Such a lighthearted and delightful read, I just couldn't put it down!
I really enjoyed the different theme in the book of costume making and exploring all the different stories through clothes. It was such an interesting addition to the main plot, and gave extra little stories and mysteries that really kept you hooked.
I adored the little cat 'Golightly' and his quirky personality, I would love a little character like that of my own.
It was a real joy to read, the little community of houses and all the characters, with so much going on it went at a great pace, but constantly had you waiting to see what would come for each of the characters next!
I've enjoyed it immensely and look forward to the next book!

Quite a different story to what I’m used to by Trisha Ashley. It took me a bit of time to get into but once it got going I thoroughly enjoyed it. I couldn’t wait to get to the end to find out what had happened years ago to Rosa May. All the characters were really interesting to get to know and I would recommend this lovely romantic read

This was a properly charming book, I loved all of the historical elements, especially looking back at Rosa May’s life through her diary entries and trying to uncover what happened once the diary finished and where she mysteriously disappeared to.

Golightly was the funniest character, I can just picture him prowling through the house like he owned the roost as only cats can. But he wasn’t the only great character, Honey and Garland were both delightful and I really enjoyed seeing how their relationship progressed. A few characters were a bit unfavourable though… - if you know, you know!

I did find this a little slow to start with but I soon found myself immersed in this unique world, learning about the different wedding dresses and the stories behind them - some of them were definitely eye opening that’s for sure! The community is so welcoming to Garland and you feel like you’ve been invited in as a reader as well, I’d love to live somewhere like that with a little book club and that true sense of belonging.

There were also secrets and surprises to be unravelled and I definitely didn’t foresee the ending of this, not what I was expecting at all! All together this was a lovely light read, perfect for settling down with at the end of a busy day

A brilliant and emotionally crafted story. A modern story with an historical background tying them together. I never like to give storylines away so would say you need to read it as the outcome may not be what you envisage as you follow the lives, loves and personal stories of the characters. Read it in two days as unputdownable!

One again Tricia has produced the perfect escape from the real world. Commencing with betrayal and humiliation our heroine, Garland, through hard work and some lucky breaks and because she is basically a good person makes good. There’s a little spoon of fairy dust also.
Garland Fairford is a dressmaker and works for a theatrical costumier specialising in historical costume. Her fiancé Marco seems to be the one but a series of events and emotional response to betrayal leaves her without a job or man and in need of an exit stage left. Enter the fairy godmother, novelist Honey Fairford, they are distantly related. Honey needs her skills now. The catch is that she will need to leave London and go to Yorkshire, Great Mumming to be precise.
There’s an intriguing historical mystery along with the modern plot as the women endeavour to open a Wedding Dress Museum as a tribute to love and betrayal. It’s a perfect fit and Garland throws in her lot with Honey.
Loved this book and it’s a keeper to add to my Tricia Ashley collection. The attention to detail and real love of her character is the reason I keep coming back for more.

I’m not a fan of Trisha Ashley, I find them hard to read and quite boring and predictable. Thought I would give this one a go whilst I was on holiday, and it was ok. Not really very interesting and was very predictable .

So easy to read I was hooked lived it great characters I could picture the plot in my mind I recommend you all read good strong character you will love

When Garland meets a previously unknown relative, she doesn't know that the course of her life is about to change. Honey is setting up a museum for wedding disasters and wants Garland to curate and restore the gowns. She is in charge of planning and executing the displays and you can feel the excitement building as the opening day approaches. I love Trisha Ashleys books, as they transport you directly into the middle of the story and setting, getting to know the characters, caring about their futures and about their futures.

I’m always a bit dubious when there is a character list at the beginning of a book and in this case there was two pages of characters mentioned as to who they were and how they connected to the story. Why is there the need for it? Does it mean that I am going to be confused throughout wondering who is who so much so that I will have difficulty keeping track and it will in turn disrupt the flow of the story for me? Will I have to refer back to the list often? Thankfully, here in Trisha Ashley’s new book, The Wedding Dress Repair Shop, I didn’t have to do this although the further I delved into the story I came to appreciate the inclusion of the character list.

I haven’t read a Trisha Ashley book in quite some time and how I would sum this one up is quirky, and I mean that in the best of ways. It’s different from the usual women’s fiction I read and I loved how it wasn’t the done to death routine of boy meets girl, they fall in love, there is a bit of angst and boom they are together. It’s been done to time and time again and sometimes I just need a change from reading it. Instead, here Trisha has given her readers an engaging story with characters that are all different and have their own unconventional and idiosyncratic ways but you love them all the more for it.

Given the title, I expected the plot to follow someone working in a dress shop that specialises in wedding dress repairs but there is so much more to it than that and it’s not a traditional wedding dress shop. Well in fact it’s not a shop at all but rather a museum which has a peculiar theme at its centre. Initially, the idea of a museum dedicated to wedding dress misfortunes sounded completely off the wall and just that bit too far out there but trust me it works and as the chapters slip by you find yourself completely caught up in the stories of the various dresses and how they came to be placed in the museum. So within the book itself, there are several little stories which help the book to become inviting and intriguing. Two stories in particular really caught my attention with their sense of mystery and I loved how they played out towards the end.

