The Christmas Wedding [Hardcover]

James Patterson (Author), Richard DiLallo (Author)

Book Description

Release date: October 17, 2011

The tree is decorated, the cookies are baked, and the packages are wrapped, but the biggest celebration this Christmas is Gaby Summerhill's wedding. Since her husband died three years ago, Gaby's four children have drifted apart, each consumed by the turbulence of their own lives. They haven't celebrated Christmas together since their father's death, but when Gaby announces that she's getting married--and that the groom will remain a secret until the wedding day--she may finally be able to bring them home for the holidays.

But the wedding isn't Gaby's only surprise--she has one more gift for her children, and it could change all their lives forever. With deeply affecting characters and the emotional twists of a James Patterson thriller, The Christmas Wedding is a fresh look at family and the magic of the season.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"If you enjoy family stories where the family seems as real as a your next door neighbors, and want to feel a bit of the magic of the holiday season then you're going to want to pick this book up. Normally when I think of James Patterson I think of action packed thrillers, but he can certainly pull of a nice Christmas time family story as well. Highly recommended!" (Brenda Castro)

"A heartwarming story of family and love with Christmas cheer as an added bonus. This is a quick storyline that will delight readers with bits of humor and tender moments. A good book to brighten any day." (Pamela Mason, MasonCanyon.blogspot.com.)

"A touching and emotional read. James Patterson is mostly noted for his thrillers, but he knows the romance genre too. Not to mention that he throws in a few twists along the way. The characters feel like real people with real problems. They are people I truly came to care about. The storyline flowed beautifully from page to page. I couldn't put this book down. I wanted to know what would happen next. It's a fast-paced story with realistic characters. I can honestly say I will miss these characters very much." (Yvonne, SocratesBookReviews)

"A heartwarming story about family, love, and second chances...I enjoyed The Christmas Wedding very much...If you equate his name with thrillers and Alex Cross novels, you are in for a surprise, too." (Dina, JustAnotherNewsBlog.com)

"A story to get you in the Christmas mood with family, snow, weddings and of course love....I kept wondering who the groom was going to be and by the end I was glad she chose who she did...Patterson's ability to weave a story that's centered around true-to-life characters is, I'm sure, one of the reasons why he's a bestselling romance (and suspense!) author." (Renee, SteelerGirl83.Blogspot.com)

About the Author

James Patterson has had more New York Times bestsellers than any other writer, ever, according to Guinness World Records. Since his first novel won the Edgar Award in 1977 James Patterson's books have sold more than 240 million copies. He is the author of the Alex Cross novels, the most popular detective series of the past twenty-five years, including Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider. Mr. Patterson also writes the bestselling Women's Murder Club novels, set in San Francisco, and the top-selling New York detective series of all time, featuring Detective Michael Bennett. He writes full-time and lives in Florida with his family.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (October 17, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031609739X
• ISBN-13: 978-0316097390
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 8.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (258 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #168,333 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

It is no surprise that in January, 2010, The New York Times Magazine featured James Patterson on its cover and hailed him as having "transformed book publishing," and that Time magazine hailed him as "The Man Who Can't Miss." Recently, NBC's Rock Center with Brian Williams profiled Patterson's prolific career, AARP named him one of the "50 Most Influential People Who Make Our Days a Little Brighter," and Variety featured him in a cover story highlighting his adventures in Hollywood.

In 2011, it was estimated that one-in-four of all hardcover suspense/thriller novels sold was written by James Patterson, he is the first author to achieve five million ebook sales (and is expected to hit ten million in early 2013), and he holds the Guinness record for the most #1 New York Times bestsellers of any author. And his success isn't based solely on thrillers like the perennially popular Alex Cross, Women's Murder Club and Michael Bennett series. Patterson is now also the current bestselling author in the young adult and middle grade categories.

