Better Off Wed

Annabelle Archer #1

by Laura Durham

The murder of a particularly difficult mother-of-the-bride has cast a pall on wedding planner Annabelle Archer's latest triumph -- and suspicion falls heavily on her sometime-business partner and friend Richard Gerard. Annabelle knows that even her trusted wedding emergency kit won't be able to salvage their careers if she and Richard can't find the real culprit.

It's no easy task since the slain matron was perhaps the most hated socialite in D.C., but Annabelle navigates through the city's colorful wedding industry and powerful social scene on the deadly trail of a killer. Always the bridal consultant and never the bride, she's seen her fair share of bouquet tosses. But there's no telling what surprises a ruthless killer will throw her way if she gets too close.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction, Chick Lit, Cozy, Contemporary, Ebooks

256 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 25, 2005

About the author

I'm a writer and reformed wedding planner who loves quiet mornings, great books, paddle boarding, and blackberry cobbler.

I write humorous cozy mysteries about a wedding planner because I like books that make me laugh and because, after planning weddings for twenty years, I have a long list of people to kill.

To try my first novel for free, go to http://www.freebook.lauradurham.com

Reviews

[Jilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Holy crap. If I have to start a shelf for "cozy mystery" or "was made into Hallmark movie", and I start using phrases like "he's a hoot and a half", just fucking shoot me. I'm walking the razor's edge here with some of my questionable reading material lately. I blame the internet since I can't blame Obama anymore.


Good times. I miss them.

When you read a book a day, you become like a junkie. I use the library through Overdrive, get daily spam emails from freebie sites, troll the Amazon free offerings, am a member of bookbub, and may or may not check out some questionable places for books. Like all junkies, I have to whore myself out every once in a while too. New authors love book-whores. All of this is to say, "I read this because it was free!" Don't be thinking I'm turning into a cat-lady in a Snuggie who keeps tissues close in case the Lifetime movie makes me cry. NOT happening!


As it should be.

This book is cutesy. She's a wedding planner with a gay bff and a dumb/whore, but lovable, assistant. They find a dead body at one of the weddings they planned and enter Mr. Hunky Detective. Of course, sparks fly! But, she is warned to stay out of his investigation, and she keeps playing Miss Marple. She also has a cute old lady who lives downstairs because, well, that's the kind of book this is. Cute Old Lady loves "Murder She Wrote" (for you kids, that was a show where an old lady solves crime each week. If you ask me, SHE was a murderer, but whatever... seems awfully convenient that people kept dying around her. Just sayin'), and wants to help solve the murder by being nosy and trying to set-up our main girl with Detective Hunky.


If only Detective Hunky decided to go for Grandma Nosy. THEN, we would have an original story here.

Oh, the hijinx and hilarity! Mr. Gay Bestie is hilariously gay! Ms. Whore Assistant is sexy and dumb! Grandma Nosy is always showing up to nose around! Detective Hunky is flirty when he reprimands our Junior Detective Squad.


Some things are just expected...

If you like the cute chick-lit and cozy mystery thing, this book is for you. Lots of cute/funny going on. And, on that note, I'm going to go and read something either gory, smutty, or dark as a palate cleanse....


Aww, that's more like it.

[Dahrose · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a disaster. By the time I got to the 40% mark I just started skimming. The main character Annabelle is just ridiculous. She's supposedly this top wedding planner, but she can't even keep her own hair tidy, feed herself or act like a mature adult. Her apartment is a rubbish tip. Her fridge empty. How does she run a business and be such a complete mess?
Her best friend is gay - he shrieks, he faints, he. talks over her, is completely self-involved with his appearance - just pin a sign to his forehead STEREOTYPE and be done with it. Her assistant is a slutty idiot. Print out another one of those stereotype signs won't you.
The story makes no sense - none. Why is Annabelle willing to risk everything - her life, her business reputation - to solve this murder? Her zany antics are just stupid. Again and again the author sets her heroine up to do something stupid, fail, or get caught doing something stupid - it was mind numbing.
The plot itself? I knew who the murderer was by the 10% mark. But the author's reasonings behind their actions were just nonsensical. Seriously, this is a murder mystery book, the motivations of the sleuth and the murderer are the two things you have to get right - and this author failed on both counts.

