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I Thee Dead: Book #1 in The Wedded Bliss Series
Murder, false arrests, her business on the brink...
But if anyone's ready for the unexpected, it's a wedding planner.
After being dumped by her fiancé, let go from her job and dealing with the passing of her
beloved aunt, Leah has picked up the pieces and returned to Ashford, Ohio to take over her
family’s wedding planning business. Quickly she learns the business is not doing well and could
close in a few months. She jumps in with both feet and focuses on an upcoming wedding for a
local wealthy socialite which could be their saving grace.
Everything seems to be falling into place until the night of the rehearsal dinner, when
someone ends up dead and Leah’s best friend is the number one suspect. With the help of her
friends, a handsome local detective, and a sexy private investigator, will Leah be able to catch
the killer and clear her best friend’s name before they strike again or will there be an unhappily
ever after?
But if anyone's ready for the unexpected, it's a wedding planner.
After being dumped by her fiancé, let go from her job and dealing with the passing of her
beloved aunt, Leah has picked up the pieces and returned to Ashford, Ohio to take over her
family’s wedding planning business. Quickly she learns the business is not doing well and could
close in a few months. She jumps in with both feet and focuses on an upcoming wedding for a
local wealthy socialite which could be their saving grace.
Everything seems to be falling into place until the night of the rehearsal dinner, when
someone ends up dead and Leah’s best friend is the number one suspect. With the help of her
friends, a handsome local detective, and a sexy private investigator, will Leah be able to catch
the killer and clear her best friend’s name before they strike again or will there be an unhappily
ever after?
223 pages, Paperback
Published August 22, 2024
3 people are currently reading
62 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
December 15, 2024
Dollycas’s Thoughts
The Wedded Bliss is a family-owned wedding planning business that tries to provide each bride with “a wonderful and memorable service for the most important day of her life”. Leah Jordan now runs the business started by her mother and her aunt in 1982 taking over after the passing of her aunt. Leah had just lost her job and her fiancé was now her ex-fiancé so nothing was keeping her from coming home to Ashford to take over a business she knew like the back of her hand. She never expected to learn The Wedded Bliss was in trouble and could be closing without an influx of money.
Enter bride-to-be Janie Coleman, a rich daddy’s girl with an unlimited budget. Her vision includes “glitz, glitter, and crystals” and Leah is determined to give her everything she wants followed by a bill that should get The Wedded Bliss back on the right track.
Then at the rehearsal dinner, Leah finds a very important person dead and somehow Leah’s best friend and part of the team at The Wedded Bliss lands in jail, held as the prime suspect. That doesn’t sit well with Leah, she knows her friend had nothing to do with the murder. She brings together some old friends and new ones to apprehend the killer and prove her friend’s innocence, hopefully before anyone else ends up dead.
Leah Jordan is an interesting protagonist. She is still dealing with her Aunt Sissy’s death while trying to fill her aunt’s shoes. She brought her friend Chelsea into the business to handle the finances and her friend Meg as a technology expert to establish a social media presence for The Wedded Bliss. Sally Sweeney has been the office manager for years. Closing in on 65 she is a motherly type who keeps everyone in line and the business running smoothly. Caleb Hamilton is one of the wedding party, but he has another reason for being in Ashford. We also meet Meg’s brother Luke, a detective on the police force. All these characters were well crafted while leaving the room to grow as the series continues. I hope we get more of Leah’s backstory soon.
Bride-to-be Janie Coleman was a delight and so excited to get married. Her groom didn’t score any points with me. Janie was her father’s princess but he wore his wealth on his sleeve and expected people to fall in line. We meet several other characters throughout the story, residents of Ashford, and people questioned during the investigation.
The murder investigation was very entertaining. Leah and Caleb went to great lengths and unusual places trying to find the killer. They uncovered some intriguing information and more people that may have had cause to want the victim dead. But Leah took some foolish risks. Her klutziness put her in a dangerous position and into TSTL territory many amateur sleuths find themselves in. I want to note that there was some repetition of sentences and the plot needed tightening in places but understandable this being the author’s first book.
