Killing Bridezilla

A Jaine Austen Mystery #7

by Laura Levine, Brittany Pressley

When writer-for-hire Jaine Austen signs on to script vows for the ultimate Bridezilla, I do's soon become I wish I hadn't's--and curtains for the bride spell a veil of woes for Jaine . . . Jaine's accepted her share of lame gigs to pay the bills, but rewriting Shakespeare's got to be an all-time low. The fiasco begins with a call from Jaine's high-school nemesis, uber rich uber witch Patti Devane. It seems Patti will soon be sashaying down the aisle with another former classmate from Hermosa High, and she'd like the exchange of vows to evoke Romeo and Juliet . . . except without the downer of an ending. Even worse than the assignment itself is dealing with Patti as a client. At least Jaine's not alone, as nobody can stand the demanding, spoiled, and incredibly rude Bridezilla from Hell. Patti's managed to rack up an amazingly long list of enemies in a short time, not the least of whom include her prospective mother-in-law, the soon-to-be ex-wife of Patti's stolen soon-to-be groom, and just about everyone involved in the wedding preparations. So it isn't a complete surprise when the erstwhile Juliet plunges to her death during her balcony scene.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Cozy, Fiction, Humor, Chick Lit, Comedy

Audiobook

First published June 1, 2008

About the author

Grew up in Brooklyn, New York, back when mastodons (and Edsels) still roamed the earth.

Education: Barnard College

First job: Reporter/photographer at a newspaper so small, we had our photos developed in the local camera shop.

Advertising claim to fame: I created Count Chocula and Frankenberry cereals for General Mills.

TV gets invented, and I get a job as a sitcom writer, turning out scripts for shows like The Bob Newhart Show, Three’s Company, Laverne & Shirley, The Love Boat, The Jeffersons, and Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.

Current (and favorite) incarnation: Author of Jaine Austen mysteries.

Marital status: Wedded blissfully to business journalist Mark Lacter (aka Mr. Hubby), whose insightful coverage of the Los Angeles business scene can be checked daily at http://www.laobserved.com/biz/

Favorite authors: COMEDY: Joe Keenan. MYSTERY: Agatha Christie. SERIOUS STUFF: Anne Tyler.

Hobbies: Reading, swimming, gardening, and lots of walks (mainly to the refrigerator).

Reviews

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of my favorites in the series so far. Jaine is hired to write a script for the wedding of a woman she knew back in high school who is turning out to be a total bridezilla. Lots of great horrific high school memories, mean girls (and boys) and terrible dates to go around. The Starbucks scene was the best. When the bridezilla turns up dead, Jaine tries to figure out whodunnit to get an old classmate off the hook. Unfortunately, she was so terrible, the suspect list is long. This one was especially funny because of all the side plots. The emails with her parents were hilarious. There was a dog side plot to go along with cat Prozac, who I always enjoy. The terrible dates were funny. Just a great book in this series.

[Dianne · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you can get beyond the fact that the author takes many liberties...and I mean MANY, then this is a cute read. I love the sarcasm and the fact that the author sometimes 'talks' to her audience. I love the bumbling stupidity of Jaine Austen. She reminds me a much more mature Stephanie Plum -though I think they are about the same age, they happen to be poles apart.


What I hated was thinking that I was missing pages from my library book because once Bridezilla fell, and it was apparent she was dead the police and EMT's should have immediately been called and nobody should have left the wedding. Just a fact of life. Yet the author 'allowed' everyone to just leave the scene of the death. An action like this would not happen in 'real' life. Yes, I know this is fiction, but even invention has to have a certain amount of believability to it.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Jaine! She is so funny and real. I really enjoy the emails from her parents as well and I have to say I think Jaine takes after her Dad. I can't say I was disappointed to see the victim get it but I was kept guessing as to who the murderer was. Always a lot of fun and am already looking forward to the next book.

