Definitely not my favorite book in the series. The murder was secondary (and incredibly obvious) and the whole book centered on Jill's doubts about the wedding the her relationship with Greg. It seems that despite living together and getting engaged they haven't talked about the future, finances, anything. You'd think that two adults who have been married before would actually manage to communicate about important issues and not start thinking about them after getting engaged. Aunt Jackie was annoying and critical- telling Jill that she needs to lose weight, that she looks bad right before the engagement party, etc. She's coming off as an annoying old shrew.
I enjoy the other series by Lynn Cahoon (Cat Lattimer and the Kitchen Witch) but these series- not so much. The characters are just too all over the place.

Jill Gardner, owner of Coffee, Books, and More, is finally engaged to longtime love Greg King, chief of police in South Cove, California. While they haven't yet set a wedding date, they are having their engagement party this coming Saturday. As a gift to Jill, her aunt Jackie has bought a custom-made gown for her to wear to the party, courtesy of new business Exquisite Gowns for You, owned by Harper Sanchez. But when Jill goes to pick up her gown, she finds Harper dead in the back of the shop...or at least she thinks it's Harper at first. But when the body is identified as someone else, there's a new mystery to be solved, and Greg wants her to stay out of it.

Jill plans to do so, until she starts to find things that don't make sense -- like Harper not remembering things she recently did, or the appearance of the dead woman's husband in town. First it looks like a random killer, but then someone in town is accused of the crime, and even Jill knows they didn't do it. So what is going on? And where is a killer going to hide in South Cove? Just as Jill thinks she can't figure it out, some secrets are spilled like blood from a killer's knife...

This is the thirteenth in the series, and I have read every one of them. While I am glad to see that Jill and Greg are engaged, I am also glad to have found a great new mystery to delve into. I know that when I open the pages of Ms. Cahoon's books, I am able to step inside easily and join the action, being a visitor to this town, albeit one who isn't a part of the direct action.

Unfortunately, with Jill being the one to find the body, she's involved even though Greg doesn't want her to be. And she has a lot on her plate right now -- the engagement party, of course, but also the 24-hour readathon for children that her employee Deek has put together (and I do love Deek so hope to see him stay there for awhile). With kids and some of the parents staying overnight at the store, Jill has to make sure that there are enough employees and food to keep everyone happy. She even has volunteers to make sure the readathon is successful.

But she can't get the murder out of her mind, nor the fact that Harper has been acting strangely since it occurred. Or that Harper's boyfriend Colton seems to be pulling her strings and telling her what to say and what not to say. She knows something is being kept secret, but she can't put all the pieces together. Greg is being more tight-lipped about the murder than usual, and that also sparks her curiosity, but she's not going to say anything.

It's an interesting conundrum that Jill has, and it's more than intriguing to watch her sift through the suspects and the clues and try to come up with the answers. Especially since they are well-hidden, and not even Toby, a cop and part-time employee at Coffee, Books, and More will spill the beans.

The tale is puzzling and enjoyable, and a couple of times I thought I might have the answer, but I didn't, and that made it even more pleasurable as I love being surprised. And surprised I was with the ending, which was put together splendidly, leaving the reader with answers that were unexpected, but altogether perfect. It was a wonderful tale of suspense, loss, deceit, and secrets that this reader appreciated and enjoyed.

I truly loved reading this book and hope to see the next in the series soon. Highly recommended.

I discovered this book series a few months ago and was ecstatic to see the ARC for this new one on NetGalley! From book one, this series felt like going back home and this latest book had the same feeling. I’m just sad it ended so soon, I wanted to read more stories about Jill and the gang!!

I always enjoy Jill and her crowd. This book did come across as one of the weaker in this series. I felt as if the majority of the book was about Jill and happenings in town. The mystery was just an afterthought. The ending was muddled and really didn't make sense.

I think I might be in a bit of a mood because this is a the second book in a favorite series that I've a read in the last few weeks and the second book that just wasn't as good as I was expecting.

