Fluffy mysteries at their best! This is the first Diane Mott Davidson that I've gotten to read and I was hooked right away. Similar in form to my other favorites (Dorothy Johnson, Rita Mae Brown, etc.) it took on the hokey beginnings and led their fluffy way down to the solving of the mystery, all the while the main character doesn't skip a beat with her catering.
I know it sounds bad, but I honestly love these types of light and fluffy mysteries, they aren't dark and depressing, they're easy to follow without too many characters and not enough substance. I don't like heavy mysteries that get confusing within the first chapter and get wayyy too descriptive when it comes to the crime scenes or the lack of morals of some of the characters.
This one in particular does seem to be a little bit too hokey in the plot (dead priests and missing soon-to-be husbands) compared to the other books, but it's forgivable!
The Case of the Missing Bridegroom When you're planning to get married and your priest is murdered and your fiance disappears, you know you've had a bad day. That is the case with Goldy Bear whose wedding is called off when Reverend Olson is murdered and Tom Schulz, who is leading the investigation, is suddenly among the missing. As Goldy frantically searches for Tom and tries to solve the murder, she discovers that all is not well in her Episcopalian Church. She uncovers the possibility of adultery, thievery, and a church split over worship style and music. Which of these issues might cause someone to murder their church leader? Both Goldy and Tom's lives are in danger before the murder is solved. This book contains lots of interesting recipes, along with another good mystery by author Davidson.Not quite satisfying... This is the second Diane Mott Davidson that I have read, and although it is light and fluffy and entertaining, we're not talking great fiction or even great mystery here. Davidson is one of the many mystery writers nowadays who has come upon a theme, and her theme is food. The main character, Goldy Bear, is a caterer and while she's running around solving crimes, she's also cooking up a storm. Three things kept me from giving this book more stars. First, the plot is rather hokey and it's hard to believe that after Goldy's fiance' is kidnapped just minutes before her wedding, that in the three days following, she would take on last minute catering jobs. Also, Goldy never listens to the police and always tries to solve things on her own (makes you wonder why she hasn't been killed). Second, I'm a devout Episcopalian and while I usually enjoy books with Episcopal themes, the complicated jargon of the Episcopal Church even got tiring to me after awhile. Most non-Episcopalians would be hard pressed to give definitions of narthex or ambry. Finally, as someone who likes to cook and entertains quite a bit, I found that the dozen or so recipes that are included in this book didn't even appear appetizing (except for maybe the cinnamon buns). Anyway, I will admit that I was anxious to keep turning pages to see who the villain was in this book. But overall, I don't think it is one of Davidson's better efforts.
