I very much enjoyed "The Wedding Party," which is one of Robyn Carr's earlier novels, published in 2001. I did not realize that when I downloaded the audiobook, but the use of landlines an a few other things had me wondering and sent me looking for the original publication date. This did not in any way detract from the story. The plot is so character driven that whether it was set in 2001 or 2024 was irrelevant. I am one of the few readers who think it is one of Carr's best books. Do not let the title fool you. This book is not about a wedding, per se, and reviewers who claimed the book is hilarious must have read a different novel than I did. There is nothing at all humorous about the lives of the characters who fill its pages. They are all struggling, conflicted, and dealing with emotional anguish on many levels.
Middle aged Charlene Dugan was married to Jake for a short while when young. They have a daughter, Stephanie, now an English teacher and dating a really wonderful guy who is in the police academy, (Grant) who spends long hours working and studying. At 25, Stephanie is quite self absorbed and not very understanding of Grant's hours. They share an apartment which she leaves in disarray and down right dirty. She has more time at home to tidy up than he does, and the way they live is getting on his nerves. She also has a stalker who is contributing to her unravelling.
Charlene is an attorney with a family law practice, dealing with some really crazy divorcing couples and a mother who seems to be losing her memory. She dates a nice safe guy, Dennis, a doctor, and their arrangement, including maintaining their own homes and not being together every single night, works for both of them. He has proposed over the years, but she has said turned him down. Her ex-husband, Jake, has stayed in the picture to some degree, since they share a daughter, but also because they have a connection that did not die when the divorce papers were signed, and because he refers some pro bono work to her. He is a hard working cop with a hidden soft spot for the underdog.
One night, fearing she will end up like her mother (alone), Charlene, mud covered and soaked with rain, proposes to Dennis. It is all downhill from there as all the characters' lives go in different directions, and not in a good way. Charlene is trying to help her mother, who nearly burns the house down, be there for her daughter, help Jake, and somehow find time to meet Dennis at the offices of their wedding planner, but she never seems to make those appointments. Dennis does, but not Charlene.
The title actually refers to the characters asked to be members of Charlene's and Dennis' wedding party, rather than a party at a wedding. I felt that Ms. Carr did a great job fleshing out each characters' troubles, having them look inward to determine why they act as they do. It was an engaging audiobook, so in my mind, unlike other reviewers, this was a solid 4 star book!