Kristina A. reviewed on 6/5/2017 + 1528 more book reviews

Marriage is Pure Murder by Staci McLaughlin is the sixth book in A Blossom Valley Mystery series. It is early November and Dana Lewis is getting ready for her wedding to Jason Forrester at the O'Connell Organic Farm and Spa in Blossom Valley. Dana is visiting the florist, Bethany Lancaster at the Don't Dilly-Dahlia Flower Shop to go over the final details. Bethany seems to know particulars about Dana's life that she did not share with her and the florist probes for more information. Later that day Dana receives a call from Bethany. One of the flowers Dana wanted for the wedding is no longer available, and Bethany needs Dana to stop by after work to pick a replacement. Dana arrives at the flower shop to find the lights out and the door locked. She goes around back and finds the alley door unlocked. Dana enters to find Bethany on the floor with blood pooling around her head. Detective Palmer is assigned the case, and he considers Dana a suspect (based on very flimsy evidence). Dana wants this matter cleared up before her wedding. She starts asking questions about Bethany and discovers that she was a blackmailer. Bethany used people's secrets to her advantage. That certainly opens up the suspect pool. But one person had more to lose than any of the others. Will Dana make it to her wedding or will it turn into a funeral?

Marriage is Pure Murder is nicely written and has a good pace which makes for an easy to read cozy mystery. The mystery was slightly more complex than those in previous books in this series (which appealed to me). I liked how one little detail gave away the killer's identity to Dana in the book. The ending is sweet and will provide readers with a laugh. I give Marriage is Pure Murder 3.5 out of 5 stars. I do wish that there had been more substance (depth) and less time devoted to Wilbur and food descriptions. I was curious as to the name of Dana's mother. It was not mentioned once throughout the book. I found Dana's sister, Ashlee to be infantile, selfish and annoying (I really did not like her). I sincerely hope that we see less of her in future novels. Marriage is Pure Murder is a cute, lighthearted story that will appeal to many readers.

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