WEDDING BELLES

What is a mother to do? Her wonderful 28-year-old daughter has announced her engagement. Instead of being thrilled, her mother is horrified. The groom-to-be is none other than her husband's best friend. Yes, he's closer to 60 than 30 and he has a wild past. Georgia is horrified what people will say about her daughter's fiance who has been married twice and every woman in town knows his reputation. Georgia hopes to find a way to stop the wedding without losing the daughter that she loves. Luckily for her, she has a great group of friends who will support her in any way they can.

I almost chucked this book in the first 50 pages or so. It was a little too sappy and the women were a group of Red Hat Club who had been chums since high school. It was all a little too convenient. Still, the story drew me in. Georgia's anxieties about the upcoming wedding was both funny and real. Overall, these Southern women and their friendships made for a pretty good story.

Rating - 3.75 stars

EVERYONE WORTH KNOWING

Bette is sick and tired of her seventy hour work week in the wonderful world of banking. One day, without really thinking it through, she tells her boss that she quits. No one is more surprised than Bette. Through some connections of her uncle's, she starts a totally different job as an events planner for a public relations firm. In other words, she goes to parties for a living. As delightful as it sounds, Bette soon finds that the lifestyle of the rich and famous can be overwelming and somewhat shallow. She also finds herself in the midst of a relationship that really isn't a relationship at all, but merely a publicity scam. When she meets the man of her dreams, a bouncer at one of the nightclubs her group often frequents, there are many complications to their relationship.

This is the second book that I've read by Lauren Weisenberger and for the most part, I enjoyed it. Bette's description of the party life was fun and almost disgusting at times. Her friend, Penelope, and her parents were delightful characters. There was quite a bit of a side story about her love of romance novels. Somehow this didn't really seem to fit in the overall scheme of the book. I also thought this book was plenty long but overall, it was fun. The ending was a little too fairy tale but hey, this wasn't supposed to be real life, or was it?

Rating - 4 stars

MURDER IS A GIRL'S BEST FRIEND

Paige Turner has promised her new boyfriend, Dan Street, that she won't get involved in more murder cases. She plans to honor her promise until her late husband's best friend in Korea comes to New York to ask for her help. His sister was murdered and he doesn't believe the police's insistence that the case was a simple burglary. Paige is convinced, too, when she sees the amazing diamonds that the girl's brother, Whitey, found hidden in her box of Quaker Oats. Paige sets out to find the murderer, even if it means keeping the truth from Dan. Amid the holiday hustle and bustle, Paige is on the trail of a murderer.

Amanda Matetsky has written another delightful book set in 1954. Paige is a great heroine, not too brave or too perfect, and her friends are wonderful characters, too. The actual murderer was something of a surprise, but mostly this book was fun just for the great storyline set in New York in the '50's. I'll be looking forward to the next Paige Turner book.

Rating - 4.5

ANOTHER MAN'S MOCCASINS

Sherrif Walt Longmire has a problem. A Vietnamese girl is found dead in a field. In a nearby culvert, a homeless Indian is sound asleep. Even though it would seem obvious that the Indian with his previous record of homicide is the killer, Walt isn't convinced. As Walt with the help of his deputies and his friend, Henry, attempt to solve the case, Walt is drawn back to his own time in Vietnam. Fighting with his own memories, Walt is unsure if he is biased about the case or not.

As usual, Craig Johnson has written a story that keeps the reader drawn in. His characters are wonderful and in this fourth book, they seem like old friends. There was less romance in this book and that was fine. I'm not a big fan of the sherrif and his deputy getting together. At times, this book was confusing, as the story went back and forth between the present day and Walt's time in Vietnam. I would also have enjoyed more of an update on Walt's daughter and her head injury. Once again, she was something of a secondary character.

Rating - 4 stars