I enjoyed the wedding planner theme and that the author struck a nice balance of romance and mystery. She also includes some wedding tips following the story. As someone who had three of her children get married in the last few months I can tell you the tips are spot-on.
I Thee Dead has given the The Wedded Bliss Series a bright start. Leah and her friends are fun and I want to get to know them better. Ms. Lawrence has also laid the footing for a romantic triangle that I already find myself invested in its outcome. Christine Lawrence is an author to watch. I am excited about the next book in this series.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to the author for providing me with an ARC.
The Wedded Bliss is a family-owned wedding planning business that tries to provide each bride with “a wonderful and memorable service for the most important day of her life”. Leah Jordan now runs the business started by her mother and her aunt in 1982 taking over after the passing of her aunt. Leah had just lost her job and her fiancé was now her ex-fiancé so nothing was keeping her from coming home to Ashford to take over a business she knew like the back of her hand. She never expected to learn The Wedded Bliss was in trouble and could be closing without an influx of money.
Enter bride-to-be Janie Coleman, a rich daddy’s girl with an unlimited budget. Her vision includes “glitz, glitter, and crystals” and Leah is determined to give her everything she wants followed by a bill that should get The Wedded Bliss back on the right track.
Then at the rehearsal dinner, Leah finds a very important person dead and somehow Leah’s best friend and part of the team at The Wedded Bliss lands in jail, held as the prime suspect. That doesn’t sit well with Leah, she knows her friend had nothing to do with the murder. She brings together some old friends and new ones to apprehend the killer and prove her friend’s innocence, hopefully before anyone else ends up dead.
Leah Jordan is an interesting protagonist. She is still dealing with her Aunt Sissy’s death while trying to fill her aunt’s shoes. She brought her friend Chelsea into the business to handle the finances and her friend Meg as a technology expert to establish a social media presence for The Wedded Bliss. Sally Sweeney has been the office manager for years. Closing in on 65 she is a motherly type who keeps everyone in line and the business running smoothly. Caleb Hamilton is one of the wedding party, but he has another reason for being in Ashford. We also meet Meg’s brother Luke, a detective on the police force. All these characters were well crafted while leaving the room to grow as the series continues. I hope we get more of Leah’s backstory soon.
Bride-to-be Janie Coleman was a delight and so excited to get married. Her groom didn’t score any points with me. Janie was her father’s princess but he wore his wealth on his sleeve and expected people to fall in line. We meet several other characters throughout the story, residents of Ashford, and people questioned during the investigation.
The murder investigation was very entertaining. Leah and Caleb went to great lengths and unusual places trying to find the killer. They uncovered some intriguing information and more people that may have had cause to want the victim dead. But Leah took some foolish risks. Her klutziness put her in a dangerous position and into TSTL territory many amateur sleuths find themselves in. I want to note that there was some repetition of sentences and the plot needed tightening in places but understandable this being the author’s first book.
I enjoyed the wedding planner theme and that the author struck a nice balance of romance and mystery. She also includes some wedding tips following the story. As someone who had three of her children get married in the last few months I can tell you the tips are spot-on.
I Thee Dead has given the The Wedded Bliss Series a bright start. Leah and her friends are fun and I want to get to know them better. Ms. Lawrence has also laid the footing for a romantic triangle that I already find myself invested in its outcome. Christine Lawrence is an author to watch. I am excited about the next book in this series.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to the author for providing me with an ARC.
October 12, 2025
This read like an awful Lifetime movie. Not in the cheesy, plucky way. Swiftly in the I will not be continuing to read the series category.
To be fair: cozy is not for me.
If you like *simplistic, easy to read cozy mysteries; then this is probably right up your alley.
