the purpose of writerly thrill—readers may have to suspend some disbelief at the level of catastrophes present with the pages of this novel. Blame it on the 2000s romcoms I grew up on, in which heroes and love interests are dazed and dazzled by some whatsit that crash-landed right into their neatly planned life.
At its core though, this book is my love letter to the burning belief that one person can flip your life’s script and help you become the fiercest, brightest version of yourself. Bit of a slow burn, but I truly believe it's worth it! Happy reading and thank you for picking up this story!

[Mai ༊*·˚ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ★— Is there anything more awkward than meeting your ex’s ex? As this book's heroine quickly learns, yes: having to help organize a wedding with them.

This was so good and perfectly captured what I love in a light rom-com, which is sizzling chemistry, a lively setting, a great supporting cast, and a heroine you can’t help but root for.

And rooting for Ani I was! Insecure in very believable ways, she is desperately trying to hold her life together while gritting her teeth through an excruciatingly awkward wedding-planning situation, and I couldn't help but sympathetically grimace as I got to read her go through it here.

Raffi, this story's MMC, is her classic opposite, with him being a reformed playboy and the wealthy son of a prominent Armenian family. She has a bit of a meet-ugly with him, and from there, the two slowly build a genuinely lovely connection, with him falling hard as she more or less fights to keeps a professional relationship between them.

The story is filled with tons of Armenian cultural references and rich traditions, and as a reader, getting a glimpse into that world was so fun and fascinating!

I also really liked how queerness was handled here. Voskuni highlights how queer characters navigate more conservative-leaning family members and cultural expectations, and how Ani, as a bisexual woman, along with other queer Armenian characters, exists within that space. It all felt thoughtfully explored, while not taking away from the general lighthearted, rom-com tone of the book.

This was just really cute and left me feeling all warm and gooey afterward.

🎧 Audiobook Note
🎙️ Narration Style: Dual
⭐ Listener Rating: 5/5
I loved both narrators and thoroughly enjoyed how perfectly they matched their characters. Listening to this was an absolute delight!

[jenny reads a lot · Rating 4 out of 5]

I fear Rafi Garabedian is that guy.

Reformed playboy, former doctor, stylish, AND a member of a feminist book club?! Get in my bed Rafi, now!

And to be fair Ani Avakian is also that girl, she can get in my bed too. We can make it a party!

Our Ex’s Wedding was such a fun read! Laugh out loud funny, heartwarming, & easy to binge.

My favorite parts of this book were the banter (it’s so good) and how absolutely down bad Rafi is from the start! I lovvvveeee an obsessed man!

Whats to love…
- banter is bantering
- bisexual FMC
- reformed playboy MMC
- laugh out loud funny
- open door spice
- meet disaster (my fav)
- he’s down bad so hard and I love it so much
- brimming with Armenia culture

| IG | TikTok |

Thank you Berkley for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

What if we found out not only that we share the same ex but were stuck planning her wedding together.

Ani Avakian has two problems: credit card debt from a failed wedding and unresolved feelings for the woman who broke her heart. When she gets the chance to plan the wedding of a lifetime for an indie movie star, Ani joins forces with Raffi Garabedian, notorious playboy and owner of the Armenian winery where the wedding is to be hosted. Her initial annoyance with Raffi is greatly surpassed by the revelation that the indie star’s wife to be is Kami, her ex girlfriend. Pulling off the career making wedding is now more important than ever, but it means putting faith in a man she does not like—someone whose heart was also broken by Kami.

Taleen Voskuni unveils her third romance, Our Exes Wedding, rich in backstory, Armenian culture, and wedding planning antics. Two perspectives, Ani: the wedding planner and Raffi: the winery owner face past heartbreak as they attempt to pull off the wedding of the year all while fighting for their respective futures. Taleen Voskuni has a knack for intriguing protagonists and this novel is abundant with the character quirks while evolving a truly fabulous romance. Like the feminist book club Raffi stumbled into entirely by accident that helped him better himself, the whisper network, and the queer entanglements. Our Exes Wedding has the kind of setup that makes for not only an incredible romance but deep character study. Characters Raffi and Ani are simply delightful with a magnetic push and pull that kept my heart racing every time they interacted on page. Ani and Raffi love big and fall hard and with all the internal work their love story feels so earned by the time they get their clients to the altar. Our Exes Wedding is big on the details and unconventional in its setup but it all shapes up a wonderful Armenian romance with a queer twist!

