Save the Date

Nothing goes to plan. Arrangements collapse one after another, unexpected guests turn up, the family dog causes havoc and sibling tensions that everyone has been politely ignoring come to the surface. Meanwhile, Charlie is distracted by a boy she meets in the middle of the chaos and by her hope that a brother who has been keeping his distance will make it home in time.

Matson is a master of comic set pieces, and the wedding weekend unfolds like a screwball comedy with a fine sense of timing. Underneath the slapstick, though, is a real story about holding on too tightly. Charlie gradually realizes that the family she treasures was never as perfect as the comic strip made it look, and that growing up means letting people change.

Some readers find Charlie's denial frustrating, and the romance is more of a side dish than a main course. But the family dynamics and humor make it a very satisfying read. It is the perfect book to read during a busy family holiday, when your own relatives are driving you slightly mad. About 464 pages in the Simon & Schuster paperback.