Review of Wedding Woes
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Kigen Valarie
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Review of Wedding Woes
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Wedding Woes" by Marcia Dove.]
While most murder mysteries give you an out-of-this-world experience, giving you a chance to experience surreal occurrences, Wedding Woes brings you close to every small town's biggest nightmare.
The past 6 months have been tough for Professor Maggie McManus. River Town turned out to be a small town different from where she grew up. During her first semester at PSU, she experienced bullying on campus, this happened both to other colleagues and even to students. It is now Christmas, and like any other small town, River Town embraces the holiday spirit. For a change, the television is not about the murders, and things seem to have settled. Maggie is engaged to Trip, the River Town Hotel manager, and she can't wait for her formal wedding in June; it's all she has ever wanted. Everything is going well until she sees the dreaded news. A shooting has just occurred at the River Town Hotel. This sets a rollercoaster of events that sets Maggie back, putting her in a position she thought she had escaped. Wedding Woes by Marcia Dove is book 3 in the Maggie McManus Murder Mystery series. It is a nice blend of murder mystery, family, and current events. Trip's and Maggie's relationship is in the middle of the whole situation. They also have to tackle family, their romantic relationship, and even their careers, which are at stake. With her mother's death, Maggie has found a sense of family in close friends, including Jennifer and Todd. Relationships are complex. They are close sometimes, be it romantic, familial, or even friendships. Marcia Dove has taken us through the turns and phases and how these relationships change over time.
The theme of murder and mystery did not overshadow the other themes in this book, making it an easy read. From the moment the shooting occurs, the author involves the reader in trying to solve yet another murder in River Town, and more of all, concerning the campus. The characters are well-developed. From the introduction, we get to catch up on what happened in the previous books. This makes it possible to read this book as a standalone, but I highly recommend reading the first two books in the series.
Marcia Dove brought up current issues that often lead to awkward conversations. Human rights, sexuality, and inclusion are aspects that many do not seem to agree on. Maggie has an interesting take on this. Sometimes I feared for her life because of how she was so vocal about it. But, as I said, there are some necessary conversations on such issues. We also get to see different views from characters like Carl, Jennifer, Dr. Caruthers, and people who believe this is something that everyone should learn. I also got to learn about some minor issues, including financial management.
However, there is an issue I encountered that did not appeal to me. Despite the great flow of the book and the amazing plot, emotions were not well expressed. I could see this from the way people received news and expressed themselves. The news about Dr. Caruthers, Carl, Trip, and others was dismissed in wordy discussions. I enjoy being able to connect with the characters and being able to feel the way things impact them. This was lacking in the beginning where the conflict started, but I could see the improvement as the plot thickened. However, it did not get as good as I would have liked. I rate Wedding Woes by Marcia Dove 4 out of 5 stars. I loved the concept and resolution of the mystery. It keeps the reader asking questions about the murders but also keeps them in the loop of the daily lives of the characters. Not being able to connect with the emotions of the characters, coupled with the grammatical errors in the book, led me to deduct a star from the rating.
This will be a worthy read for all readers who enjoy slow and cozy murder mysteries.
******
Wedding Woes
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
While most murder mysteries give you an out-of-this-world experience, giving you a chance to experience surreal occurrences, Wedding Woes brings you close to every small town's biggest nightmare.
The past 6 months have been tough for Professor Maggie McManus. River Town turned out to be a small town different from where she grew up. During her first semester at PSU, she experienced bullying on campus, this happened both to other colleagues and even to students. It is now Christmas, and like any other small town, River Town embraces the holiday spirit. For a change, the television is not about the murders, and things seem to have settled. Maggie is engaged to Trip, the River Town Hotel manager, and she can't wait for her formal wedding in June; it's all she has ever wanted. Everything is going well until she sees the dreaded news. A shooting has just occurred at the River Town Hotel. This sets a rollercoaster of events that sets Maggie back, putting her in a position she thought she had escaped. Wedding Woes by Marcia Dove is book 3 in the Maggie McManus Murder Mystery series. It is a nice blend of murder mystery, family, and current events. Trip's and Maggie's relationship is in the middle of the whole situation. They also have to tackle family, their romantic relationship, and even their careers, which are at stake. With her mother's death, Maggie has found a sense of family in close friends, including Jennifer and Todd. Relationships are complex. They are close sometimes, be it romantic, familial, or even friendships. Marcia Dove has taken us through the turns and phases and how these relationships change over time.
The theme of murder and mystery did not overshadow the other themes in this book, making it an easy read. From the moment the shooting occurs, the author involves the reader in trying to solve yet another murder in River Town, and more of all, concerning the campus. The characters are well-developed. From the introduction, we get to catch up on what happened in the previous books. This makes it possible to read this book as a standalone, but I highly recommend reading the first two books in the series.
Marcia Dove brought up current issues that often lead to awkward conversations. Human rights, sexuality, and inclusion are aspects that many do not seem to agree on. Maggie has an interesting take on this. Sometimes I feared for her life because of how she was so vocal about it. But, as I said, there are some necessary conversations on such issues. We also get to see different views from characters like Carl, Jennifer, Dr. Caruthers, and people who believe this is something that everyone should learn. I also got to learn about some minor issues, including financial management.
However, there is an issue I encountered that did not appeal to me. Despite the great flow of the book and the amazing plot, emotions were not well expressed. I could see this from the way people received news and expressed themselves. The news about Dr. Caruthers, Carl, Trip, and others was dismissed in wordy discussions. I enjoy being able to connect with the characters and being able to feel the way things impact them. This was lacking in the beginning where the conflict started, but I could see the improvement as the plot thickened. However, it did not get as good as I would have liked. I rate Wedding Woes by Marcia Dove 4 out of 5 stars. I loved the concept and resolution of the mystery. It keeps the reader asking questions about the murders but also keeps them in the loop of the daily lives of the characters. Not being able to connect with the emotions of the characters, coupled with the grammatical errors in the book, led me to deduct a star from the rating.
This will be a worthy read for all readers who enjoy slow and cozy murder mysteries.
******
Wedding Woes
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Life will go whichever way. Changing it is up to a very powerful force 
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Bethel Saint Bright
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Every small town has its own mystery that needs to be resolved. Wedding Woes shines a light on that of River Town. The secrets will be nice to uncover when the book is read. Thank you for the comprehensive review.
Latest Review: Tears and blood betrayal by V.S raven