What really makes this book though is the characters. Each has been so carefully thought about and even their names I found to be quite eccentric which only added to the quirkiness of the book and made me smile. The chapters are interspersed with diary entries from Regency actress, Rosa May Garland, who vanished in 1816 after the birth of her twin sons not long after her marriage to Guy Fairford. It details how her freedoms were curtailed once the shackles of wedlock had been placed upon her and how she longed to return to the stage. Initially, I did question why this diary was included alongside the modern day story? But the more the book progressed the more it began to make sense to me. Without Rosa May and her diary the main female protagonist in the present Garland Fairford would never have met crime novelist Honey Fairford and the delightful story that unfolded and the new life that Garland establishes for herself, well she would never had the opportunity to flourish in the way she does over the course of the book.

Garland has her dream job as a historical costumier in London and one day she hopes she will take over as head woman in her department. Garland is viewing an exhibition where she sees Rosa May’s costume that she wore when she played the role of Titania in a Midsummer Night’s Dream. The costume has been donated by Honey as she found it in Pelican Hall in Great Mumming which she inherited from Her Great Uncle Hugo. Rosa May’s journal was found tucked inside the dress and this is how the reader is able to read the extracts from it. Garland encounters Honey and they discover that they are distantly related and so sets in motion the most wonderful of friendships that I really enjoyed reading about and seeing its development.

I adored Honey. She had such an acerbic edge packed full of sardonic comments and really her productivity in terms of her writing and her establishment of the museum of wedding disasters and disappointments alongside the Rosa May collection was nothing short of incredible. I loved everything about her character. She was always on the go and seemed to have an amazing group that gathered around her and it was almost as if they created a family where everyone was welcomed and valued for their talents and personality. She was like a mother hen who gathered her chicks around her and when she met Garland I think she instinctively knew that she needed help and change. That her life in London was reaching a point where if she continued much longer then she wasn’t going to be happy. Yes Garland was happy in terms of the work she was doing but as for her personal life well the reader could easily see that it was about to go spectacularly off track.

Alongside Honey, Garland was my favourite character and I enjoyed reading of the journey she underwent. Her life implodes when on the same day she discovers fiancée Marcus cheating, her reaction to said situation sees her losing her job. Marcus was a playwright who was so caught up in his own ego that he came across as being so pompous and ignorant that in my mind Garland was way better off without him. He was like a bad smell though that just wouldn’t go away and I desperately hoped that she wouldn’t get sucked back in by his supposed charm. He needed her much more than she needed him. I admired how Honey offered Garland a fresh start in Great Mumming in a little mews cottage and in doing so she also acquired someone who knew all about old dresses and preserving and recreating them.

For Garland accepting the job as museum curator was a dream for her and the descriptions of Pelican Hall and the cottages and studios all alongside each other and the market square of Great Mumming was all wonderful and added to the homely feel that pervaded once she left London. Throughout, I sensed there were mentions of other places near to Great Mumming which I initially surmised that they featured in some of Trisha’s earlier books. They did start to ring a bell but specific details evaded me as it had been a good while since I had read said books but the mentions I think would inspire new readers to go back and discover Trisha’s back catalogue.

There is a whole host of characters introduced once Garland arrives and starts to settle into her new life and prepare the dresses for the opening of the museum. Too many to mention here but needless to say I found them all very interesting and each with their own little unique stories to share alongside those of the dresses that Garland begins to work on. It’s a small and cohesive community where it’s impossible not to get sucked into the company of others and perhaps this is for the best of everyone. One person I will mention is Thom. Garland gets quite the surprise when she discovers him living in a mews cottage. Thom is someone who had a significant presence in her life many years ago and then one day he just wasn’t there anymore and she had no idea where he went. To say, I was intrigued as to what was going on here would be an understatement. There were lots of undercurrents between the pair and let’s be honest about things, now that Garland was a free woman, I was desperate for the pair to clear the air and get together. But whether that occurs or not you’ll have to read this story for yourself in order to find out.

The Wedding Dress Repair Shop was an enjoyable read although I did think it was just that little bit overly long. It’s not one where you judge the book by its cover as there is so much more to it than the cover suggests and between the pages Trisha Ashley has given her readers a delightful story full of wonderful characters, new beginnings, second chances and friendship.

I thoroughly enjoyed this latest book from Tricia Ashley. It certainly had a different spin on the usual romance story, it was well-written and I easily became engaged with the characters and storyline. It is many stories within the main stories, as each wedding dress Garland works on has its own tail and this makes for an interesting read.

I am a huge fan of Trisha’s books, as they make the world into happier place with their humour, joy and realistic optimism that they bring to everyone who reads them.