To be fair: cozy is not for me.
If you like *simplistic, easy to read cozy mysteries; then this is probably right up your alley.
December 10, 2024
What a fun start to this new wedding planner mystery series.
I Thee Dead is the first novel in author Christine Lawrence’s new Wedded Bliss Mystery series featuring wedding planner Leah Jordan, her two best friends, and TWO potential love interests. When a member of a wedding party is murdered during the rehearsal dinner, the bride’s parents sue, and her best friend is initially arrested for the crime, Leah has nothing to lose and everything to gain by finding the real killer herself.
Leah Jordan, the owner of Wedded Bliss, the wedding planning business started by her late mother and aunt, Sissy, is under a lot of pressure to keep her family’s business solvent and make sure that high-profile and highly lucrative society weddings, which are fundamental to her success, go off without a hitch. While Leah is, from all appearances, skilled at what she does, she retains a load of doubt in her mind that she’s up to the task. She’s capable but vulnerable, and her latest clients, who are a pair of very wealthy and very influential doozies, aren’t helping. I actually enjoyed the bride, who has all the makings of a deluxe bridezilla but is really just wildly enthusiastic and wide-eyed over the possibilities for her special day, having unlimited funding to make it happen. The finance, on the other hand, surprised me with his swings of temperament, which, as the story unfolds, became even more confounding. I do feel Leah’s character would have benefitted from a wee bit more development and backstory exposition, though.The author must build her small-town setting from scratch, so there are scads of people introduced, some from Leah’s past and others who are encountered during her investigation. However, a couple of these minor characters felt like they popped up unnecessarily and out of nowhere. Readers are provided a light overview of what the town has to offer through Leah’s interaction with Caleb Hamilton, a hunky wedding guest who is later revealed to be a retired police officer turned undercover private detective hired by the bride.
The plot is lively, first with wedding preparations, then with the murder and subsequent amateur sleuthing. While I enjoyed the overall story, especially the romantic side storylines, plot holes that were relevant to the investigation really bothered me. The unusual murder weapon, while referenced, is never questioned, nor is the report that the groom had been receiving threats recently ever addressed. The threats were serious enough for the bride to secretly hire Caleb Hamilton to join the wedding party, masquerading as her “old friend who was like a brother,” to keep an eye on the groom’s safety. (By the way, Caleb, you had one job….) There were also some continuity issues, a problematic timeline, and instances of sentences repeated in their entirety in the same or subsequent paragraphs, but all fixable things. This book appears to be the author’s debut novel, and with its intriguing premise and underlying structural foundation, it has all the makings of an outstanding cozy mystery series.I recommend I THEE DEAD to cozy mystery fans, especially those with a soft spot for weddings and romance.
I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.
December 16, 2025
REVIEW
I Thee Dead by Christine Lawrence.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
With the protagonist being a woman who plans weddings, this novel would not be my typical read, but I was pleasantly surprised with the connection I had with the small-town characters.
The main character, Leah Jordan, had just inherited a failing wedding planning business. As she strives to save the family business, a dead body shows up at a rehearsal dinner. 😬 Her best friend becomes the prime suspect for the police.
Leah, with the support of a private investigator and a local detective, launches her own investigation to clear her friend and find the real killer.
I finished the last half of this book while deer hunting. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The whole "who did it" theme kept me guessing up to the end. It even had a bit of small-town romance mixed in, which reminded me of some of the people from the small town I live in.
Good job, Christine Lawrence!
If you enjoy a good murder mystery, I recommend you check it out.
I Thee Dead by Christine Lawrence.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
With the protagonist being a woman who plans weddings, this novel would not be my typical read, but I was pleasantly surprised with the connection I had with the small-town characters.
The main character, Leah Jordan, had just inherited a failing wedding planning business. As she strives to save the family business, a dead body shows up at a rehearsal dinner. 😬 Her best friend becomes the prime suspect for the police.
