Publisher : Lake Union Publishing (August 1, 2021)
Publication date : August 1, 2021
Language : English
Synopsis
A darkly funny novel from a fresh new voice in fiction about brides, lovers, friends, and family, and all the secrets that come with them.
Tiny McAllister never thought she’d get married. Not because she didn’t want to, but because she didn’t think girls from Connecticut married other girls. Yet here she is with Caroline, the love of her life, at their destination wedding on the Bermuda coast. In attendance—their respective families and a few choice friends. The conflict-phobic Tiny hopes for a beautiful weekend with her bride-to-be. But as the weekend unfolds, it starts to feel like there’s a skeleton in every closet of the resort.
From Tiny’s family members, who find the world is changing at an uncomfortable speed, to Caroline’s parents, who are engaged in conspiratorial whispers, to their friends, who packed secrets of their own—nobody seems entirely forthcoming. Not to mention the conspicuous no-show and a tempting visit from the past. What the celebration really needs now is a monsoon to help stir up all the long-held secrets, simmering discontent, and hidden agendas.
All Tiny wanted was to get married, but if she can make it through this squall of a wedding, she might just leave with more than a wife.
EARLY PRAISE:
“A dramatic and darkly funny dose of WASP culture. Liz Parker takes on dysfunctional families, destination weddings, and the fact that sometimes the most difficult person to accept is yourself.”―Laura Hankin, author of Happy & You Know It
“In her buoyant, sharply observed, and painfully hilarious debut novel, All Are Welcome, Liz Parker tells the big story of a small lesbian wedding. Over a meticulously planned weekend at a sunstruck Bermuda beach club, the hard-packed, jovial WASP surfaces of two seemingly similar Connecticut families come loose to expose long-buried secrets, uncomfortable truths, and a monsoon of dysfunction. By the time the clouds part, Parker has illustrated with blistering wisdom how, for many of us, finding happiness―alone or with another―begins with first seeing who we’ve been in, and to, our families, and then deciding who it is we will be.” ―Bill Clegg, author of The End of the Day
“In All Are Welcome, Liz Parker vividly describes a young couple on the brink of their future who must also face their past when their destination beach wedding goes somewhat awry. Over the course of a tumultuous, rum-punch-fueled weekend, secrets are revealed and love is tested. Parker’s keen eye for detail and sense of humor had me both laughing and tearing up, and her sharp plot twists kept me guessing until the last page. With equal parts heart, drama, comedy, and emotion, All Are Welcome is a classic destination-wedding story turned on its head for a discernible modern reader.” ―Julia Spiro, author of Someone Else’s Secret
BOOK REVIEW:
I have always dreamed of a destination wedding in a far away paradise so thank you Liz Parker for the invitation to Bermuda of all places...
I have packed my bags because this wedding is definitely my cup of tea - full of drama, hilarious characters, and the WASPiest of all WASP families are going to in attendance. You do not want to miss this one.
The debut novel "All Are Welcome" by Liz Parker was a fun read for me that I enjoyed from beginning to end. Having the pleasure of attending my sister's destination wedding in San Francisco with her lovely wife, there were just so many anecdotes I related to in this story that had me giggling, shaking my head, and enjoying and having a fun time reading this riot of a novel.
This was a great LGBTQ story that was not about coming out, but instead shone the light on the family that were coming into terms with their first gay child.
Simply well written and brilliant story line I highly recommend.
INSPIRATION FOR THE BOOK:
As head of Publishing at Verve Talent & Literary, Liz Parker has brokered deals for some of the most exciting names in publishing today, including Susan Fowler (Whistleblower), Emmy-Award winner and bestselling author Leah Remini (Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath), internationally bestselling author Suzanne Rindell (The Other Typist), and NYT bestselling author and screenwriter Mikki Daughtry (Five Feet Apart, All This Time). She has an innate sense for spotting compelling narratives.
It turns out she also has a natural talent for writing them. In her debut novel, ALL ARE WELCOME (Lake Union Publishing; August 1, 2021), Parker has written a fabulously funny and keenly perceptive lesbian romantic comedy about a Bermuda destination wedding on the brink of disaster.
“The story started when two elements collided: the story’s opening line, ‘Tiny was actually tiny,’ and my own small lesbian wedding,” says Liz Parker. “I come from a long line of WASPs, and while my own family is not like the McAllisters, there is inevitable humor in challenging the status quo. I wanted to write a book that featured gay characters who weren’t coming out – it was the characters around them who were still struggling. But I also think there is a spectrum of acceptance and growth that comes with a family’s first gay child, and I wanted to shine a light on that process – a process that is challenging, at times frustrating, and often very funny.“
BUYING LINKS: Amazon, Bookshop.org, Barnes
& Noble
AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT:
Liz Parker is a literary agent at Verve Talent & Literary. She has written for the New York Times's Modern Love column, and she lives in Los Angeles with her wife, Sarah, and their two dogs, Beep and Tiny. For more check-out: www.lizparkerwritessometimes.com
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