Imoge Edwards-Jones

Another hit from the guilty pleasure that is the Babylon series, in which Imogen Edwards-Jones teams up with a bunch of top players in a given industry, extracts their best tips, tricks, behind-the-scenes secrets and scandalous stories, then packages them all up in a neat week-in-the-life semi-fictional demi-novel for our entertainment. Oh, how I love 'em...

This installment, as the name suggests, is all about the wedding industry, as seen from the perspective of a top London wedding planner. Babylon enthusiasts can probably already guess the rest - the helter-skelter pitch through dress fittings and flowers, bridezillas and warring relatives, celebrity nuptials and wedding day mishaps. Alongside the day-to-day running of the business and the memorable weddings the planner has survived (or heard about through the grapevine), there are also plenty of interesting details that go beyond the obvious: How finely tuned do even the most dull and practical of details have to be? How does a planner network with all the other companies that make up the wedding industry? Which readings are guaranteed to bore your vicar to tears? And what the hell is a bridal potty? As always, this book gave me a renewed respect for the hard work going on behind the scenes in the service industry, showing the reader all of the lovely highs but also the stressful lows, the egos and the tantrums, deftly demonstrating just how far these professionals have to go to serve the ridiculous demands and passing whims of their high-maintenance clients.

For me, it seems like Edwards-Jones is becoming better and better at this formula, streamlining her books with each new release. I find that the newer books (like this one, and Beach Babylon, which I read last year) seem to feature more likeable narrators, and offer more detail and genuine insight into their chosen industries to balance against the gleeful gossip and outrageous horror stories. I think I'd be torn between wanting to read this book before my wedding (for the tips) and wanting to stay the hell away in case I had nightmares! Great literature it ain't - it's very easy reading and some of the dialogue, in particular, is horrendously clunky - but it's super-fun, extra-frothy and an absolute pleasure to come back to at the end of a long day at work!… (mais)

Another good Babylon book - love reading about what people spend on their weddings.

Back Cover Blurb:
Packed with scandal, stories and intrigue, Wedding Babylon lifts the lid on the excesses of an industry where emotions run high, money flows like champagne and £3,000 cakes are made of polystyrene. Following a week in the life of a busy wedding planner, and based entirely on true but anonymous stories, Imogen Edwards-Jones takes you behind the scenes on what is supposed to be the happiest day of anyone's life.… (mais)