Veiled in Death

When Mallory discovers some old lace for a wedding veil at a Port Quincy antique shop, she knows it’ll make a perfect headpiece. But she’s barely gotten it out of the store before Helene Pierce tears it from her hands. Helene claims it’s a family heirloom that went missing when her late husband died in a hit-and-run twenty-five years ago.

The conflict gets more complicated when the veil is attributed to none other than famed seamstress Betsy Ross. Mallory may have a genuine museum piece on her hands, but meanwhile, Independence Day is right around the corner, and she has to host the town’s Revolutionary War reenactment. Then it becomes clear there’s a bigger mystery behind all this history when a local woman is murdered with a musket—and Mallory’s investigation could set off some fireworks.

Series: A Wedding Planner Mystery – Book #6
Author: Stephanie Blackmoore
Genre: Cozy Mystery/Wedding
Publisher: Kensington Books
Page Count: 320

Rating:

Mallory is busy planning another wedding and avoiding designing her own in Veiled in Death. Everyone is trying to get her to set a date, especially her mother. But Mallory isn’t ready and will use just about any event to keep from having to name a date. When a murder occurs, it just gives her one more excuse to delay her mother’s continuous onslaught of demands that she set a date for the nuptials and give her grandchildren. Finding an antique veil helps get her in the mode for her friend Bev’s wedding and her own, and maybe even helps her decide to plan for her future.

This murder is unexpected, and the victim even more so. Mallory and her sister have arranged a civil war reenactment event, and everything is going well until someone puts real gunpowder in a musket. Once again, Mallory goes up against her one-time future mother-in-law over the ownership of the veil, but even this can’t stop her from digging into this investigation. There are suspects everywhere, even in her own family. The evidence is stacking up, and Mallory must find the killer before her best friend’s wedding or before someone she cares about ends up behind bars.

Veiled in Death is an easy to read book. There are plenty of twists and turns to keep readers interested and enough action to keep them guessing. Characters are nicely developed, the setting picture perfect, and the mystery filled with intrigue and excitement. The wedding planning and other events throughout the story help readers grasp the plot with ease and keep turning the page to find out if all the questions are answered, such as will Mallory set the wedding date, and will Bev get to wear the veil? Who is the killer, and more importantly, why did they commit murder? In the end, all mysteries are solved, and the killer is caught but not without some difficulty. This is a terrific story, and readers will be happy they read it to the end.

Readers will also enjoy another wedding/event-based cozy such as Maria Derico/Ellen Byron’s event venue planner series, “A Catering Hall Mystery” or maybe Dorothy St. James chocolate-inspired “A Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery”.

About the Author:

A native Pittsburgher, Stephanie now lives in Missouri with her husband, son, and two-spirited cats. She was an attorney and a librarian before becoming a writer. Stephanie is a fan of snow, strawberry-rhubarb pie, and the color yellow. She is hard at work on her next novel.