From the premise, I really wanted to enjoy this book however it took me quite a while to get into this novel as I found the plot was initially fairly slow. Neither of the characters were particularly likeable and the twist was predictable but I was still compelled to keep reading. Thank you to NetGalley, Bloomsbury Publishing and the author for the chance to review.

On the day Annie marries Mark all seems wonderful until a strange man shows up in the church and later at the wedding reception. So far, you would expect it to be a story about a secret in the bride’s past. No such thing! This story goes a whole other way, when we slowly learn about how Annie met Mark and why she was so insistent to marry him, although his first wife only disappeared not two years ago.
We read this story from different POV’s but I would have liked Mark to be one of them. There is virtually no information about why Mark behaves as he does while we later learn why Annie is busy trying to make this marriage a big success. Neither of them were very likable or even trustworthy. The stranger turns out to be Cameron, an old friend of Marks’ father, who’s still not given up at finding Marks first wife. So, you may think, now we know where the story is going… but it isn’t. Not exactly.
Anyway, it was a nice enough read and it had the kind of ending I liked.

Thanks to Bloomsbury and Netgalley for this review copy.

This is a DNF I just couldnt get onboard with main characters so I gave up at 30% I will not be reviewing publicly as unfinished book

A new author for me and although I wasn’t expecting the story I got I did enjoy it. The multi POV and timelines were interesting but not all the characters were likeable. There were twists and turns and I didn’t see the final twist. Recommended.

A gripping read I couldn’t put down about Annie who falls in love with mark, and then at her wedding a stranger turns up and she isn’t sure of his intensions…..told in the past and present from different views, very easy good read!

Enjoyable book about Annie and Mark who get married but for Annie it is happily ever after. This is confusing at times going back and forward and I found it hard to keep up with the complex characters.
When Annie goes missing her father in law hires a former police officer to investigate especially as Mark's first wife disappeared and has not been found which made this book worth reading as it gets you thinking you know what has happened then the story twists and makes you rethink what has happened.
Overall a good murder mystery with many twists and turns that keep you interested.
Thanks to Net Galley and Bloomsbury Publishing for giving me an advance copy.

This was a very bouncing backwards adn forwards book, there were some good twists and turns but it did get a bit confusing at times, it may have been because it was an advanced copy and not quite finished, overall quite a good read.

A fabulously written gripping story that was a pleasure to read. I would absolutely recommend this book, it was brilliant

The Stranger at the wedding is an enjoyable book. It is fairly fast paced and there are a few twists and turns. I particularly enjoyed reading the letter inserts. Sometimes the time line was slightly confusing as you werent sure where you were in the story but this did soon become apparent. I was left a little confused at the ending as to how things were found out as it came to an abrupt conclusion but I enjoyed it none the less.

Thank you to Netgalley for an unbiased review for a free copy of the book.

Thriller is not typically a genre I'm used to reading, but this is definitely the book that I would recommend for anyone wanting a foot in.
The beginning was a little slow, but once the plot starts to pick up, I got hooked!
The book felt a bit like watching a movie, I loved the writing style and that twist!! Totally recommend everyone to pick it up.

What would you do when you feel that you have met the one person you should be with? Never having spoken but head over heels in love.
Do you change your life and theirs to become each others destiny? Will it live up to your musings?
Not what you expect from a second wedding, the disapperance of the first wife unquestioned apart from the stranger at the wedding.
Who are they and why are they asking questions?

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for an arc of this book. Although I didn't really warm to either of the main characters I still found it an enjoyable read. The Stranger at the Wedding is a slow burning thriller that is easy to read. There are a few twists along the way setting the scene for a satisfying reveal. I will be on the lookout for more from this author.

This was a book of contradictions for me. I nearly gave it up after the first chapter as I just couldn’t get into it, then I got much more invested in it, then quite frankly I got well confused! Half the time I didn’t seem to know where I was with the timeline and the characters. Sadly I didn’t bond with either character but I did read to the end just to find out what happened, but it was rather weird.

Mixed feelings about this one - such a shame as the blurb was so good!

Annie and Mark are about to get wed. Annie never believed in love at first sight until she caught a glimpse of Mark; it took several months to meet him for real, but here they are on the cusp on married life. They have both had a taste of tragedy and that has had an impact on their relationship but they're ready to leave all that in the past; however not everyone in attendance has best wishes in mind . . .

I struggled with this one. The story wasn't easy to follow, partly because it chopped and changed narrator without any warning and several times I had to go back and re-read to work out what was going on and who was talking and, while that was frustrating it wasn't the only thing. The typeface used - and I struggle to understand why any publisher would use this strange font for any book - was not of the usual acceptable type and just added to my exasperation. It would have been easy to give up, but I'm not a quitter and continued onto the bitter end, finding no improvement but increased annoyance. While I tried not to let the decision of which typeface to go with affect my rating, there is no doubt that it took away from the writing. For me, three stars.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.

I really liked this one. With its complex characters and gripping plot twists, this kept me guessing until the very end, questioning everything i thought i knew about trust and betrayal. Great ending and one not to be missed.

#TheStrangerAtTheWedding #NetGalley
Annie never believed in true love. Not until she caught sight of Mark on a crowded commuter train. It wasn’t until months later that they finally had their picture-perfect first date and after a whirlwind romance, they are now about to tie the knot. Both Annie and Mark have suffered tragedy – their shared experience of sorrow has brought them together, but at times the pressure of those losses has also threatened their happiness. Today they will leave all of that in the past, and forge a new life. But not everyone gathered here has come to toast the new couple. And Annie quickly realises that her new life isn’t going to be the happily ever after she had planned.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for giving me an advance copy.

I sat mesmerized by the story and could not stop reading until I had finished the book! Every single detail is realistically and vividly brought out that will leave you feeling like you already know these characters. Plus, the climax was brilliant too.

After reading advance praise for The Stranger at the Wedding I thrilled to have the opportunity to read it.
I didn’t find this an easy read as the style of writing just did not flow for me. I found it disjointed and so it was difficult to become involved in the storyline. I wasn’t drawn to any of the characters and the plot fell flat for me.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.
2.5 stars

Thank you Netgalley for my copy!

This book was middle of the road. The story was good enough, the character development was okay and the twists were where they were supposed to be.

I was willing to read to the end but I was not dragged through it as I like to be because the time lines were a little hard to follow. Perhaps some clear dates in the chapter titles or shorter chapters may have helped this.

Overall, it was an enjoyable read and I'm happy to read more by Gauntlett.

This book has an interesting premise- the disappearance of a wife and the husband seeming not to care and driving forward a new relationship within months.
For the most part the book delivers on the intrigue and the cast of characters certainly lends itself to the twists the book offers. However none of the characters were stand out enough for me to want to root for them and the further into the book I got the harder I found it to suspend disbelief at the lead up to the final twist.