The romance interest was pitiful - he never respects her or wants her help. But she can't stop making doe eyes at him. There was no real connection. Just sad.

The heroine made me grind my teeth. The storyline made me flinch and wince constantly. Haven't come across a book that made me this angry in ages.

[Obsidian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since I am pressed for time just going to say that I really enjoyed the first book in this series. It was everything you want a cozy mystery to be. Not gory, funny, and a cast of memorable characters.

The main character is Annabelle Archer, wedding planner. When a demanding mother of the bride ends up murdered on the wedding day (can you imagine) Annabelle starts snooping though everyone tells her to give it up.

Things I loved:

I loved that this took place in Washington D.C. Apparently the author has visited or lived in and around D.C. She actually describes Georgetown, the Key Bridge, and Chevy Chase in accurate terms. I always get a kick out of books that take place in a city I commute to every day.

Annabelle and her sidekicks (her employee Kate and her friend and caterer Richard) are hilarious. Plus all of the food Richard was supposedly making sounded delicious. Too bad no recipes though.

Annabelle being a terrible at times amateur sleuth cracked me up. She definitely has a couple of memorable run-ins with clients and a photographer.

The book was short enough that you didn't feel like it went on overly long. The writing was concise and the flow was okay throughout.

Things I didn't love:
Eh to the detective. I know that all cozy's must have a love interest (so it is written) but the detective was a big snooze to me.

The next door neighbor was aggravating and not in a cute way. In a, too bad she didn't end up maimed way to me.

There is no real why for why Annabelle starts investigating. In most cozy mysteries the first book (so it is written) the main character always is seen as a suspect. The synopsis says that Annabelle's friend Richard is considered one. However, he really isn't and I forget at what percent when the police arrest someone else.

[Dez Nemec · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a DNF. At the end of chapter 1, I was ready to throw the book across the room. I lasted to 26%, then quit. The main character, Annabelle, is attempting to be an elite wedding planner, but she's a total mess. Her BFF is the most stereotypical gay man. Her neighbor is the quintessential old nosy bitty, although 1/4 of the way through the book, she was the only thing I liked about it. Everything about it was a mess, and it's wasn't cute in the least. Life is too short for books like this.

[Laura]

I don't usually read this sort of thing, but they're written by a dear friend from highschool. I'm so proud of her & I've just got to give her books a try.

[Stephanie Anze · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anabelle Archer runs a wedding planning business called Wedding Belles. When a difficult mother-of-the-bride dies amid a wedding planned by Anabelle and the cause is murder, Anabelle worries that her business will be affected. She, along with her assitant Kate and caterer Richard, decide to investigate only to learn that there is no shortage of suspects that had plenty reasons to want this woman dead. As the investigation continues and Anabelle gets closer to the truth, she finds herself in the radar of the murderer.

Looking for a change of scenery after having read a book with a heftier subject matter, this title appeared to be the right fit. Wanting something fun and entertaining, light and a fast read this book delivered just that. Anabelle runs Wedding Belles along with her assistant Kate. During one of their events, the mother of the bride is murdered. Not wanting this woman's murder associated with her business, Anabelle and Kate (along with their caterer/friend Richard) investigate. The victim, it turns out, rubbed many people the wrong way and there is a surplus of suspects, motives and opportunities. Being told to stop investigationg on her own by the police does not deter Anabelle. I have to say that I enjoyed reading this book. Yeah, there are cliches present and its not the most intricate plot but its a fun ride.I liked the characters and all the crazy wedding requiremenrts. I laughed at the antics of Kate and Richard and thought the narrative flowed nicely. This is book one of a series and I am interested in reading on as it was quite amusing.

[Zoey · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5★

[LJ (ljwritesandreviews) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has been on my kindle since 2017 and I didn’t realise it, oops!