Read my review

Bookstagram | Blog

[gracie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kinda mad that Voskuni didn't make them bi4bi like her other couples but this still stayed true to the witty writing, messy characters and even messier plot and drama I love to read from her. I loved both characters so much and the yearning was so good!!!

[Laura S · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I enjoyed this book, I don’t foresee the characters having any staying power in my memory. They were fine but forgettable.

The entire catalyst for this story bothered me. Ani is scammed out of $50k from a couple whose wedding she planned and fronted all the costs for. Rather than suing them or telling anyone (including her lawyer sister), she takes on the debt and lives in shame. Why is she not operating under an LLC? She has a legal background and should have done more to protect herself. I understand that this plot point is needed to continue the story and explain to the reader why she would put herself through planning her ex’s wedding, but I found it very stupid. I feel there could be some rewriting that makes Ani look like less of an idiot who let this couple take advantage of her.

I liked the relationship between Ani and Raffi, though at times, Rafii felt a little love-bomby. I honestly feel like the book would read better without his POV; the reader could discover his true self at the same time Ani does. Toward the end of the book, it felt like a lot of unnecessary stuff was thrown in to cause conflict, but it was all resolved way too quickly and easily to actually matter.The third act breakup made no sense, and felt like it was written by a child who has no real world grasp on adult relationships.

While I would not recommend this book to anyone, I also would not discourage anyone from reading it. I predict I will forget that it even exists within a few months.

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Cassie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the premise (the ultimate bisexual romcom) but the execution was tedious and annoying. The MMC is designed to be the ultimate “man written by a woman!!” to the extent that he is literally part of a feminist book club where he mostly just sits back and listens to the wise women in his life. By the midpoint of the book, both main characters exhibit that particular combination of overly performative emotional intelligence and therapy speak that contemporary romance loves right now, and there’s no real tension between the protagonists for the rest of the book. I’m sure some people really connect with this approach to the genre, but I find it so, so boring. Highlights of this definitely include the MMC internally quoting Audre Lorde to himself when he’s trying to get up the courage to tell a hot girl he wants to sleep with her and the nearly-irredeemable evil ex whose bad behavior is so ridiculous that I started to root for her out of spite. Also, the sex scenes are nearly unbearable; I do not know the phrase “he pumped his love and longing, his gratefulness and belonging, for this woman” made it to the final draft, but…oh boy. And he made her come four times! Wow!

I do wish I liked this more — I enjoyed this author’s first book and will always root for an m/f bisexual romance, but this was simultaneously too messy AND not messy enough for me.

[butteafirst (semi-hiatus) · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Yes, Raffi, yes. I love you.” She laughed, then said it again. “I can’t be without you. I love you.”
Raffi held her so tight and kissed the top of her head. “I’ve been wanting to tell you the same thing for a long time, Ani jan. I love you in a way that I can barely control. No one has made me feel this way in my life. No one. It’s you. Since I met you, Ani, it’s always been you.”

“I’ll go anywhere you need me to be. You feel more like home than home ever did.”

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this romcom! The premise is out there (and a perfect set up for hilarious situations.) Two people end up planning the wedding of their mutual ex. Both main characters were so well developed and I loved both of them. The FMC is bisexual and both main characters are Armenian. Raffi and Ani both have fantastic growth and their love is so believable and sweet. I 100% recommend

[Tamar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Voskuni does it again with Our Ex’s Wedding—what a propulsive, sweet, and (as usual) laugh-out-loud funny love story! I cannot recommend it enough.

Unlike Voskuni’s other novels, this time we have a MMC, Raffi, and what an absolute TREAT he is. Peak book boyfriend. Gorgeous (of course), smart as hell, owns a freaking winery, and the kicker is that he’s a reformed playboy going through his own journey of self-discovery and trying to better himself. Don’t we wish all men were doing this???

The FMC Ani is an equally delicious dessert (this book is a bisexual feast, truly) who is trying to save her business while navigating this truly ridiculous, uncomfortable, and for us entertaining situation of planning her ex’s wedding with her ex’s OTHER ex. Honestly could it get any better?

It can. Add in the ambience of Napa Valley and the truly unbeatable MOOD of weddings (and wedding planning mishaps), and the result is a gorgeously written feel-good love story that I could NOT put down.

[Patile · Rating 5 out of 5]

Taleen Voskuni never disappoints!! I was super grateful to receive an ARC for this book since I was so looking forward to reading this.

I loved the dynamics of the two main love interests and with every page I just wanted more!! This book has the perfect balance of tension, banter and romance. Highly recommend to any and all romance readers!!

