Review & Giveaway - - Take Me to the Wedding

Take Me to the Wedding

by Miranda Liasson

The Amazing Doctors of Oak Bluff - Book 2

Publisher: Hawthorne House

Release Date: May 9, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

 

How do you know who is the right one for you?

Dr. Samantha Bashar has made a terrible mistake—she let her rocky professional relationship with Dr. Caleb D’Angelo become personal – and accidentally ruined his chances to win back his first true love.

Coming from a proud line of matchmakers, she can’t let that happen, no matter how much she dislikes him. Or the fact that she doesn’t believe in true love for herself. Plus, Caleb is her best friend’s brother. And they’re in the same wedding at the end of the summer – oh, yay.

Dr. Caleb D’Angelo isn’t trying to make enemies…call him a romantic, but he’s just trying to take his chance to see if The One Who Got Away is the right one for him. While avoiding the woman who is T for Trouble at every turn—even though she “feels bad” and is determined to “help him” no matter what he says.

Except the more Samantha helps Caleb, the more his sworn enemy turns into something completely unexpected—she’s funny and kind and very kissable—and Caleb must decide if the One for him isn’t from his past at all—but is the person who’s been right in front of him all along.

PJ's Thoughts:

I love a best friend's brother romance trope. Make them co-workers and adversaries who are the last to realize all that friction between them signals something far different from aggravation simmering beneath the surface and I am well and truly hooked. Liasson uses all of the above in her newest novel, Take Me to the Wedding. 

I am loving this series. Split between the small town of Oak Bluff and the city children's hospital where Sam and Caleb work, this second book in the series is filled with the humor, heartwarming charm, and emotional depth I've come to expect from a Miranda Liasson novel. I love the family dynamics (Caleb's mom is a favorite), the strong friendships, the sweet romance, the snappy banter, and the heart tugs that come from the kids the docs work with at the hospital. It makes me even more invested in these characters.

The ensemble cast adds rich texture to the story, catching readers up with characters from book one and introducing new characters I hope we'll be seeing in future books. I feel like these characters have become friends and I'm eager to see all of them (or at least the ones I like) happily snuggled up with their soulmates. 

You don't have to have read book one, Take Me Home for Christmas (read my review) first in order to enjoy book two though there are crossover characters. I enthusiastically recommend both. 

Have you read any of Miranda Liasson's books?

Do you enjoy medical romances?

One person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, May 16 will receive a signed print copy of Take Me Home for Christmas.

One person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, May 16 will receive a signed print copy of Take Me to the Wedding. 

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

 

Review - - Take Me Home for Christmas

Take Me Home for Christmas

by Miranda Liasson

The Amazing Doctors of Oak Bluff - Book 1

Publisher: Hawthorne House

Release Date: October 4, 2024

Reviewed by PJ

She invented Mr. Right...just in time for the holidays.

Every tangled web starts with one tiny white lie. The kind you spin when you're desperate.

One day I, Mia D'Angelo, third-year pediatric resident, was telling my mom that I'd finally met the perfect guy. Gushing about how amazing he was. And how happy I was.

It was all true. Until my "perfect guy," Dr. Braxton Hughes, turned out to be my co-worker and my only competitor for a spot in the best practice in town...and then suddenly I was dumped...again. But I kept going with the stories, to get her through a very tough time.

My mom's health crisis ended, and just when I thought things had settled down, my family wanted to meet my wonderful boyfriend for Christmas.

So I asked (okay, begged) just about every male I knew under forty, except of course for Brax.

Don't get me wrong. I could always count on him in a pinch. At work, that is.

Brax is an amazing pediatrician, but he would never fit the bill as a boyfriend. Maybe in looks. And charm. And his big heart. The problem is that he's the biggest commitment-phobe this side of the Mississippi.

He's the kind of guy I would definitely never take home for Christmas. There'd be no kissin' under the mistletoe, no canoodling under the tree—because my heart could not survive falling for him again.

My car is packed and I'm down to no one, when magically, there he is, duffle in hand, melt-me smile on his face.

Oh, joy.

Keeping it professional is going to be a whole lot harder than I thought. Especially when he charms my parents, my whole family, and even my dog.

And Dr. Wrong...well, he's suddenly looking awfully right.

PJ's Thoughts:

So. Many. Feelings. Miranda Liasson is an author who always takes me on an emotional journey but even in the midst of many keepers, this book stands out. It has so much heart, so many tender moments. I laughed out loud, shed  tears (both kinds), and fell head over heels in love with…well, pretty much the entire cast of characters. Okay, there are a few exceptions but everyone else. 

I want to hang out with Brax, Mia, Sam, Gage, and the rest of their hospital friends. I want to spend Christmas with Mia’s fun-loving family, join in all of their traditions, make cookies with her mom at daybreak, read The Night Before Christmas with her adorable niece, and tackle the scream-inducing sledding hill behind their house. I love the way Liasson portrays the love, support, teasing, and complications within this close-knit family that has suffered a grievous loss. I wanted to gather them all in and give them huge hugs, including Brax, who has never experienced a Christmas - or family - like the one gifted him by D’Angelos. 

Liasson tackles some tough topics in this book - including sick kids, grief, and cancer - handling them with thoughtful, hopeful, but also realistic care. It adds additional emotional layers to an already heart-tugging story and extra depth to the characters. I especially enjoyed the look forward six years into the future in the Epilogue. 

Take Me Home for Christmas launches Miranda Liasson’s The Amazing Doctors of Oak Bluff series and sets a high bar for the rest of the books. I feel like these characters have become my friends and am eagerly anticipating (hopefully) catching up with them again in book two.