Don't Kiss the Bride

Written by Carian Cole

Narrated by Desiree Ketchum and Aiden Snow

I guess you could say I was a damsel in distress, and he was my knight in shining armor. But more accurately, I was a girl with a lot of bad luck, and he was a guy with a lot of muscles and tattoos.

Jude "Lucky" Lucketti wasn't just a sexy, brooding construction worker. He was my own personal hero, showing up in all the right places at the right times. Like when my car broke down and I needed a ride home, and when I face planted on the sidewalk right in front of him and had to be taken to the emergency room.

We became friends, and it didn't matter that he was sixteen years older than me. We had a lot in common-like our love of old rock music and vintage fast cars, and our aversion to relationships.

When he approached me with a crazy idea to help me out with my many problems, I couldn't say no.

The arrangement was supposed to be temporary. A marriage on paper and nothing else. It should've been easy, but it wasn't. Because here I am, eighteen years-old, still in high school, and married to a man I was never supposed to fall in love with.

We had just one rule-no kissing the bride. But we broke that rule, and it sealed our fate forever.

Contains mature themes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Aug 24, 2021
• ISBN: 9781705295281

Reviews for Don't Kiss the Bride

[Kenesha · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wow. This was one of the best age gap novels I've ever read. I enjoyed every bit of it. The plot, the characters, the dialog, everything. I think the pace was great, too. It was such a slow burn; at times I kind of wished it would speed up, but that was my own impatience. Really, there was so much to like about this book. I will definitely be checking out more books by this author. If they're all as full of heart and heat as this one, I know I'll enjoy them. I also must commend the narrators; they did a fantastic job, which added to my enjoyment of this book.

[Marie Perron · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I was loving them so much that i didn't want their story to end !

[Corinne · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"Is it possible that love doesn't let us choose if we believe in it or not? Does it just happen?"
Well, Carian Cole has done it again. In "Don't Kiss the Bride" she delivers yet another well done angsty, emotional story, tackling heavy topics such as mental health, eating disorders, drug abuse, age-gap relationships.
Skylar is an 18 year old girl, in her senior year in high school. She has had a shitty life so far, with neglectful parents, a hoarding mother and no real support system. Forced to take care of herself since she turned 11, she lives in unsanitary conditions, she deals with mental health and eating disorder issues.
Jude is 34 year old, with drub abuse problems in the past and trauma related his sister's disappearance when she was 16. He is a brooding lonely guy, covered in tattoos and muscles. And he has a heart of gold. When he understands what Skylar is going through, he comes to her rescue and they enter a marriage of convenience in order for her to benefit from his health insurance and work on her issues.
This is a slow burn friends to lovers with a lot of ups and downs. They both have commitment and abandonment issues, they are unsure of where their relationship would lead and Jude struggles with what the age-gap would mean on the long run.
Carian Cole is really good at building sexual tension and delivering raw emotions through her writing. The only reason this is not a 5-star read for me is because I felt there was too much miscommunication and wrong assumptions between Skylar and Jude. But I really enjoyed this book a lot and the ending was really sweet.

[Christine · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Sweet age gap romance, easy reading. I loved the little Ashes and Embers addition fab ??

[Lola Dru · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book broke my heart and then put it back together piece by piece ?

Skylar is 18 years old and finishing her high school education. She works part time at a local boutique to save up and leave her mum's trailer. She has her own small room, but has to lock it and climb to it through a window as her mum is a hoarder who quickly fills each space up with new trinkets and an abundance of other things. Her circumstances are less than ideal and it all goes west when her health deteriorates.

Jude is a local construction worker. At 34 years old he has his own company and lives comfortably. While working near a school, he takes notice of Skylar and one day notices her collapse. When he learns of her living situation and her lack of insurance, Jude proposes a marriage of convenience.

My heart broke several times when Skylar described the severity of her sickness and how it came about. It was painful to imagine how hard it must be to have such a complicated eating disorder. Add to that being a teenage girl all on your own financially and with no caring adult to help and you can start sobbing immediately.

Jude was such a sweetheart with a troubled past. He unconsciously tried to make amends for how in his mind he failed his sister by caring for others. He took in a stray dog and then offered to help a strange girl out of the goodness of his heart. All the small and big acts of service he performed for Skylar made me envious.

The story gives a solid insight into Skylar's road to healing, I wish we could've had a similar one for Jude. He still has some unfinished business with lots of his family members. Skylar managed to have a well proportioned mix of maturity and teenage surety of having a lot of time to figure things out. Together, they were well matched and their chemistry was palpable.

This book made me curious about Asher and his daughter's story.

[megan oman · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I NEED MORE OF SPARKLES AND LUCKY!!! I hope this turns into a series of some sort!

[Jes Vaz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The story kept me captivated, the narration was off the charts phenomenal. Fantastic read!

[Massiel Aracena · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I love CC but why most of her books makes me cringe a bit with the huge age gaps between the FMC and the MMC. Other than that great stories and awesome narration.

[Ashtin Nicole Streams · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a sweet story with a slow burn. I love how the author connects it to the Ashes and Embers universe. Highly recommend this book <3

[Kelley · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The whole story is amazing!!! I fell in love with both characters!!!

[tasha c · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is such a cool lovely and sexy story.. andddd in intertwines with Asher too. Its so cool how all these books web with each other. Missing pieces come together seamlessly. Totally love them and Carian too. Cant wait to see what else she has in the romantic mind of hers. :)

[Daniela Correa · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I did not think I would love it as much. Such a great story!

[muzmuz · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Trigger warning: in depth talks of mental, eating disorder, a big age gap.
It was such a nice, cute story with a lot of depth on mental and eating disorders which the author did not shy from describing.
Te age gab was written nicely with all the ups and downs, the doubts and the second thoughts.
The couples were perfect for each other and they both showed love and support…. Do I say Jude is a rare kind of men… yes he is… cause his type mainly exists in books.
Can’t wait to read more by the author.

[Samantha Nieman · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Ms Cole has done it again. Ripped my heart out, stomped all over it and I loved every second of it. I so badly wanted to hop into the book and smack everyone in the face for not saying enough or saying too much, but I understand the fear they all feel. This was amazing, I highly recommend the listen or read but make sure you are ready for the delicious heartache. It is an HEA though, my review makes it sound like it's not.

[Michelle · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book! I loved Jude, he was a great character. I'm not usually a fan of age gap romances with a teenage girl & a 30-something guy. But Jude was such a cool guy, and he really was trying to help Skylar, getting her out of a bad home situation & helping her get health insurance. Skylar was also a very mature 18 year old, not your normal flighty high school kid.

[Ava Gail · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I get that the age gap might be shocking, but if there is chemistry you can’t stop it! I loved how Lucky cared for Skylar, doesn’t everybody wants someone like him?

[hazal · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

+18 Contemporary Romance
• age gap
• marriage of convenience
• friends to lovers

This is overall a very cozy romantic book! Just the right amount of tension. Little bit of spice (2/5 ?). It was so cute and romantic, emotional and sensual ?

Not to mention the voice actor! Swoon!