The Wedding People: Book Club Discussion Questions
- Anita
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
In The Wedding People by Alison Espach, sharp wit and emotional depth come together in a poignant story about loneliness, unexpected connection, grief, and second chances. Set at a luxurious wedding weekend in Rhode Island, the novel follows Phoebe, a woman at a crossroads who arrives at a grand hotel with plans very different from those of the wedding guests around her. As her path unexpectedly intersects with the bride, Lila, and a cast of memorable characters, Phoebe is forced to confront difficult truths about her life, relationships, and future. Through humour and heartbreak, the novel explores what it means to start over and find hope in the most unlikely places.
The Wedding People book club discussion questions below were created by our Chapter 25 team of dedicated readers. Perfect for fans of contemporary literary fiction, character-driven stories, and novels that balance humour with emotional insight, these prompts are designed to spark conversation about loneliness and belonging, grief and healing, friendship and human connection, self-discovery, personal reinvention, and the unexpected ways our lives can change when we least expect it.
Book Club Discussion Questions:
What was your first impression of the wedding guests and the bride when you first meet them at the start of the novel?
What was your first reaction when Phoebe said she was at the Cornwall Inn to take her own life? Do you think Lila was selfish in her reaction to this?
Did you like the literary references scattered throughout the novel? Did you know any/all of them?
Why do you think there was instantly so much honesty between Lila and Phoebe despite never knowing each other?
We can see in this novel that some friendships (Lila, Nat and Suz for example) were continuing for the sake of it. Do you think this is more of a modern occurrence or perhaps not?
When did it become apparent to you that Lila and Gary weren’t a good fit?
Lila has a very strained relationship with her mum. How do you think this and the untimely death of her father impacted her relationship with Gary?
How does Phoebe grow and change as a result of the events of the novel? Did you opinion of her change as the book progressed?
What were your first impressions of Gary? Both during his interaction in the hot tub and at the boat trip.
What about Phoebe makes her such a good listener? Why did the other characters all seek her out as a sounding board for their problems?
The novel has grief as one of it’s central themes and it affects most characters. How do you feel the novel handled grief and moving forward?
We see characters who feel the pressure to meet standards of those around them - who do you think fits into this category? Why?
The story features plenty of flashbacks as we learn more about Phoebe and Matt's background. Why was it important for the reader to read these flashbacks?
Could you tell that the main characters were slightly older than a typical protagonist? Was it refreshing or not something you picked up on?
This book contains a lot of complex characters, who sometimes we don’t always like or agree with what they do. Do you like this in a novel or prefer to have definite like/dislike feelings towards different characters?
Are you more like Phoebe or Lila? What characteristics of each do you see in yourself?
What were your thoughts about Phoebe and Matt’s final reunion and officially finding closure?
How did it feel to read a book with multiple references to COVID and lockdowns etc. Was it strange? Have you read many books since the pandemic with these references?
The Wedding People won the fiction category of the Goodreads Choice Awards in 2024. Would you also give it this award? Why or why not?
Lila organises a six day wedding during the novel. What is the longest wedding you have ever attended? Was there a stand out event?
Who would you cast in a movie adaptation of The Wedding People? (It can be as realistic or unhinged as you’d like!)
What did you think about the ending? What do you think happens next for Phoebe, Gary, Lila and Jim?
