After being hounded by the paparazzi ever since news of their engagement got out, Gemma and Dominic are flying to Scotland for a much-needed romantic getaway. But they didn’t expect to find Dominic’s ex, Natalie, and her husband Rhys, on the very same flight! Landing in a torrential blizzard and with only one hire car (let alone a limo!) between them, the four share a lift….but as the snowdrifts move in, stranding them in an isolated castle, it seems they’ll be reunited for longer than planned!
Now it’s time to say ‘I do!’
In the face of adversity, Gemma does what any self-respecting celebrity fiancée would starts planning a last-minute wedding while she has Dominic to herself! After all, where better for a discreetly decadent wedding than in the middle of nowhere, miles from the nearest celebrity news desk? But marrying an A-lister away from prying eyes was never going to be easy. Will Gemma make it up the aisle? And, more importantly, now she’s miles away from Vera Wang, what is this fashionista going to wear?!
And the Bride Wore Prada is the sensational first book in Katie Oliver’s long-awaited ‘Marrying Mr Darcy’ series, the follow-up to her best-selling ‘Dating Mr Darcy’ trilogy.
Also by Katie
Prada and PrejudiceLove and LiabilityMansfield Lark
Katie Oliver loves a cozy mystery... and Jane Austen novels. So she put the two together to create Professor Phaedra Brighton, an intelligent, outspoken Austen scholar who teaches nineteenth century literature at Somerset University, a small liberal arts college located in Laurel Springs, Virginia.
When Phaedra lands in the middle of a puzzling murder mystery, she enlists the help of the members of the Jane Austen Tea Society, her good friends Lucy Liang and Marisol Dubois.
Ms. Oliver resides in South Florida with her husband, her computer, and an ever-growing stack of cozy mysteries waiting to be read.
After reading Katie's Dating Mr Darcy trilogy last year I was more than happy to see her bring out a second trilogy with the same characters. I really like that idea of going back and seeing what's happening especially when they all are great chick lit reads.
Book one in the Marrying Me Darcy trilogy is this one And The Bride Wore Prada. The cover is bright and perfect to catch the eye of the ever-growing chick lit fanatics. For me I must be brutally honest and say that's were the love ends. I know, I'm shocked myself that I didn't really take to it. To be honest I found the plot far too over dramatic. There was just too much going on. I felt like the characters had all had personalty transplants and we would see the real them every now and again. I also stumbled over timing. One minute it's been two days then without any kind of knowing to us it's a few weeks later. It messed me up. There are also a few more little errors like telling us one thing earlier on in the book then saying something else later on which had me thinking hang on a minute didn't he say this? Didn't he say that? I know it's silly little things, but in my opinion it ruined the read. I absolutely hated Gemma and found anything to do with her incredibly tedious. I do have to say though it did flow altogether brilliantly. And, for a plot with so much in it and so many ups, downs, twists, turns, secrets, lies, scandal that was obviously a hard thing to do so kudos for that.
I'm so sorry I know how brutal this sounds. I don't mean to be rude at all, I'm just trying to be honest. Please remember we are all different and you might absolutely love it. So give it a go.
Having loved Katie Oliver's previous series Dating Mr Darcy, I was looking forward to the start of this new series. Especially since it features a lot of old characters. And yet, I was ultimately disappointed by this book.
It was great to pick up on the stories of Gemma and Dominic, and also Rhys and Natalie, but yet I barely recognised Gemma, since she has turned into a complete bride-zilla. I just didn't get the same fab feeling from this book, than I did from the others.
Gemma, Dominic, Rhys and Natalie are all travelling up to Scotland on the same flight, and when things go wrong at the car hire place, share a car at least part of the way. Once they get to Tarq and Wrens home, there is a blizzard that lasts ages, and they all end up staying there. Then there is Helen, who after following Dominic and Gemma up to Scotland, ends up sending her car into a ditch, fortunately near the ground of Tarq's home, and thus once she is found, she is also asked to stay.
There is a whole host of characters, and each story is moved between at a decent pace, however I think my main problem with this book, is that I felt it was fairly unrealistic.
I did enjoy the book by the end, and had no problem at all reading it, I just can't shake that nagging feeling that this is by nowhere near Katie Oliver's best writing.