He's been called the busiest man in publishing, and that's not just because of his own books. For the past decade, James has been devoting more and more of his time to championing books and reading. From the James Patterson Pageturner Awards, to his website ReadKiddoRead.com, to his College Book Bucks scholarships and his regular donations of hundreds of thousands of books to schools here in the states and troops overseas (see interviews on Fox & Friends, The Dennis Miller Radio Show and CNN.com), Patterson has passed on his passion of books and reading and supported those who do the same. Jim personally funded a major ad campaign re-printing a recent opinion piece on CNN.com about how it is our responsibility to get our kids reading. The ad has run in the New York Times, The New Yorker, and USA Today. Those ads are a call to action to parents to make their kids reading a top priority; and were featured by USA Today here. Patterson believes that we cannot rely on schools, teachers or the government to get our kids reading; only parents can make this crucial change in the reading habits of our kids. Here are links to some interviews on his first-ever dual lay down (two books, one for parents and one for kids, in one day): AOL's You've Got, NBC's "Today Show" with Hoda and Kathie Lee, USA Today and Family Circle, NBC's "Today Show" with Al Roker, as well as an interview with AARP.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#2 Overall (See top 100 authors)

#1 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Police Procedurals

#1 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Mystery

#1 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery

#2 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Thrillers

#2 in Books > Literature & Fiction

#1 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Police Procedurals

#1 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Mystery

#1 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery

#2 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Thrillers

#2 in Books > Literature & Fiction

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

166 of 187 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Christmas Wedding October 17, 2011

By Brenda Casto

Format:Hardcover

Gaby Summerhill's family hasn't been together for Christmas since her husband Peter died, but that's about to change. You see Gaby has been proposed to by three men, and the thing is she is going to have a Christmas wedding, and she isn't going to to disclose who the groom will be until the wedding.So the only way her children, Emily, Claire Lizzie and Seth will know who she is marrying is to come home for Christmas.
I loved getting to know Gaby's children. Each of them were dealing with their own issues making this an interesting story. One was having marital troubles, one had a husband fighting cancer, another is a very successful lawyer who is married but puts in way to much time at her job, and finally one is trying to get a book published. Each child's story would have made for an interesting book in itself but roll them together and it made the plot of this book move along nonstop. I loved the plan Gaby came up with to get her children home, an idea that was totally new, hooking me, making me wonder myself who she would marry. There was even a twist thrown in that actually surprised me.
Overall if you enjoy family stories where the family seems as real as a your next door neighbors, and want to feel a bit of the magic of the holiday season then your going to want to pick this book up. Normally when I think of James Patterson I think of action packed thrillers, but he can certainly pull of a nice Christmas time family story as well. Highly recommended!
*A complimentary copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review.*

126 of 142 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Three Men With No (Snow) Balls! October 30, 2011

By Mary C. Cameron

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

After this past year, I am more firmly convinced that James Patterson is actually dead,and someone with greed but no taste decided his last few cookie-cutter collaborations did not deserve a decent burial along with the 'ghost writer,'Patterson."The Christmas Wedding" is, by far, the worst desecration. We are expected to believe that three men will stand at an altar, and have the bride choose one of them in front of a roomful of people! These men obviously don't share a pair between them! Our heroine, Gaby, is a shallow creature who deserves to be sucker punched by as many guests as possible as she walks down the aisle. If I write anymore, I'll give something away, and I wouldn't want to do that to any lost soul who does not think life is too short to waste on this yuletide suffering (I mean offering)! In closing, here's my holiday wish for you, fellow reader... save your hard-earned money, and treat yourself to a peppermint latte and a bag of Christmas cookies!

82 of 96 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Worst he's ever written October 20, 2011

By Lee R

Format:Hardcover

This has to be his worst one yet. No,his sci fi one, Toys, was terrible. I like his mysteries and he needs to stick to those. The plot was silly. Who plans a wedding but even the groom doesn't know until the actual ceremony. The whole family has problems. It was so disappointing. He has no skill writing about feelings and real life situations and emotions. Give it up and go back to mysteries. I'm glad it was a library book and I didn't waste my money on it.