By Linda Howard

“…We have seven people who knew the skewers were there: the wedding planner, the reception hall manager, the dressmaker, the florist, the veil-maker, the cake-maker, and the caterer. I haven’t ruled out the butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker, either. ”

This novel is highly readable and typical Linda Howard. It breezed along with her stock hero and heroine with all their strengths and weaknesses intact. There is plenty of conflict between them as well as (of course) very hot instant sexual attraction. If you want a deep and complex love story and relationship building, go elsewhere. The hero is her typical male chauvinist alpha male. The only way he broke the mold was that he takes his coffee with cream and sugar when everyone knows real romance heroes take their coffee black. The heroine is beautiful, classy, and successful with trust issues. She is a wedding planner, and when the bridezilla is murdered, Our hero, Eric, is the detective in charge.

She did feel sorry for Carrie’s fiancé, but she’d have felt a lot sorrier for him if nothing had happened and he had actually married her.

The romance proceeds as per usual with a bit of a non-mysterious mystery thrown in to give them a reason to be together. The damsel must be in distress. Linda is good at amusing banter and observations, and the descriptions of the Beverly Hillbillies’/Sons of Anarchy Wedding is downright funny.

Maybe the bride’s mother would be seated to a Brad Paisley song about checking you for ticks, but she would, by golly, be seated at the right time, and in the right place.

Well-written secondary characters add interest and keep the ball rolling. A very solid 3 stars.

October 28, 2018