EVERYTHING BUT A BRIDE – Holly Jacobs
The Everything But... Series, Book 2
Avalon Books (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 978-0803-49904-1
August 2008
Contemporary Romance

Erie, Pennsylvania – Present Day

The Salo Family Wedding Curse:
Long ago, in Ederly, Hungary, a young bride was left standing at the altar on her wedding day. She cursed the groom and all his future descendants, thus effectively ruining every wedding in the Salo family for years to come. Vancy Salo believes so much in the power of words that she has decided to oversee each and every wedding for her family, making sure that nothing will go awry, or will it?

Vancy Salo is overcome with anticipation. She's waited years for her day of triumph and the opportunity to finally abolish The Salo Family Wedding Curse. Vancy's grandson, Noah, is getting married in just two weeks, and she's so confident that she'll finally break the curse, that she sent invitations to a reporter to attend Noah and Julianna's wedding. She can't wait to see her moment of triumph in the newspaper along with pictures of the happy couple.

Nick Salo can't wait for his upcoming wedding day to arrive. But, when his childhood sweetheart and fiancée, Julianna Smith, pulls him aside during his stag party (to which the entire family was invited) and tells him the wedding is off, Noah is heartbroken. He wants nothing to do with canceling the wedding so he leaves the fallen pieces of the grand event for his grandmother Vancy to pick up, then he goes home to hide out.

Calista Smith just stopped by Noah's house to comfort him. He's been unreachable for two weeks, ever since her sister Julianna called off the wedding. Yeah, maybe he's avoiding the hoards of reporters who are probably telephoning every hour trying to capitalize on the story of The Salo Family Wedding Curse, but that's no reason for Noah to hide from her. Callie and Noah have been best friends all their lives, and she only wants to comfort him. Or maybe, she's the one who needs comforting? Noah isn't the only one harboring a broken heart, but Callie won't rain on his pity parade to confide in him, and what starts out as a goodwill gesture on Callie's part turns into something way different when Noah asks her to go along with him on his non-honeymoon trip. Why waste the reservations? he argues. It will be just two good friends spending a week in a mountain cabin and having fun on the ski slopes.

Welcome back to the crazy life that belongs to the generations of the Salo family! Everyone is here to add to the fun and excitement that is life in Vancy Salo's crazy family. EVERYTHING BUT A BRIDE is the second book in The Everything But... Series, and continues the woe that belongs to the descendants of The Salo Family Wedding Curse. Noah has spent his life expecting to marry Julianna, but all of a sudden, she doesn't feel the same. So, hiding his wounded pride, Noah asks Julianna's stepsister, Callie, to accompany him on the trip that was to be a honeymoon. He sees nothing wrong with spending a few days with a good friend while they both forget their troubles. But for Callie, spending time with Noah just might be a big problem. She is way more interested in her sister's ex-fiancé than she thinks is decent or right, and she doesn't want to start off thinking of Noah as a potential date. In Callie's eyes, that's just wrong.

Characters return from EVERYTHING BUT A GROOM (December 2007), and includes the entire Salo family and a few new people; Noah's best friend, Darren Duffy; and his personal assistant Marilyn, who tries to help Noah win Callie's love. The major side-player here in this story is Grandmother Vancy, who is still planning to stop The Salo Family Wedding Curse, even if she has to play matchmaker for the entire family. In December 2008, we're in for a treat with the last in this fun trilogy, EVERYTHING BUT A WEDDING, coming just in time for Christmas! Will Vancy Salo finally be able to break the curse she started over fifty years ago?

EVERYTHING BUT A BRIDE is a wonderful diversion for the end of summer – don't miss it! this story is full of the warmth of family and lots of laughs, as Noah dates Callie, but forgets to tell her! (And you gotta read it to find out the how and the why).

Diana Risso