[Luffy Sempai · Rating 3 out of 5]

It had to happen sometime. Finally, the first not great book in the series. I liked it very much and wanted to lie to myself, but I can't. There was no surprise ending, not really. The denouement was ho hum and to tell you the truth the plot itself didn't have much potential. The victim wasn't bitchy enough, she was simply stupid and self absorbed. So her death wasn't the game changer that it aimed to be. I must say I missed the reading class at the retirement home. Not to forget the 'you've got mail' section in the book is one of the book's highlights. I never seemed to remember mentioning that delightful part. Also, the fake romance between Patti and Dickie was well faked. Nasty husbands or wives exist and the subterfuge of Dickie was nicely camouflaged. One always wonders what x can see in their nasty or bitchy significant others. This book gave me quite a lot to think about. And it was fun reading it. Until next time.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of the blue, Jaine gets a call from her former high school tormentor - Patti. She wants Jaine to write her wedding vows for her. Well, Jaine needs the money, how bad can it be? Turns out Patti is just as mean and cruel as she was in high school. She is the bridezilla from Hell and she actually HIRES a model as a bridesmaid because her "friend" didnt lose the weight she wanted.The list of people who hate her is long and when she is murdered during the wedding, the suspect list is long.

Jaine decides to investigate and learns a lot of dirty little secrets and just how horrible Patti was.

I really enjoyed this book (along with the rest of the series) and enjoyed revisiting the adventures of her lovely cat Prozac and the emails from her crazy parents. Levine does not let me down!

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a funny, fast moving series. I love Prozac. She makes the whole story.

[Nicole · Rating 1 out of 5]

annoying main character talks to reader and not in a really likeable way. basically yapping about what food she was currently shoveling down her throat. or the disgusting names of the cat food she was feeding her cat Prozac. the characters are unrealistic, unlikeable. this was a mindless read , and although i didn't figure out who the killer was, it was my idea of a light and fluffy "mystery" for non mystery readers. Me, I like some actual meat on my mysteries.

[Shanequa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good portion of this book doesn't even focus on the mystery and the parts that did were okay. The ending and the big reveal felt a little rushed. But despite being really unfocused I'm still giving it 4 stars because this book was hilarious. I had genuine knee slapping laughs and I have to the commend the book for that. I wouldn't recommend this book for the story, it's nothing spectacular, but I would recommend it if you just wanted a laugh.

[Barbara Nutting · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ya gotta love Jaine!! That was my 8th adventure with her and she still makes me laugh out loud. DaddyO’s, Mom, Prozac and the gang performing in all their whacky glory.

Glad Mean Queen Patti fell off her balcony because I was just about getting ready to push her. Karma in action. I didn’t even come close to solving this one.

Fortunately there are still many more books in the series waiting for me.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read a number of Laura Levine's books, and while I have enjoyed them all I think this was the funniest one I have read to date. I was literally laughing out loud while reading! The wedding theme was fun, the list of suspects was great and the twists in the turns at the end left me with no idea who the murderer was. The Starbucks scene was hilarious, as were many others. This book has Jaine meeting up with old friends and enemies from high school and even attending a reunion. It was a great book and I'd recommend it to anyone who wants a laugh :)

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently discovered this series by Laura Levine & I am truly enjoying it. The mystery is solid. Lots of possibilities as to whodunit. Lots of comical things & the main character gets herself into some troubles. This story had some laugh out loud moments that I still giggle over when I think about them. I would recommend this book, this series & this author to friends, to anyone who likes a good mystery with some chuckles along the way (my favorite kind of book).

[Anastasia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Killing Bridezilla by Laura Levine is the 7th book in the Jaine Austen Mystery series. Jaine is hired to write wedding vows for her high school nemesis, rewriting the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet. Unfortunately, she ends up murdered, falling from the balcony onto a cupids arrow. Another fun book with plenty of laughs. Utterly enjoyable.Seems to be just as much drama in Jaine's parents lives as in her own

[Pam Masters · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the first book by this author that I read. I was unaware that this was book 7 in a series, and it does stand alone. I may sound a bit morbid, but this book as one of the greatest "death" scenes I have ever read. The book is what I would call a "light" mystery, but I'm ok with that as it still had a fair share of twists and turns. I will most willingly read another book by the author.

