Preview
  • The Wedding People

  • A Novel
  • By: Alison Espach
  • Narrated by: Helen Laser
  • Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (2,381 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Wedding People

By: Alison Espach
Narrated by: Helen Laser
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $20.24

Buy for $20.24

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

"As narrator, the terrific Laser, an actress and puppeteer, only enhances the swoon-worthy quirks and romance."—Vulture

A Today Show #ReadwithJenna Book Club Pick

A propulsive and uncommonly wise novel about one unexpected wedding guest and the surprising people who help her start anew.

It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She's immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe's plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other.

In turns absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is ultimately an incredibly nuanced and resonant look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined—and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us.

A Macmillan Audio production from Henry Holt & Company.

©2024 Alison Espach (P)2024 Macmillan Audio
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice
The #1 Indie Next Pick for August 2024
One of The Washington Post’s 10 Noteworthy Books for July and August
Named a Best Book of Summer 2024 by People Magazine, Bustle, Star Tribune, Goodreads, and LitHub

The Wedding People is the perfect book to wrap up your summer reading. . . . heartwarming [and] hilarious.”
—Jenna Bush Hager, The Today Show's #ReadwithJenna

The Wedding People is so much more than a funny story (though it is very funny). Espach has penned a keenly observed novel about depression, love, the ways women make themselves small, and how one woman got over it. Fully realized and completely memorable.”
Booklist (starred review)

“Espach’s wit and warmth deliver a gratifying story about how people who have given up might find a reason to start caring again.”
—Becky Meloan, The Washington Post

Editorial Review

I’ll toast to that!
Feeling salty about beachfront displays of affection? As am I, along with Phoebe Stone, the spiraling protagonist of Alison Espach’s latest novel, who, newly single and depressed, has hot summer plans to self-sabotage in style at an elegant Newport resort. However, upon her arrival, she unexpectedly befriends a cohort of, you guessed it, wedding people, who would rather count Phoebe as an extra head for the caterers than have her potentially ruin the ceremony by being left unattended while erratically heartbroken. It doesn’t take long for Phoebe and the bride to bond over their underlying anxieties, and narrator Helen Laser’s spot-on delivery of all the witty insights embedded in this novel certainly makes it easy to fall for the vibrant cast of characters. So, if you too are in need of a summer pick-me-up, take a page out of Phoebe’s book and vicariously masquerade as a posh, pearl-clad sophisticate while opening up to this cynical yet ultimately heartfelt listen. — Haley H., Audible Editor

What listeners say about The Wedding People

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,619
  • 4 Stars
    547
  • 3 Stars
    148
  • 2 Stars
    32
  • 1 Stars
    35
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,767
  • 4 Stars
    381
  • 3 Stars
    105
  • 2 Stars
    21
  • 1 Stars
    32
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,544
  • 4 Stars
    523
  • 3 Stars
    154
  • 2 Stars
    38
  • 1 Stars
    46

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Loved

I guess I missed the part that this was about someone wanting to commit suicide. I was about to turn it off because I recently lost someone close to me but decided to stick with it. I am glad I did… but warning to others it might trigger you.
I laughed and cried a little. It was a good listen. Definitely recommend

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

What a beautiful book

Absolutely loved everything about this book… so many trigger warnings but touched on everything that is, well, life. Life is hard and it has so many ways of knocking us down. I loved the characters, even the seriously flawed ones, and am so happy with the way this author weaved their stories together. Definitely one of my favorite reads of the year and definitely a 5 star read.

The performance was perfect as well. Idk that I’ve listened to anything by this narrator yet, but will definitely seek out more books read by her.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Would have preferred a paper copy

I liked this story. It had several laugh out loud moments. But I was a bit thrown off by the narration. The editing spliced in sentences quite often which didn’t match the overall tone and inflection. It made me wonder if those sentences were in italics in a paper copy. But nice story, overall good quality.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Complex human emotions depicted in a very relatable way

Unique . Very well written and narration matched the characters . There was no attempt to tie the end with a nice little bow, which was refreshing.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Funny and tender

I was engaged the entire story. Great storyline, character development, setting, and banter. Highly recommend!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

excellent journey

Started out sad but it was nice to see the character have a paradigm shift and better grasp on her life.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful.

I Liked the characters, The narration was excellent, I was hooked from the very beginning and could not stop listening.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

More insightful than first impression

I could really relate to the complex emotions dealt with in this entertaining book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Thoughtful and Funny

I loved this book. I was entertained from the beginning. Literally laughed out loud many times. Loved the characters, the setting……

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

More profound than I expected

This book was a surprise. I expected it to be a little trivial and fun and lighthearted, and they’re definitely worth those moments, but it was deeper and more meaningful than I expected. I really enjoyed it and I recommend it wholeheartedly.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!