[Pam Pratt · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up. I enjoyed this one, was a bit of a random read but glad I picked this one. Rounded down at first but there were some elements I really enjoyed and made it a quick read for me.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

He said I'm gonna give you the greatest proposal ever and it's in the fucking car

Kill me

[Parisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

these books are my guilty pleasure! sue me!

[Jen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Let me start with the good, of which there is very little. I loved learning a bit more about Armenian culture.

Now, the bad - literally the whole book. What even was this storyline? And these characters? Both of them were the most insecure people I’ve ever read. Their love was not believable or compelling in anyway. They had zero chemistry. I actually wish I could un-read this. You may be wondering, why don’t i just stop when they’re this bad? I’m still learning how to DNF books lol.

[Britt · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really should have DNF

The characters feel like tropes and unreal. Raffis POV does not feel like it’s a man at all, and the queerness feels very brushed aside and not as centered as promised. What little plot that rears its head in the third act is so laughable and forced that you just have to brace yourself to get thru it.

[Katrina (Catching up on Reviews) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ani, a wedding planner, and Raffi, a winery owner, are forced to work together to plan a celebrity wedding...only to discover that the bride is... are you ready?... She is the the ex to both of them! As they navigate the awkward situation and their constant clashes, they begin to develop unexpected feelings for each other.

[Tamara · Rating 1 out of 5]

unfortunately this was a complete miss for me

I really disliked the writing style - which felt pretty juvenile - and the story was just not engaging (pun intended) enough, so I ended up skimming through the latter half of the book just to see how it wrapped up and get it over with

[Vil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Swoooooooooooooooooon.

This was so adorable. I loved so much about it--both the main characters of the romance, the very Hallmark movie-esque wedding vibes, the casual wokeness and the character development that happened both before and during this book, all so good!

On top of all that, we have representation for Armenian culture--which happened to coincide very much with my own, and that was fun--and beautiful family relationships that grow. The side-stories with Raffi and his father finding a middle ground between their conflicting beliefs (it was love, it's always love), and Ani and her sister finally bonding over the pressure they've felt their whole lives and the conflicting ways they'd dealt with it--all handled so well and so very, very touching.

I also really love that even the side characters aren't reduced to typical romance tropes. It would have been very easy to have their mutual ex be shallow and clueless for the entire book, but we also find depth and a willingness to grow there, and a reason to appreciate the process of the main couple planning her wedding. Everyone was so human, and so fleshed out, and I give major props to the author for having thought about even the more minor characters in the story who would typically be cardboard cutouts in many other books.

So good! Chef's kiss! No notes!

Raffi is setting the bar real high for all future book boyfriends.

[Andrea Rodrigues · Rating 4 out of 5]

Firstly thank you to Net Galley & Berkley for this ARC. I genuinely enjoyed this Armenian romance and enjoyed learning about the culture as well. I thought the plot was super cute and spicy in its own way. Ani is in debt with her wedding planning business and then her ex Kami comes to her to plan her wedding. She’s still working out her feelings for her but agrees. The winery at where the wedding is taking place is at Rafi’s winery “O” and Rafi is also Kami’s ex. However, as they deal with their old feelings for Rafi they soon realize that they have feelings for each other. I loved seeing both characters developed. Loved seeing how Rafi grew so much. The growth for Rafi was beautiful to see. He genuinely caught my heart. I also loved seeing the growth for Ani too and seeing her work through some of her old feelings for Kami and her own insecurities. I genuinely enjoyed this read!

[Mel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was kind of meh for me. I think maybe I don’t love stories where the wedding planner falls for someone else involved in the wedding bc it always involves an over the top bride or something and I’m just annoyed by it all. The stakes in this one seemed very low like why couldn’t Ani just tell people her first big wedding clients had scammed her? Why the big secret?? I wasn’t really that invested in the pairing.

[Charli Franks · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8 ⭐️ I enjoyed the chaos & humor of this book. I didn’t absolutely love it, but I didn’t absolutely hate it either.

[Heather Talbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved learning about a new culture, but wasn’t too impressed by the book itself. How many times could there be so many accidents that ruined someone clothes?

[Mantha Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

2 parts hot rich armenian people, 1 part Bay Area references, 1 part juicy unnecessary drama, and a splash of feminism. Voila!

