Book Summary and Reviews of The Wedding Thief by Mary Simses

The Wedding Thief by Mary Simses

The Wedding Thief

by Mary Simses

  • Published:
  • Jul 2020, 320 pages
  • Rate this book

About this book

Book Summary

Funny, soulful, and as sweet as buttercream, The Wedding Thief is the perfect summer read.

The Harrington sisters have never gotten along. Sara is a Type-A, career-focused event planner, and her younger sister Mariel is the opposite: bohemian, semi-employed, and recently engaged. When Sara's mother lures her back to Connecticut under false pretenses, she is perturbed to discover Mariel waiting for her, eager to reconcile their relationship -- and get some help with the final arrangements before her big day. The two sisters haven't spoken since the night Sara realized something was going on between Mariel and Sara's boyfriend, Carter Pryce. And now Mariel is about to marry Carter, the man she stole from Sara, the man Sara still loves.

When Mariel asks Sara to stand in for a bridesmaid who has to cancel at the last minute, Sara realizes it's the perfect cover to unravel the nuptials and win Carter back. Sara begins to slowly sabotage Mariel's picture-perfect wedding, but when she crosses paths with David Cole, he challenges her self-image as the jilted second-fiddle to her spotlight-stealing sister. Will Sara realize what a bridesmaid-zilla she's become in time to fix the damage before Mariel's big day?

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

Media Reviews

"Fans of Sophie Kinsella will note the similarities between Sara and the Shopaholic series heroine - stubborn but ultimately willing to do the right thing. Simses' charming exploration of family roles and shared history is a delightful piece of summer escapism." - Booklist

"If you're attracted to the title The Wedding Thief, you'll absolutely love this book. It delivers a great sister vs sister story that overflows with warmth and especially humor. Mary Simses is one of our best new storytellers." - James Patterson

"If you've ever wanted to sabotage a wedding -- and who hasn't? -- you should definitely read this book. In fact you should read it anyway, because it's funny, smart and highly entertaining." - Dave Barry

"With each page turned, The Wedding Thief reminds us that the intricacies among sisters and mothers are unlike any other challenges. Mary Simses's new novel is a smooth and engaging ride, replete with female rivalry, female bonds, and the quest for romantic love." - Susannah Marren, author of A Palm Beach Wife

"Wedding planning is almost always fraught with minefields, but this wedding takes the cake. Sara Harrington, the story's protagonist/event planner, could definitely use a few etiquette lessons. But then, so could her sister. Mary Simses' engaging, lively book takes the reader on a wild ride toward a wedding like no other." - Peggy Post, Director Emeritus, The Emily Post Institute

"The perfect romantic comedy -- The Wedding Thief is a fun-filled romp with delightful twists and turns. It's sure to steal your heart!" - Jamie Cat Callan, author of Parisian Charm School

This information about The Wedding Thief was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

Click here and be the first to review this book!

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Author Information

Mary Simses

Mary Simses grew up in Darien, Connecticut and began writing short stories as a child. She spent most of her life in New England, where she worked in magazine publishing, and, later, as a corporate attorney writing short stories "on the side." Mary is the author of The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop & Café, adapted as The Irresistible Blueberry Farm for the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel, The Rules of Love & Grammar, and her latest novel, The Wedding Thief. Mary enjoys photography, old jazz standards, and escaping to Connecticut in the summer. She lives in South Florida.

More Author Information

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Read-Alikes

Read-Alikes Full readalike results are for members only

If you liked The Wedding Thief, try these:

  • Three Days in June jacket

    Three Days in June

    by Anne Tyler

    Published 2026

    About this book

    A new Anne Tyler novel destined to be an instant classic: a socially awkward mother of the bride navigates the days before and after her daughter's wedding.

  • The Ten Year Affair jacket

    The Ten Year Affair

    by Erin Somers

    Published 2025

    About this book

    A hilariously acerbic sliding doors novel about a chance meeting between two young parents, both happily married (just not to each other) that sparks a will-they-won't-they romance—perfect for fans of Big Swiss and Acts of Service.

  • Let's Not Do That Again jacket

    Let's Not Do That Again

    by Grant Ginder

    Published 2023

    About this book

    From Grant Ginder, the author of The People We Hate at the Wedding, comes Let's Not Do That Again a poignant, funny, and slyly beguiling novel which proves that, like democracy, family is a messy and fragile thing - perfect for fans of Veep's biting humor, the family drama of Succession, and the joys of Kevin Wilson's Nothing to See Here.

We have 10 read-alikes for The Wedding Thief, but non-members are limited to three results. Join free to see the complete list of recommendations.
Search read-alikes
How we choose read-alikes

More Literary Fiction

Browse all Literary Fiction books

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!
Win This Book
Win Theo of Golden

Theo of Golden by Allen Levi

One spring morning, a stranger arrives in the small southern city of Golden. No one knows where he has come from…or why…

Enter

BookBrowse Book Club

  • Book Jacket
    Merry-Go-Round Broke Down
    by David Woo, Margalit Shinar
    Nine linked stories reveal how globalization sparks life-changing consequences across continents.
  • Book Jacket
    Chelsea Girls
    by Catherine Lloyd
    A glamorous biographical novel on Mary Quant, whose daring design of the miniskirt revolutionized fashion.
  • Book Jacket
    Days of Sun and Shadow
    by India Hayford
    A young woman’s coming-of-age story set in the early American frontier, shaped by tragedy, nature, and resilience.

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket
    Summer of Love
    by Kerri Maher
    Three women reshape their family's Napa Valley winery after the 1967 Summer of Love.
  • Book Jacket
    An Infinite Love Story
    by Chanel Cleeton
    “A tender, romantic drama that soars as high as it’s astronauts.” —Kate Quinn
Book
Trivia
  • Book Trivia

    Can you name the title?

    Test your book knowledge with our daily trivia challenge!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

The C is A R

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.