Leah, with the support of a private investigator and a local detective, launches her own investigation to clear her friend and find the real killer.
I finished the last half of this book while deer hunting. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The whole "who did it" theme kept me guessing up to the end. It even had a bit of small-town romance mixed in, which reminded me of some of the people from the small town I live in.
Good job, Christine Lawrence!
If you enjoy a good murder mystery, I recommend you check it out.
September 11, 2025
Story: 3 Stars
Narration: 5 Stars
The story itself was just okay for me, but Lisa Lynn Sandlin’s narration truly made the audiobook worth it. She brought excitement and great pacing that kept me engaged. This is a fun, cozy mystery with some comical sidebars, but the plot kind of lost me a bit; I had to enjoy it more as light fiction and just go with it.
Content notes: Mild profanity is sprinkled in (mostly “OMG” not abbreviated, plus a couple of other small curses). There are also a couple of vague, “off-screen” references to private encounters, phrased in a tongue-in-cheek way. A murder is part of the story, with a light mention of blood, though nothing graphic. In today's (American) TV standards, this would probably be rated PG-13.
A fun option for cozy mystery fans who enjoy strong narration.
I received an Audible code to listen to this audiobook, but all thoughts and opinions are entirely my own
Narration: 5 Stars
The story itself was just okay for me, but Lisa Lynn Sandlin’s narration truly made the audiobook worth it. She brought excitement and great pacing that kept me engaged. This is a fun, cozy mystery with some comical sidebars, but the plot kind of lost me a bit; I had to enjoy it more as light fiction and just go with it.
Content notes: Mild profanity is sprinkled in (mostly “OMG” not abbreviated, plus a couple of other small curses). There are also a couple of vague, “off-screen” references to private encounters, phrased in a tongue-in-cheek way. A murder is part of the story, with a light mention of blood, though nothing graphic. In today's (American) TV standards, this would probably be rated PG-13.
A fun option for cozy mystery fans who enjoy strong narration.
I received an Audible code to listen to this audiobook, but all thoughts and opinions are entirely my own
January 23, 2025
Enticing Cozy Mystery
Christine wrote an enticing cozy mystery that immediately grabs your attention.
Leah inherited The Wedded Bliss which is a full service wedding planning business. Her current client was a Bridezilla who had everything given to her for her entire life. Regardless of Janie’s last minute requests Leah planned the perfect wedding.
The night of the wedding rehearsal someone was unalived. Leah’s best friend was arrested and she risks her life to clear her friend’s name. A private investigator, (Caleb), assists Leah to try to solve the crime as her business’ reputation is on the line.
Christine did an amazing job with the investigation process. I was excited as I rooted for Leah and Caleb to solve the mystery and was surprised to find out who had committed the crime. I’m hooked and looking forward to reading the second book in this series.
Christine wrote an enticing cozy mystery that immediately grabs your attention.
Leah inherited The Wedded Bliss which is a full service wedding planning business. Her current client was a Bridezilla who had everything given to her for her entire life. Regardless of Janie’s last minute requests Leah planned the perfect wedding.
The night of the wedding rehearsal someone was unalived. Leah’s best friend was arrested and she risks her life to clear her friend’s name. A private investigator, (Caleb), assists Leah to try to solve the crime as her business’ reputation is on the line.
Christine did an amazing job with the investigation process. I was excited as I rooted for Leah and Caleb to solve the mystery and was surprised to find out who had committed the crime. I’m hooked and looking forward to reading the second book in this series.
December 7, 2024
Well, this was a lot of fun! Will someone please assure me that the plan is for this to be a series, because I am in!
This was a quick read that I enjoyed from the very start until the last page. Leah is such a fun character. I love that she is not afraid to jump in and solve the murder to save her best friend and her business.
I so enjoy when our sleuths have jobs that let me have a behind the scenes look at their work and I found the wedding planning business pretty entertaining. Imagine having unlimited funds for a wedding that you can just add expensive details at the last minute!
