Wed, Read & Dead by V.M. Burns is the fourth book in the “Mystery Bookshop” cozy mystery series. Publisher: Kensington Books, April 30, 2019.

Bookstore owner Samantha Washington sells and solves mysteries in North Harbor, Michigan—including the murder of her mother’s wedding planner . . .

Sam’s mother can’t wait to wed her wealthy beau, Harold Robertson. The big mystery is how they’re going to pull off a lavish wedding in three weeks. Harold’s snobby sister-in-law proposes a solution: engage flamboyant wedding planner Lydia Lighthouse. But their beacon of hope quickly sends everyone into a blind rage, most of all the groom-to-be. So when the maddening micromanager is strangled with her own scarf, it’s a shock, but not a surprise.

It’s a case of art imitating life as Sam pens her next historical mystery set in England between the wars. Lady Daphne Marsh insists on marrying Lord James Browning on Christmas Eve, three weeks hence. But when the fop planning their wedding ends up with a knife in his back, she vows to nab the backstabber before she walks down the aisle.

Meanwhile, when she’s not writing, Sam and her beloved and boisterous Nana Jo rush to shine a light on Lydia’s killer—so her mother’s new husband won’t spend his honeymoon behind bars . . .

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This is such a fun book to read. I love the idea of a mystery within a mystery that sometimes mirrors what’s in reality and what’s being written by our heroine, Sam. In the latest adventures, Sam is preparing for her mother’s wedding (imagine trying on a bubble gum pink bridesmaid dress and what happens next -you can’t help but laugh) and trying to solve a murder.

This is well-written whodunit grabbed my attention from the start, quickly becoming a page-turner as I had to know who did what to whom. This tale had everything I like in my mysteries, a strong and solid plot, a tightly woven mystery that kept me glued to the pages, humor and amusing antics from a lovable cast that includes Nana Jo, Irma, Dorothy and Ruby Mae, a suspect pool filled with stronger motives than the accused, clues that had me checking it twice to see if I was on the right path, and a few strategically placed twists and turns and some surprises that enhanced my reading pleasure. I love that all the key players had pivotal roles that led to the apprehension of the killer. This is a character-driven tale with a quirky cast of characters, engaging dialogue, laugh-out-loud moments and a well-executed narrative. I look forward to the next book in this delightfully entertaining series.