Annabelle is in the middle of one of the most high profile weddings she’s ever organised when she finds the mother of bride from hell dead at the bottom of a set of stairs. She of course starts to investigate putting herself in danger.

This was such a cute little cozy mystery! Fast paced and fun its perfect if you’re looking for something light hearted.

Two stand out characters for me were Richard, Annabelle’s camp caterer friend and Leatrice her nosey neighbour who loves a good mystery. They added a good dose of humour to the story, the back and forth between Annabelle and Richard really made me smile.

I did guess quite early on who the killer was but I read a lot of mysteries, it’s quite difficult to surprise me.

My only minor annoyance was Kate, Annabelle’s assistant who I felt was a little flat as a character, her main attributes being the fact she likes dating men and gets common sayings wrong.

I already have the second in this series which I’m looking forward to.

[Jenifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

This just couldn't hold my interest. There was an eclectic mix of characters but they were stereotypes that quickly became annoying. Annabelle & Kate had many theories on who the killer was based on socialite gossip and each was sometimes quite a stretch. When they were actually presented with a logical next suspect they didn't even bat an eyelash that way. Instead, the worst pet peeve of mysteries happened, the answer had nothing to do with anything they'd speculated or investigated, new facts were added at the end that had nothing to do with anything else but somehow proves the whole thing, and none of it even made much sense. It was even completed with a version of the famous Scooby Doo line: "if you hadn't been such a busybody I would've gotten away with it." Puh-leeese!
I'm irritated at the book, the people, and the time I wasted.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent start to a new to me cozy mystery series. I liked Annabelle and Richard the most, Annabelle's neighbor just needs to stop match-making already, and Kate just got on my nerves. I hate characters that get adages mixed up and someone has to constantly correct them (see Lt Eve Dallas, Kate here) - I think the authors think that it is an easy way to inject some humor, but it is just lazy and annoying. Also Kate's less than awesome driving skills sounds harmful, not funny. I could take or leave the detective as both an investigator and as a love interest. More Richard though, please.

As for the mystery, I guessed that the first husband was the killer - so I was very wrong but also surprised in a good way that I was wrong. It was the mystery and the friendship between Annabelle and Richard that kept me reading. I will be reading more from this series in the future.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this story to be a real hoot and a half. It is about a woman and her friend who are in The Wedding Bells, her other best friend is a caterer and they tend to work together from wedding to wedding. After disaster strikes and the mother of the bride is killed after reception the three of them decide to take along a detective role as well. it has it's quite funny entertaining moments well they play detective and slowly unravel the clues. The book did need a little editing at one point the caterer friend was upset and had a moment saying don't call me again which he quickly apologized for the next morning. The author seems to have forgotten about it and continued the feud a little longer. otherwise great read

[Jyoti Mundley · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book started off well. The characters were cute and funny. Went downhill rather quickly because the main character is TSTL. She cannot keep a thought in her mind for more than 30 seconds, repeatedly fails at every ‘investigation’ she tries, gets warned off repeatedly to not interfere in police work and DOES NOT STOP. doesn’t even get better at ‘investigation’. She is a bimbo, if you can call a slob a bimbo. I find it hard to believe she could ever run a successful business. Wonder why her bff sticks around. The inane stupidity got to the level that I no longer care who dunnit.
Too stupid for me to finish even if the writing is good. Good writing doesn’t help me forgive silly mcs.
DNF.

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun cozy mystery, too fluffy for a higher rating. Annabelle Archer & Kate are wedding planners, Richard is their go to chef, Fern is a wedding photographer. Reese is the hunk of a police detective. After planning a wedding for a year, dealing with the Mother, Mrs. Pierce, she was then killed during the reception....

[S.A. Krishnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely light mystery.
Annabelle is a wedding planner and unfortunately the bride’s mother gets murdered. Annabelle plays detective to find the murderer.
The story was a light read and though it was easy to guess the killer, the author still manages to keep the interest of the readers till the very end. Cute read.

