Cozy Christmas: Epilogue

Happy New Year!

It was a few days after Christmas when Josh held his movie screening, but now some time has passed, and if I wait until the real time for their wedding, it would be June.

So, this is the last chance in the series to get everyone name-checked.  All of the couples from the previous books are bridesmaids or groomsmen, natch (hey, no had feelings towards Josh, I guess!), except for Allison and Sam, the bookstore couple, who just got married themselves and are on their honeymoon.

(In fact, five out of the six couples, I think, get married between January and June

And there is at least one bright spot in this book, because this happens:

Melissa Montclair, nee Sweeney, dashed up at the last minute to take her place as one of the bridesmaids.  “The cake’s fine.  Brian put the finishing touches on it without getting frosting on his tux,” she said breathlessly.

So I am taking this to mean that Brian told Josh and Robert Randall that they could take the job in the new tech plant and SHOVE IT, and he is still wearing an APRON and working with his wife.

Yeah, this is actually the only thing that is cool about this book.

In fact, bizarrely, we get no mention whatsoever of Coraline, Robert, or the plant.  Now, I know we’re supposed to assume that everything went to plan and the town was saved…again.  But hey, at least I can dream that a few people told Robert exactly what they think of him, “nasty ex” or not.

Anyway, we can’t have something cool happen without also having weird and/or jerks things happen, and Whitney condescendingly spares a smile for bridesmaid Gracie, “delighted that she and her Patrick had finally tied the knot, too.”  Emphasis mine, because…finally?  They are the Book 3 couple and that book came out in August, which means they went from meeting to wedding in ten months, at the very most.  So what this really is, is a catty comment on Whitney’s part, because Gracie had been engaged before, and became a “runaway bride” when her fiance cheated on her.  So, ha-ha, she’s finally married.  Tee.  Hee.

So it’s a big wedding, so basically the whole town can come, and this becomes important as Whitney is standing there waiting to walk down the aisle: Whitney tells her mom that Josh thought she wanted a big wedding.  Her mom reveals:

“It’s my fault.  And Susanna’s [Josh’s mom].  We were the ones who convinced him you needed a fancy shindig so everybody in Bygones could share the moment. … It’s a good thing you and Josh never compared notes about it or we wouldn’t be standing here right now.”

Yeah.  I…guesses.  Man, if there’s one thing this book isn’t lacking, it’s multiple manipulative women.

No word on whether the nasty ex comes to the wedding, btw.

Anyway, when Whitney gets up there, she tells Josh, and he’s blown away, because turns out they both would have been just as happy eloping.

Whitney says:

“From now on, we need to promise to talk more.”

I mean, really?  Once we got engaged, my now-husband and I started a discussion on wedding size, like, two days later.  And this discussion lasted over multiple weeks.  And I just for the life of me cannot envision a scenario wherein our mothers could have convinced each of us that the other person wanted something completely different than what they actually wanted.  So, yeah, some lessons in basic communication just might be in order for Whitney and Josh.

But hey, from a RTC standpoint, at least they got to have the wedding of their mothers’ dreams.  And that’s what’s important.

Man, overall, this year’s Wintermas selection just didn’t fire on all cylinders for me.  It was just kinda low-level offensive and dumb, but without the goofy insanity of our own gold standard, Christmas Town.  Eh, better luck next Wintermas.

And in the meantime, I might hit a Christian movie or two before my next planned book.  And speaking of Hank, I might rope him in…