A lovely read- lots of smiles, twists and turns and relationship issues! Gemma and Dominic find that they are travelling to Scotland on the same plane as his ex Natalie and her husband Rhys. Unfortunately they arrive in a huge blizzard and as there is only one car have to share the rest of the journey aswell. They are stranded in a castle. They are engaged and she thinks this is the perfect time to plan their wedding. They are away from the troublesome paparazzi . But Helen, who’s car went off the road and is stranded in the same castle is a journalist! A large cast of characters add interest and intrigue. Can Gemma survive away from her designer lifestyle? She’s turning into a bit of a nightmare bride to be! Will this wedding happen after all and will she get the prada dress of her dreams? With many thanks to Carina Uk and Net Galley for a copy of this book.
I’ve not read the previous books in this trilogy, but read this as a one off. It was pretty obvious from the moment Helen arrived at the Gatekeepers Lodge & a conversation the following morning that at least one person was hiding something. The storyline was ok generally. The text itself needs a bit of work & continuity issues.
A torrential blizzard results in an mismatched group staying in an isolated Scottish castle! Now two of them, Natalie and Rhys, were due to be there visiting their friends Tarquin and Wren but they, very kindly, offered a lift to Natalie’s ex, the rock star Dominic and his fiancé Gemma. Then the blizzard results in Helen’s car skidding off the road, necessitating her joining the castle crowd. Throw in the fact that Gemma has turned into Bridezilla, that she and Dom are trying to get married away from the paparazzi and that Helen is secretly a journalist for one of the most notorious publications and with the past coming back to roost and you’ve a recipe for misunderstandings, misgivings and mischief! You still need to add Tarquin’s sister, parents and grandmother to the mix, along with a taciturn gatekeeper and the Bridezilla with all her demands and this can only result in a great story. Will Gemma manage to get the wedding of her dreams, complete with Prada wedding dress or will the snowy blizzards make this wedding a total whiteout?
The story isn’t only about the potential bride and groom but also explores the relationships of others in the castle area, with pregnancies, problems and the past all thrown in for good measure. There are secrets to uncover and hearts to be healed as well as romances to bloom in this delightful story filled with lots of twists, turns and obstacles along the way. Get out your skis, this is going to be one heck of a slalom ride to the conclusion!
Thanks to the author, publishers and NetGalley, too, for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review.
And The Bride Wore Prada, by Katie Oliver, is the first book in the Marrying Mr. Darcy series, the follow-up to her successful and absolutely lovely Dating Mr. Darcy series. All of our favourite characters are back, and with the introduction of new ones, this is a fun and incredibly delightful book.
This book is just as good the other three. These are great characters that you will want to invest your time in and the same goes for each new character that gets introduced in. Helen and Colm are a great addition and I hope that we will get to see more of them in future books.
Once again, Katie Oliver has written a fun and lovely novel for modern day Jane Austen fans. I’m very much looking forward to the next book in the series, Love, Lies, and Louboutins coming out in February!
This was recommended to me by Katie herself as I haven't ever read any of her books and she said this was one of her favourites. Having read it, I can understand why....yes now I'm hooked and shall be reading the rest of the series !! Considering that Katie lives in the US and this was mostly set in Scotland I was a little surprised (though pleasantly), especially considering the title. One doesn't usually think of Scotland in that way, most of the news concerning that part of the UK doesn't touch this side of Scottish Society, oh and it is Society ! This is an upmarket read but with elements of the down to earth as well. It is a lovely all rounder with twists and turns, surprises and let downs, but as chicklit should, has a lovely ending.... I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and can assure you that I shall be re-visiting Katie Oliver's books in the future. Happy reading!
More twists, turns, highs, and lows than a roller coaster. It was great to have Natalie, Rhys, Dominic, and Gemma back, this time in the Highlands of Scotland - stranded at Draemar Castle, home to Natalie's friend, Tarquin and his wife, Wren. I found myself laughing, crying, and shaking my fist throughout the book as we meet new people and witness their near self-destructiveness before learning from their mistakes. Katie really knocked it out of the park with the first book in her new series.
I think this is my favourite of Oliver's books. It was great to meet up with some old characters - wild, complaining Dom, Bridezilla Gemma and lovely Natalie and Rhys. The setting was lush - up in the Highlands with plenty of whiskey and snow. Oliver's writing is fast-paced, vivid and funny. And The Bride Wore Prada twists and turns as it goes and was unputdownable. A Fab-u-lous read!
This book was absolutely nothing that I thought it would be about.......it was BETTER! The introduction of new characters and keeping with original characters from the original series is great.
It was a really good book. I liked how it include the old characters, Natalie and Rhys. Can't wait to read more about Gemma and Dom. Waiting for the second book ;)
I read this book to pass the time. It's okay written but very generic. You could find the same book but with different characters names and different places 1000x over. It's nothing amazing, but does the job to pass the time. Pure chick lit.