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The Official Blurb
“Take one lavish holiday wedding. Add one evil ex and his bridezilla. And toss in a smoking-hot chef from the past. Itβs a recipe for disaster.
Victoria Blackwood has spent years trying to redeem herself after falling victim to a blackmail scheme that cost her father thousands. So, when he insists she coordinate a big Christmas wedding at her familyβs winery, she canβt say no. Even if the groom is her ex, and the caterer just quit.
For Rafael Sanchez, a last-minute call to cater a huge society wedding is a golden opportunity. If he can prove heβs up to the challenge, his brothers might entrust him with more responsibility in the family catering business. But when he meets Victoria, he canβt believe his eyes. Five years ago, they had a passionate fling that rocked his world. Until she left him with only a fake name to remember her by.
To pull off the perfect wedding, Victoria and Rafael canβt afford to get caught up in the past. But keeping things professional wonβt be easy, not when the attraction between them burns hotter than Christmas in July..”
Sometimes a book just checks all the boxes.
White Wedding by Carla Luna gave me romance, family drama, fantastic food, delicious wine, a swoon-worthy chef and an audiobook narrator I genuinely enjoyed listening to. By the time I finished, I was already looking forward to reading more from Carla Luna’s Blackwood Cellars series.
Book Details
Title: White Wedding
Author: Carla Luna
Published: 2021
Series: Blackwood Cellars (can be read as standalones)
Sub-Genre: Contemporary Romance
One of the things I immediately loved about Carla Luna is her settings. She writes books set in Maui, Italy and throughout the Mediterranean, which immediately caught my attention. I grew up in Hawaii, spent part of my childhood living in Italy and absolutely love the Mediterranean.
I also learned Carla now lives in Cedarburg, Wisconsin with her family and her Siberian cat, Allegro. Carla, if you ever happen to read this, I think we’d get along just fine because I also share my home with a fabulous and feisty Siberian cat named Andromeda.
I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Vanessa Vasquez, and thought she did a wonderful job. Even though I usually gravitate toward duet narration, I never found myself wishing for another narrator. Vanessa brought each character to life beautifully.
Main Characters
Victoria Blackwood
Victoria is the youngest daughter of the internationally known Blackwood wine family. She works as the event coordinator for the family winery and spends much of the story trying to escape the shadow of her controlling father.
Rafael Sanchez
Rafael is the youngest of the Sanchez brothers and an incredibly talented chef working for his family’s catering business. He’s ambitious, kind, family oriented and determined to prove himself to his brothers.
Plot
I’m going to spoil a few early plot points because otherwise this story simply won’t make much sense.
Years earlier, Victoria studied abroad in France during college, something that immediately reminded me of the University of Wisconsin’s international exchange program.
While there, she dated an older French artist named Henry. He pressured her to pose nude for a painting. When she initially declined, he accused her of being an immature American and ended their relationship. Eventually, she agreed to model for him, believing it would simply be for reference photos.
Instead, Henry photographed her and later used those images to blackmail her family for $150,000.
Victoria wanted to ignore him and accept the consequences. Her father had other ideas.
He paid Henry … then informed Victoria she now owed him every penny.
Trying to escape the stress, Victoria took a vacation to a luxury resort, where she meets Rafael, who’s working there for the summer. The two spend three unforgettable weeks together, falling hard for one another.
Unfortunately, Victoria is terrified of trusting another man after what happened in France, so she lies about her identity before eventually disappearing without much explanation.
Five years later, Victoria’s father still uses the debt to control her life. He finally offers to erase it all under one condition: she must coordinate the wedding of her ex-fiancΓ© … to the woman he cheated on her with … on their original wedding date and at their original venue.
As if that isn’t bad enough, the caterer quits just weeks before the wedding, forcing Victoria to scramble for a replacement.
Enter Rafael.
Neither of them expects their paths to cross again, especially under these circumstances.
I’ll leave the story there because the rest deserves to be discovered for yourself.
Spice Level
πΆοΈπΆοΈπΆοΈ JalapeΓ±o
Most of the intimacy centers around memories of their time together years earlier, along with a few brief scenes and references to phone sex. It’s definitely more romance than spice.
Things I Loved
Rafael.
Honestly, Rafael made this book for me.
He’s kind, supportive, ambitious and incredibly family oriented. He loves his mom, wants to prove himself as a chef and never stopped believing Victoria deserved honesty and respect. He’s simply a really good guy.
I also loved all the food and wine.
Between Tres Hermanos, the family winery and all the delicious meals described throughout the story, I was hungry for most of this book.
Finally, I really enjoyed Carla Luna’s writing style. The story flowed naturally, the pacing kept me engaged and Vanessa Vasquez’s audiobook narration elevated the entire experience.
Challenges
My challenges had absolutely nothing to do with Carla Luna’s writing.
They had everything to do with her villains — and that’s a good thing. Victoria’s father is an absolute asshole. Her ex-fiancΓ©, Ben, is a disgusting creep. Henry, the French artist, is manipulative and predatory.
They’re all terrible human beings.
I found myself getting genuinely angry while reading because these men constantly manipulated, controlled or took advantage of Victoria.
I give Carla Luna credit. Creating villains who inspire that kind of emotional reaction isn’t easy and she absolutely succeeded.
Final Thoughts
I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
The romance felt earned, Rafael was an outstanding hero and the combination of food, wine, family and holiday atmosphere made this a wonderful Christmas romance. (My only regret is not coming up with a snazzy themed cocktail for the podcast episode.)
The audiobook was excellent and I’d happily listen to Vanessa Vasquez narrate another Carla Luna novel. Or any novel, really.
I’ll definitely be reading more from the Blackwood Cellars series.
βββββ 5/5 Stars
Where to Find White Wedding
If you want to hear more of my thoughts on the book, you can listen to the podcast episode on your favorite podcast streaming service. Or click here for our in-house podcast player.
Have you read White Wedding? Let me know your thoughts on this book in the comments!
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