[TcH · Rating 5 out of 5]

LITERALLY laugh out loud funny.
all of this authors books are HILARIOUS
the main character is so endearing. I love her. She's a bit over weight, has no money and loves ice cream. What's not to love??? ha ha

[Bobbi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series just keeps getting better. So many ‘laugh out loud’ moments and a solid mystery.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jane may always be broken, but she's always solving crimes and making more friends along the way. Plus, her cat Prozac. I look forward to the next adventure.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Jaine Austen Mystery series is a fun, fast read. Levine and her sleuth Jaine are a hoot. And I can't forget Prozac! Add this to your TBR list.

[Jennifer Dombrowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to read a funny mystery Killing Bridezilla is a book in the Jaine Austen mystery series by Laura Levine. It is a book that is guaranteed to give you many laugh out loud moments, more so than even Janet Evanovich Stephanie Plum by the numbers books. I always thought those were the funniest books ever until I came across Laura Levine.

This book was about Jaine Austen getting hired to write wedding vows for Patti Devane, who was a wealthy, big bully, who was in Jaine's class in high school.

Patti went the year before the wedding to their class high school reunion and a classmate Dickie Potter took one look at her and fell in love. He divorced Normalynn Butler (who went to school with them) to marry Patti, who was still a bully and became a regular bridezilla. She even went as far as asking her future mother in law, Eleanor Potter, to get a mole removed as it would look bad in her wedding pictures! When she didn't get the mole removed, Patti said she couldn't be in the photos.

Jaine didn't want to do the writing, but Patti was paying her $3,000, and she needed the money.

Patti's idea was a modern-day Romeo and Juliet where she would come out onto the balcony from her bedroom, and Dickie and she and Dickie would declare love. Still, they would announce their passion instead of having a dark suicide scene like Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet scene.

The cupid statues she ordered to be below her next to Dickie on the lawn ended up killing her as the railing on the balcony broke loose, and Patti fell and landed on the cupid's arrow and was killed. The police called it murder as the screws were loose on the balcony that Patti leaned over.

Jaine took it on herself to play sleuth and did some investigating. There were so many Patti terrorized during her life that Jaine thought might be angry enough to kill her that she had a hard time figuring out who did it. Just when she thought she had the murderer, that person did something that meant they couldn't possibly be the murderer.

It was a big surprise to me who actually killed her and the reason why the person did it.

If you want to read a good mystery ane laugh at the same time, you must read this book!

[Bri_winter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the cat Prozac and the email conversation with her parents - really funny! Okay, some of the characters are endless repetitions but nevertheless funny. I didn't think I would enjoy a cozy mystery set in Beverly Hills.
Still a fun read!

[Chaitra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fun mystery, this one where Lance (kind of accidentally) gets a dog. Also, a horrible person dies and Jaine figures out which secondary horrible person is responsible. She also makes a little money murdering Shakespeare in this book, so yay Jaine.

[Jane Night · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Jaine Austen series is always lots of fun to read. The books are humorous though often far fetched. They remind me a bit of shows like I Love Lucy where the heroine ends up in ridiculous situations that couldn’t possibly happen to regular people but we find them amusing anyways.

Jaine Austen is a freelance writer who lives in California where she is an oddity as someone who wears elastic pants and is somewhat overweight.

Killing Bridezilla was an interesting look into Jaine’s past which is a fairly rare thing. In other books we learn that she had a crappy first marriage and that her parents are loving but a little crazy. Still, other than book one in the series, this one I thought added the most characterization by giving a glance into Jaine’s past. That past is presented when Patti who was one of the popular high school girls hires Jaine to help her rewrite Romeo and Juliet to perform at her wedding. As one can guess from the title, Patti is an awful person who no one really likes. One thing that can be said for the Jaine Austen series is that almost everyone killed is a terrible person whose death the reader can’t feel too bad about.

This book also introduces Mamie, a cute doggy to add extra comic relief and to be an opposite to Jaine’s less than lovable cat Prozac. The Mamie secondary story line is what most stood out about this book.

The mystery itself was fairly good for a book in this series. The killer was someone that was a reasonable suspect and had a decent motive. In some of the other books in the series the killers seem random so to have a killer who makes sense is a particular plus for this book.

This book doesn’t stand out quite as much as some of the other books in the series and is one of the more forgettable ones. Many of the Jaine Austen books have eye roll moments and this one was super packed with them (such as when the man Jaine hired to pretend to be her boyfriend is recognized as a male stripper).

