The Wedding Ringer

Kerry Rea

Berkley, 2021

Agent: Jessica Watterson

A woman who wants nothing to do with love or friendship finds both in the unlikeliest ways in this hilarious and heartwarming debut by Kerry Rea.

Once upon a time, Willa Callister was a successful blogger with a good credit score, actual hobbies, and legs that she shaved more than once a month. But after finding her fiancé in bed with her best friend, she now spends her days performing at children's birthday parties in a ball gown that makes her look like a walking bottle of Pepto Bismol. Willa dreams of starting fresh, where no one knows who she used to be, but first she needs to save up enough money to make it happen. 

Maisie Mitchell needs something too: another bridesmaid for her wedding. After a chance encounter at a coffee shop, Maisie offers to pay Willa to be in her bridal party. Willa wants nothing to do with weddings—or Maisie—but the money will give her the freedom to start the new life she so badly desires. 

Willa's bridesmaid duties thrust her into Maisie's high-energy world and into the path of hotshot doctor Liam Rafferty. But as Willa and Maisie form a real friendship, and Liam's annoyingly irresistible smile makes her reconsider her mantra that all men are trash, Willa's exit strategy becomes way more complicated. And when a secret from Maisie's past threatens to derail the wedding, Willa must consider whether friendship—and romance—are worth sticking around for.

Reviews:

“By turns both funny and poignant, Kerry Rea's The Wedding Ringer addresses the complexities of friendship and love, while still justly highlighting the importance of princesses—and penguins— in Willa's search for her own happily ever after.”—kc dyer, author of Eighty Days to Elsewhere

"Kerry Rea hits it out of the park with her touching and hilarious debut. The fake bridesmaid premise and pre-wedding shenanigans had me howling, but it was the friendship between Willa and Maisie that captured my heart."—Sarah Smith, author of Simmer Down

"I loved this warm hug of a book! The Wedding Ringer explores the pitfall-filled world of adult friendships, from the shock of an unexpected friend breakup to the difficulty of making new friends. Most importantly, it shows that no matter what tough situation you’re facing, you can get through it by being vulnerable and finding support. Full of hilarious dialogue and heartstring-tugging moments, this book made me laugh and cry. I loved every second of it, and I can’t wait to read what Kerry Rea writes next."—Kerry Winfrey, author of Not Like the Movies