[Trigger Warning Database]

Trigger & Content Warnings

Financial difficulties discussed (credit card debt)

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable romance with great Armenian and LGBTQ+ rep. A wedding planner and winery owner team up to plan a high profile $$$ wedding for their ex-girlfriend, only to fall in love themselves. The premise is nuts, and the reason is dumb. This wedding planner, who is a former paralegal and whose sister is a high-powered attorney, gets scammed out of $50,000 from a former client—and she can’t get the money back. This doesn’t even make sense! The MMC is always just showing up at the right place and right time. To be honest all the crazy things happening at this wedding are 100% because of an inexperienced wedding planner. Like girl! Also she almost drowns in a fountain she already called out for being unsafe. It’s so dramatic and for what?

[Stefanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will read everything Taleen Voskuni writes! There is something so special and healing about seeing Armenian characters (and queer Armenian characters) in a romcom.

This one was a bit different than her previous 2 books. It's dual POV (with a male main character) and written in 3rd person. I think the start was a bit slow but there was a great set up between all our characters. It's so messy between Raffi, Ani, and Kami and it's great. The premise of planning an ex's wedding is very unique but the plot really wasn't anything groundbreaking. The strength really lies in the main characters - you really end up rooting for them and believing their feelings for each other, their interactions, and their growth. I was cheering Ani on at the end (especially in how her relationship with Kami evolved). I loved the check in with Nareh from her first book "Sorry, Bro", but you don't need to read it to enjoy this one.

Rated 4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC ebook.

[Charlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 - There is nothing more awkward than planning your ex’s wedding. Except planning your ex’s wedding, with another of her exes.

Ani runs a wedding planning business. After a setback, she agrees to take on a wedding for an up-and-coming movie star. The only problem is she is marrying her ex, Kami. She needs this wedding to be a success, but planning with the owner of the winery may be a problem. Raffi is charming and hot, but he is smug too. He is also Kami’s ex. Raffi has a lot banking on this wedding too. He wants to prove to his dad that he can pull this winery out of the red and make it a Napa hotspot. The beautiful wedding planner may be a problem. She challenges him at everything he does. As the two work together, they discover that the time they spend together isn’t as bad as they expected, but they agree they cannot go public with their relationship until the big wedding happens.

This was the perfect light rom-com. It had me laughing from the beginning and throughout. Ani and Raffi made me laugh out loud. Ani handled these mishaps like a champ and was always fast to recover and fix the problem. I found myself rooting for Ani the whole time. She was insecure and embarrassed that she was scammed in a previous wedding, but didn’t want anyone to know. Raffi is Ani’s opposite. He is strict and by the book, but Ani pulls him out of his shell many times. He falls fast and hard for Ani, while she works to keep the relationship as professional as possible. Even once they decide to take a chance, she wants it kept secret until after the wedding, to keep her reputation intact.

That said, there were some parts I struggled with. I felt that the problems thrown at them in the third act were too many and too fast, also resolving too fast. If you’re going to have third act conflict, I don’t like it resolved so quickly or without a good grovel. I did love the exploration of the Armenian culture and traditions, learning while I went along. I also thought the exploration of queerness and how it is handled with conservative family members was handled well.

Even with my struggles, I still found myself enjoying this one. I liked Ani and Raffi together and found myself rooting for them. If you love a book about weddings, with a chaotic, messy ex, and lots of feelings, this would be the perfect book for you.

Thank you to Berkley for a copy of this book. All opinions are 100% mine!

[Emily Midnight · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked a lot of things about this book, and frankly, I wish I liked it more. The premise is hilarious and sets you up for good hijinks, the male protagonist is interesting and swoonworthy, the female protagonist is cool, the setting is great, and the side characters that create chaos are interesting.

So why didn't I like it? I can only put my finger on some of it:

First, the male protagonist is a reformed playboy, and I liked how they approached having him be truly reformed... But it felt a little heavy handed, and at times preachy.

Second, I thought the female protagonist had a good reason to be unwilling to go for him right away, but I thought the execution was sloppy. She would have all these resolutions in one scene, then be mentally super into him, then do some of the work overcoming her reservations and go for him, then in the next scene it would be like all that work hadn't happened. I get being all over the place with your emotions, but this didn't feel like that, it just felt sloppy.

Third, the couple were very communicative in a way that I liked . . . at first . . . but each scene would take it too far in a way that felt performative and over the top. That might just be a preference thing, though.

The last thing was the one that really took the enjoyment out of the book for me: the writing was pretty repetitive. The author used the same sentence structures over and over and over when the main characters thought of each other fondly, to the point that it was distracting and frustrating to read.

The worst part is I LOVE the premise!! So much of this book is good and any time I set it down I would find myself rewriting the book in my head because the ideas and scene were so good at a concept level. I just wish it had been executed differently.