Like a chick-flick in book form, this book is a kinda-sweet, sometimes-sad, often-funny romantic comedy starring twelve-year-old Willa Havisham, daughter of a glamorous wedding-planner. Ever since her father died before she was even born, her mother has been cold, successful, and determined to make Willa into an over-achiever. But now Willa has a chance at happiness. Her mother has moved them back to Cape Cod, where she hangs out at her Nana’s candy shop, makes a best friend, and gets a crush that might like her back. Best of all, their neighbor and Willa’s English teacher Sam might be just the one to defrost her mother’s heart so they can all have their happily ever after.

Of course, things are never that simple. Along the way, there are minor girl crises and major fall-outs when Willa’s well-intentioned matchmaking goes awry. But in Willa’s hopelessly romantic but utterly honest first-person recounting, this story’s quaint charm really shines through. She may sometimes be trivial, sometimes be foolish, but she really believes in love, in all its forms—of place and people, family and friends and romance. And so do the rest of the characters, even when they muddle about in their surprisingly complex, realistic interactions. A quick, easy read, The Wedding Planner’s Daughter is a heartwarming story about how life isn’t a fairy tale, but sometimes you can get that happy ending anyway.