[Yvonne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super cute story! Love the characters!

[Jinx Schwartz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read, nothing serious and my kind of entertainment. Recommended.

[Joann Herley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Better Off Wed (Annabelle Archer, #1) is a cozy mystery full of humor. Annabelle Archer is a wedding planner, and when the Mother of the Bride is found dead, Annabelle, Kate, and Richard try to solve the crime. There are several possible suspects that certainly had their reasons, but only one that did the deed. After a few chapters, I was able to pick the killer but not the reason why. It was a fun read, and I enjoyed the unique characters.

[Claire Matturro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Better off Wed is a charming book, sheer fun to read, light where it needs to be, funny in surprising spots, and well written with a sharp plot and clear, crisp language.

My disclaimer: I read Better off Wed back in its first incarnation in 2005 when I both met Laura and acquired a signed copy of her book at the Malice Domestic Convention. She was at the convention having fun and promoting her debut book, Better off Wed , and I was there with my first and second books. As authors, we crossed paths. By the way, she’s as delightful as her book. I read and thoroughly enjoyed my autographed copy ofBetter off Wed . Just this month, when I saw that she had revised the book and was putting it out there again, I got the new version via Kindle. I’m glad I did. Of course in the ensuing years I’d forgotten the ins-and-outs of the plot, so I could thoroughly enjoy reading it again.

Laura Durham’s main characters—Annabelle the wedding planner and Richard the caterer-- are delights, both fresh, charming, intriguing, energetic. I particularly enjoyed the contradictions in protagonist Annabelle--outwardly organized and efficient, but with an apartment so messy that it borders classic Oscar Madison. She’s protective of her heart and her career and both are at risk as the story develops. Richard the caterer is also a great character, smart, tart-tongued, and capable of great one-liner zingers. He is admittedly self-interested in salvaging his caterer’s reputation, but very protective of Annabelle and a loyal ally as they seek out the truth behind the murder of the mother of the bride at Annabelle’s big, break-through society wedding.

The pace is fast, boom boom boom, no long monologues or pointless digressions in this tightly woven story. Durham’s sense of place and world building are excellent and authentic, as well they should be given that she sets her story in her own world of Georgetown and Washington D.C.

Definitely a cozy/romantic mystery with a dash of chick lit, but I don't count those as negatives when you want to just enjoy a fun, charming book.

A delightful read—or reread.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

FUN Read!

If you like mysteries and want a quick read- this book is for you.

Downloaded this book for free on Amazon and was not disappointed! Annabelle and her friends were an amusing and likable bunch. I was hooked after the first chapter and well throughout the book.

Annabelle is an event planner in DC who runs into a murder and can't turn down an opportunity to play detective and gather clues with her friends Kate and Richard who are also in the wedding industry. I enjoyed the banter between friends while discovering clues and attempting to solve the mystery.

Not a predictable ending- I enjoyed the twists and turns and list of potential suspects.

*Spoilers*



The ending was slightly disappointing- just ended too fast. I wished the relationship between Annabelle and Reese would have played out a little more after rooting for them throughout the book.

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a free book through Bookbub and I have to honestly say I wasn't sure. I love cozies, but a wedding planner theme didn't really sound all that interesting to me. Boy was I wrong.

I was a very fun read, and the characters were interesting and funny. I gave me a look into the world of high end weddings, societies social scene and the craziness wedding planners have to endure.

I very much liked the main characters, Annabelle, Kate and especially Richard.

[Ted Tayler · Rating 2 out of 5]

"No spark"

This had all the required ingredients for a thoroughly PC cozy mystery, but it lacked any real fire. The characters were wooden, the dialogue predictable. In the end, I decided the title should have been 'Better Not Read'. There will be thousands who will lap it up, and wax lyrical about it, but it was all too contrived for my taste.

