WISH UPON A WEDDING is Book 10 in LuAnn McLane's "Cricket Creek" series. This is the first book I've read by LuAnn McLane but it definitely won't be my last. There are two romances featured in WISH UPON A WEDDING and LuAnn McLane gives them equal time and makes them equally sexy and enjoyable. Easton and Carrie Ann are in their mid-fifties and looking to turn a longtime friendship and attraction into something more. Avery and Sophia finally decide to build on their fun flirtation, but some convoluted circumstances threaten to throw a wrench into their burgeoning relationship.

Both Sophia and Avery have a lot of integrity, but that integrity is something that almost sabotages their relationship. Avery's sister is getting married and she is pushing him to get back with his manipulative, cheating ex. Avery's foolish promise not to reveal the reason for their breakup causes a lot of friction in his current relationship. I enjoyed the fun and flirty encounters between Sophia and Avery, and the drama made me care about them and hope everything would work out in the end. I liked the contrast between Avery's relationship with Sophia and the romance between Easton and Carrie Ann. Both romances are steamy but Easton and Carrie Ann are able to draw from experience, and squash their doubts a little quicker than the younger couple.

In most of the contemporary romances I've read with a small town setting, there is usually a tight-knit group of female friends that anchor the story. In WISH UPON A WEDDING, it is the men who pack most of the emotional punch and do a lot of venting to each other, offering support, and help each other find epiphanies. I wish more authors would pay as much attention to male friendships as LuAnn McLane does in WISH UPON A WEDDING. I particularly enjoyed the almost father/son relationship between Avery and his uncle Easton. I love that, in spite of the age difference and family connection, they go to each other for advice the way friends do. LuAnn McLane manages to convey the strong emotions that the guys have while also having the dialogue and personalities ring true.

WISH UPON A WEDDING is the cream of the crop and lots of fun. After reading WISH UPON A WEDDING I plan on hunting down copies of the previous books in this "Cricket Creek" series to devour. I look forward to reading LuAnn McLane's next book.

Book Summary

A little lie leads to delicious complications in the latest Cricket Creek romance from the USA Today bestselling author of Written in the Stars.

Heartbroken handyman Avery Dean can’t get away from his ex—who just happens to be the maid of honor in his sister’s upcoming wedding. As the best man, Avery has to grin and bear his sister’s misguided attempts to get them back together, until the perfect excuse presents itself in a pretty out-of-towner.

With her time in Cricket Creek, Kentucky, coming to an end, hair stylist Sophia Gordon can’t deny the town’s charms, or her attraction to Avery Dean. That’s why she finds herself saying yes to dinner, and then, a wedding date.
 
Sophia agrees to be Avery’s pretend girlfriend until the big day is over, but when their make-believe fling shows signs of real passion, Sophia starts to wonder if staying in Cricket Creek could make all her wishes come true.