Book Review: Better Off Wed

Author: Laura Durham
Title: Better Off Wed
Publisher: Avon
Publish Date: January 25, 2005
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: The murder of a particularly difficult mother-of-the-bride has cast a pall on wedding planner Annabelle Archer's latest triumph -- and suspicion falls heavily on her sometime-business partner and friend Richard Gerard. Annabelle knows that even her trusted wedding emergency kit won't be able to salvage their careers if she and Richard can't find the real culprit.

It's no easy task since the slain matron was perhaps the most hated socialite in D.C., but Annabelle navigates through the city's colorful wedding industry and powerful social scene on the deadly trail of a killer. Always the bridal consultant and never the bride, she's seen her fair share of bouquet tosses. But there's no telling what surprises a ruthless killer will throw her way if she gets too close.


Review: I love cozy mysteries and I always love finding new series where the main character has a different sort of job. Annabelle Archer is a wedding planner and when a brides super nasty mom ends up dead at the reception, Annabelle sets out to find the killer.

Of course!

I always wonder about the characters that just decide to do the sleuthing, especially when the cops don't appear inept. Reese didn't, in this case. I really liked that they didn't end up dating at the end of this book, though I'm sure they'll get together somewhere down the line.

The characters in the story were cute and funny. Richard, the caterer is an absolute hoot. It was hilarious when he was gushing over the wedding photos of his food! Then there's Kate, Annabelle's assistant who never quite gets her cliched phrases right.

What made this book an enjoyable read for me was that there weren't any family members around to make Annabelle feel bad about her unmarried state. Though Leatrice, her neighbor tries to point her off towards many good looking guys.

The mystery was really funny too. Mrs Pierce was quite a nasty tramp. She was probably one of characters that I'd vote most deserving of being offed in a cozy.

So many affairs. So much betrayal and blackmail!

It made for a great read! Hopefully the rest of the series will be this good!

Rating:  4 flowers