What a great book! Another masterpiece from Trisha Ashley.
I love Garland & enjoyed reading about her so much. The characters are wonderful. Trisha always delivers such interesting characters & stories that are interesting & likeable.
My only criticism is the title. The story doesn't fit with this title, such a shame.

Free courtesy of Netgalley

I love Trisha Ashley and this book was no exception. I don't think the title of the book reflects what it is about though, as it is mainly set in a Wedding dress misfortunes museum.

Garland works in London for a company that provides theatre costumes, she is creating a very special dress which is a replica of her ancestor, who was a famous actress, for her fiancé theatre play. She also meets Honey who turns out to be a long lost cousin, who offers her a job in her Wedding dress museum in Lancashire, So when events conspire against her and she loses her Fiancé and her Job on the same day, she takes up Honey's offer.

When she arrives, she runs into an old friend and quickly makes new ones, whilst fending off her ex fiance who is trying to find her.

I really loved this book, I was invested not only in Garland's story but all the stories that came with the wedding dresses that had been sent to Honey for the museum.

I didn't want this book to end and I would definitely recommend you put it on your summer reading list.

This was a lovely read which intertwined the past with modern day and loved how it covered a variety of themes from falling in love to making a fresh start and how the events of the current day intertwined to uncover secrets from
The past this was a mixture of historical and romance all wrapped up in a beautiful setting and with relatable characters who the reader could easily warm to not forgetting the humour injected by go lightly the cat.

The story also showed how much happiness and coming together of the community that creating a new lease of life for wedding dresses could bring. From the title I thought it was going to be a read about dressmaker altering wedding dresses but was so so much more than that and very true what they say about not judging a book by it’s cover.

You get lots of individual stories related to wedding day events in this wonderful book.
The initial story of actress Rosa May Garland, who disappeared shortly after giving birth to twin sons inspired her descendent novelist Honey to write a book about a jilted bride which then caused readers to send in their stories and wedding dresses. Thus the Wedding Dress Museum was born. Through the display of Rosa May’s dresses in the V and A, Honey meets fellow descendent Garland who is a theatrical costume maker and conservator.
This is a refreshing story about new beginnings, second chances and learning to live again. The characters, especially the animals are easy to visualise.

A huge thank you to the publisher & netgalley for an advanced copy of Trisha Ashley's latest book. This is one of my favourites by Trisha, I love the concept of the story, I love the descriptions of the dresses, I loved seeing the character Garland grow, but most of all, I loved the quirky natured, often seeming to be in a grumpy mood cat. An absolute must read.

With its selection of sometimes quirky chaeacters and the mystery at the heart of the story, this has a faint whiff of a cozy crime read for me. I think the nostalgia of the setting with the old wedding dresses and the opening up of the museum to the brides whose weddings had not gone to plan added to the tone. Garland is an interesting character who ends up in her dream job almost by accident. There is plenty of romance in the background and some over the top characters to amuse. It is a lighthearted enjoyable read which always engages.
Thanks to the publisher for a copy of the book

True to form, Trisha has penned another fabulous book. Set amongst family and vintage wedding dresses, what more could you want. A real page turner which I found hard to put down.

This intriguing story held my interest right from the start. After a distressing experience in London Garland begins a new life as Curator of a soon to be opened Wedding Dress Museum. With her sewing expertise she carries out repairs and catalogues the dresses and the stories behind them. There are new friends made and she becomes a part of the local community and the simple life. I loved how this tale came together. I fully recommend this book.

The fabulous creative brilliant mind of Trisha Ashley in a warm hug of a quirky artful fest of a book!! I always get the urge to be creative when reading one of Trisha’s books, whether it’s gardening, baking, stained glass and now costumes and wedding dresses! My sewing machine and all its accoutrements is out and being used as I’m now inspired!!
Garland has been completing a series of costumes inspired by an historic exhibition of one of her relatives, a famous actress from the 19th century who disappeared. Events transpire to wreck her future promotion and her marriage to her fiancé Marco, so she takes up an opportunity from a newly acquainted cousin for a wedding dress exhibition in Lancashire. There is a wonderfully eclectic community there who accept her and draw her into their lives.
There is so much in this book that it’s hard to know where to start. Wonderful asides, hilarious humour, fascinating characters, this is the perfect summer read!!
Loved this book, what a treat!! Trisha’s writing feeds my intellect and my soul!! Highly recommended!!
Thank you to NetGalley and Bantam books for the early opportunity to read!!

Garland is a top costumier with a handsome fiance and a good life in London.
After her world crumbles, Garland is offered a role at a distant cousin's new Wedding Dress Museum, together with a cute cottage and a new life miles away from her heartbreak.
I love a good Trisha Ashley book and this has her usual feelgood factor and interesting cast of characters.
My only complaint is that it's a little long. There are lengthy descriptions of the wedding dresses and dressmaking in general which didn't interest me.
Another good read.