I enjoyed sleuthing with Leah and her handsome friend (no spoilers here!) and did not see that end coming. Well plotted and paced, this is a cozy mystery fans of the genre are sure to enjoy.
This was a quick read that I enjoyed from the very start until the last page. Leah is such a fun character. I love that she is not afraid to jump in and solve the murder to save her best friend and her business.
I so enjoy when our sleuths have jobs that let me have a behind the scenes look at their work and I found the wedding planning business pretty entertaining. Imagine having unlimited funds for a wedding that you can just add expensive details at the last minute!
I enjoyed sleuthing with Leah and her handsome friend (no spoilers here!) and did not see that end coming. Well plotted and paced, this is a cozy mystery fans of the genre are sure to enjoy.
September 19, 2025
Overall, this was a cute story. The characters were great together. and the mystery was interesting. One thing I really liked was that there is a bit of a love triangle, but the guys are not antagonistic towards each other, and they even work together to take down the culprit. That was refreshing. It had a bit
more sexual subtext than I prefer, but not so much that it ruined my listening experience. (l'm not even sure if "sexual subtext" is the right way to put that... I just know there were a couple very brief moments where my eyes went wide, and I looked around to make sure my kids weren't in the room.)
The narrator of the audio book was great! She really drove home the tension and emotion!
more sexual subtext than I prefer, but not so much that it ruined my listening experience. (l'm not even sure if "sexual subtext" is the right way to put that... I just know there were a couple very brief moments where my eyes went wide, and I looked around to make sure my kids weren't in the room.)
The narrator of the audio book was great! She really drove home the tension and emotion!
September 9, 2025
Finally!
Sorry it took so long Christine. I really enjoyed this story. It had a lot of criminal behavior and Leah puts herself right in the middle of murderous ideas. There were some moments of anxiety wondering if Leah would be alright after a couple of crazy ideas put her in bad situations. I love the cats and the other characters. Maybe book 2 will help us decide if it’s Caleb or Luke??
Sorry it took so long Christine. I really enjoyed this story. It had a lot of criminal behavior and Leah puts herself right in the middle of murderous ideas. There were some moments of anxiety wondering if Leah would be alright after a couple of crazy ideas put her in bad situations. I love the cats and the other characters. Maybe book 2 will help us decide if it’s Caleb or Luke??
April 9, 2025
I love a cozy mystery and this book fit the bill. I was so suspicious of one character through the whole book but I was totally wrong. The author kept me engaged with every page. Can't wait for book 2!
September 26, 2024
Fast read
What a fun book to read! It was engaging with surprises as well. I didn't see that one coming. Please write another book soon.
What a fun book to read! It was engaging with surprises as well. I didn't see that one coming. Please write another book soon.
December 20, 2024
Nice cozy mystery! Loved how there are wedding planning tips at the end.
January 28, 2025
loved it
Kept me on my toes the whole time had me second guessing myself and kept me intrigued. The character development is amazing.
Kept me on my toes the whole time had me second guessing myself and kept me intrigued. The character development is amazing.
April 24, 2025
Fun cozy mystery with a great cast of characters. Christine kept me guessing until the end.
I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.
I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.
May 1, 2025
Cozy Mystery Romance
I enjoy reading local authors
Easy to read
I appreciate linear storytelling
The editing could use a little work
Cozy Mystery Romance
Cute characters and cats
I enjoy reading local authors
Easy to read
I appreciate linear storytelling
The editing could use a little work
Cozy Mystery Romance
Cute characters and cats
September 6, 2025
Such a fun listen on audiobook. Lisa Lynn Sandlin is a stand-out in her field. A great story by Christine Lawrence. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the books in the series.
September 26, 2025
I thought that I had who did it from the middle. But I was so wrong!! Great story Christine!!! I cannot wait to read book 2!!!!!
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