Overall, I recommend this series but this isn’t one of the best books in the series. I wouldn’t recommend it as the first Jaine Austen mystery you read but it is worth reading if you want to know a bit more about Jaine Austen after getting into the series.

[Shelley Giusti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jaine Austen's Writing Job has been next to nothing and her bank account doesnt look much better either. So when Patti Marshall wants to meet with her about writing her wedding vows, Jaine is hesitant, she remembers how nasty Patti was to her in high school. But when Patti offers Jaine three thousand dollars to do it, she reluctantly says Yes.

Patti is presistant and wants the vows to be Shakespears Romeo and Juliet the Balcony scene relived at her wedding,Jaine sets out to do her best to perfect them for her.

When Patti is killed in what looks to be an accident falling off the Balcony.Jaines snooping around to find out what happened gets her into more trouble that what she signed up for. Will she find the killer or be the next victim.

[Marlene Chabot · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading Laura Levine's book Killing Bridezilla. It's the first book I've read by her but plan to read more. Her character has a lot of flaws but she gets the bad guy in the end. I'd put her Jaine Austen Mystery series right up there with Janet Evanovitch's Stephanie Plum stories. Funny lines and crazy things happen to this want-to-be PI. This gal's pet happens to be a naughty cat.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

A cross between Chick-lit and a cozy mystery. A lot like cotton candy, sweet, but not very filling or having a lot of nutrition.

[Cindy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know this is a really low rating, but I really think this series has possibilities. It really is funny. I even laughed out loud at times. The audiobook narrator did a great job of differentiating the voices and I really liked the over-the-top characters and plot. And thank God it wasn’t a rom-com. At times, though, I felt my interest waning, especially when the main character Jaine Austen had conversations with her cat Prozac. Not sure how I even found this book, the 7th in the series (which I read first!). And I had no idea the books were about a character named Jaine Austen (which usually inspires me to read a book), a hack writer and part-time unlicensed unpaid detective. I’ll check out some of the other books in the series just for the humor.

[Darla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jaine is on the case again when a bridezilla named Patti winds up dead. Could it be one of the many people who were miserable during all that wedding planning? Jane knows firsthand how bad it can get after being recruited to write a wedding script based on the balcony scene from 'Romeo & Juliet.' Just make it like 'Friends' with longs dresses, she says. Right before she tells Jaine she want to "go in a new direction." There's a cute little dog named Mamie in the mix this time and Prozac is up to her usual tricks. I was completely surprised by the identity of the killer. A fun listen with Brittany Pressley narrating.
'

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jaine is hired to write the wedding vows for a socialite's Renaissance-style wedding but is horrified when the bride turns into a complete "Bridezilla" complete with dissing her(and Jaine's) former classmates. No one is surprised(or unhappy) when the bride is impaled during the rehearsal. With so many suspects, who is the killer? Jaine must find out before an innocent party is arrested,tried,and convicted falsely. Hilarious, as usual. Recommended.

[Ranie · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this 7th hilariously ridiculously funny book, Janie goes to a wedding of one of her high school bully, Patti. Patti is outrageously and unreasonably demanding, where all her guest is constantly frustrated with her. When she is killed on her wedding day, the list of suspects are endless.

Once again, Linda Levine wrote another humorous story, that is full of wacky adventures with compassion and friendship for our lovable Janie Austen.

Highly recommended....😛🙀 😼 😹

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poor Jaine can't pass up food and has bad luck with boyfriends. When she gets a call from Patti, who is getting married, she wants Jaine to write her vows using parts of "Romeo and Juliet". Since Patti was going to pay good money Jaine was willing to let the past issues "high school bulling" go. When Patti dies, a death that was fitting Patti's theme, Jaine tries to figure out who hated Patti the most.

[Julie Trapp · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hired by her high school nemesis, Patti, to rewrite the ending of "Romeo and Juliet" for her wedding, Jaine Austen gets more than she had bargained for when Patti falls to her death from the balcony just before her big scene. [amazon synopsis]

The protagonist is a bumbling Columbo. She is also a door mat. Okay read.