[Zermeena · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book we meet Annabelle Archer who is a wedding planner in Georgetown. I found this an interesting and different profession from most cozy mysteries. I was also happy to explore Georgetown and DC. We start out at the rehearsal dinner for a couple. The mother of the bride (MOB) is awful. She carries a notebook in which she keeps tracks of every minor infraction. After her death under suspicious circumstances, Annabelle decides to clear her friend Richard's name. It is not explained why she continues to investigate after the police quickly dismissed Richard a suspect. Annabelle ends up abandoning her job to pay condolence calls on the family and attend the funeral. It was a more bizarre cozy than I care for.

The book was well written and the plot was well constructed. But, I found the mystery easy to solve. Kate's busy-body neighbor became very annoying. Every time she called someone "dearie" I thought I would scream. Then there is Annabelle's assistant Kate, who liked to flash her cleavage at every man (and woman) she meets. Kate's malapropisms were unbelievable and she came across as stupid. This book wasn't for me and I probably won't continue the series.

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Annabelle, Richard, Kate and the nosy neighbor, Leatrice were to much not to enjoy except when the bride's mother ends up dead and for someone who is trying to make a business as a wedding planner, that's not good but things get a bit crazy and twisted. Richard who is such a drama queen, gets caught up and nearly accused of the murder but of course we know it isn't him but the way he goes on his whoa is me drama which is fun to read and you can just imagine him being dramatic and Annabelle trying to calm him and the neighbor telling her that things aren't looking good between them which is just too funny. The group try to figure out who killed the mother of the bride, even thought the Det. Reese told them to stay out of it but of course that wasn't going to happen. The group do have some wild and funny moments and it was a fun story.

[Teri · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars...I don't know...I make allowances in cozy mysteries because it is over unrealistic and a little silly at times with what people do, but I grew rather frustrated with our MC here, because she made some really truly awful and stupid decisions. I liked Richard. I even liked her annoying friend, Kate and her neighbor. I liked Reece as well, I guess, but this isn't a romance and there isn't anything of substance here as far as a relationship goes, so maybe in the future it all comes together. But I didn't really understand the whole "he likes you" thing. Uh...really? Why would you think that?
So I won't read more of this series because I really could not stand Annabelle, but there is definitely some potential with the other characters.

[Mom2triplets04 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to this on audio. I chose this book for one of the challenges for #marchmysterymadness a mystery with a wedding involved. I don’t normally read cozy mysteries so it was a change of pace from the graphic violent ones I normally read. It’s a cute story about a wedding planner who stumbles upon a murder and she’s trying to find out who the murderer was. I felt the book was a bit short but I didn’t enjoy it.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book that I have read by this author. I thoroughly enjoyed it! There's a touch of humor in it- I just love Annabelle's side kick, Kate, who mixes up sayings in a humorous way that completely works for the situation. I also liked her other sidekick, the fastidious Richard, a caterer who works with Annabelle often in her wedding planning business, too. The mystery was good.

I did not guess who the murderer was, although I found myself rooting for them for awhile. The murder victim was awful! Of course, murder is more awful and must be solved. The scenario of handsome detective not happy with a citizen amateur sleuthing in his case is pretty formula, though. And predictably, the amateur sleuth solves the mystery only to find herself in the cross-hairs of the murderer.

[Julie Keller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wedding mayhem

The story was good, with fun characters. The misquotes by Kate were wearing a little thin, but nothing too bad. The book does need some editing, though. Apparently there was some glitch in their spell check program, because many words that should end with "rn" end with "m".

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun start to the Annabelle Archer Mysteries. Annabelle plans weddings and solves mysteries along with her two sidekicks Kate and Richard. Add in hunky detective and you’ve got laughs, mystery, and a hint of romance. Looking for to Annabelle’s next wedding (& murder)!

[Riley K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Annabelle Archer is a wedding planner in Washington D.C. Apparently being in the wedding business can be murder. This is a perfect whodunit mystery with a wonderful cast of characters and side plots.

[Madelyn Papa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was it predictable? Yes
Was it a cozy read? Yes

So it wasn’t the greatest but the plot line intrigued me so I gave it a try. I love a mystery that’s a little more complicated and this one had an interesting perspective