When a new character is introduced in a long running mystery series you know they're either going to be murdered or suspected of murder (and periodically actually guilty of murder) and this one is no different. Harper has opened a custom dress shop and while most people are excited vintage clothing shop owner and Jill's fiancé, Greg's ex-wife is making no secret of how angry she is to have a newcomer invading her turf as she sees it.

I enjoyed getting a bit more background info on Sherry. She's tough to like and the backstory didn't help me like her but it did help my sympathize with her. I also liked the development of Jill and Greg's relationship. Yes they've been together awhile but they've never really sat and worked out the details of how they are going to spend their future. They need to get a LOT better about communicating and at times Jill gets stuck in her own head which can get annoying.

The main thing that kept this book from being a winner with me was the weakness of the mystery. I did guess what was going on their pretty early and it lost a lot of page time because there was so much stuff going on in the characters personal lives. As well a character who is connected with the mystery's behavior is so bizarre that it makes the conclusion seem obvious as well as make me wonder how intelligent the character was.

Even the strongest series has some weaker titles and this is what I feel like happened here. I enjoyed visiting South Cove and Coffee, Books and More and seeing what was up with Jill, Greg, Emma, and everyone else.

Once again Jill has stumbled upon a dead body and things get interesting in this cozy mystery series. The case is intriguing and kept me guessing. My favorite part of the story was the readathon. My least favorite was Greg surprisingly. I've always enjoyed the relationship development until now. The stuff with his ex and the way he treated Jill like a child really bugged me. It seems like she's the one always compromising. Her independence has always been a strong part of her character that I love. With them finally getting engaged I hoped for better to this ongoing storyline. Instead it left me really soured on Greg. Since their relationship was a big focus of this book it does impact a lot. I've been a fan of this series from book one so I'll keep reading.

This was a good addition to the series! I like seeing how everyone is doing and I liked that the hopefully soon to be newlyweds are going through a bit of a readjustment. I also like how our actual newlyweds are also going through an adjustment period. I the ending was a fun turn, but one that I was expecting.

Jill Gardner, owner of `Coffee, Books, and More`, and her aunt are having dresses made for Jill's upcoming engagement party. They've had their last fitting at `Exquisite Gowns for You` and Jill's picking them up. When she arrives at the dress shop Harper, the owner is nowhere to be found. Jill looks around for her and finds a dead body in the dressing room. At first glance the body looks like Harper. Jill calls 911 and sits outside to wait.... when much to her surprise Harper walks up! So who is the dead woman and who killed her?

Many twists and turns make this a great mystery

The cover of this book caught my eye. I knew I shouldn’t have done it, since it’s the 12th book in the series, but when has that ever stopped me?
It’s fine to read as a stand alone but it’s probably better to read the books in order. I do get the sense that Jill, although she loves her fiancé Greg, isn’t all that eager to get married. The ex wife still lives in the same small town which makes for interesting interactions.
I liked the coastal Cali locale and that it’s a close knit community.
The mystery part was decent, but honestly I was more interested in the newsy, gossipy characters and the relationships.
I mist added more more to my catch up reading list.

Jill and Greg are having a hard time finding time to set up a date for their wedding after there is a murder in town. Greg’s ex is a suspect, but even Jill doesn’t think she’s a killer. So many questions and odd behavior from the victims family and to puzzle in this case. Meanwhile the bookstore is busy getting ready for the all night readathon coming up.
Goodreads

It is always a delight to visit this small town in California. This rated four stars from me until the surprise, giving a nudge up. Figured something was fishy, but had it wrong. Twists are good.

Jill and South Cove Police Chief Greg King are engaged (yay) and they're about to have an engagement party. Unfortunately, Jill finds a body when she goes to pick up the dresses her aunt ordered for the celebration, And, there's something fishy about the owner Harper Sanchez, Sisters oh sisters. The mystery here is well done but there's also considerable focus on Jill and Greg's relationship - Jill seems very ambivalent about getting married. I've liked this series for the characters as well as for the setting and this latest is no exception. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Fans of the series will be pleased as will new readers who picked this up as a standalone.

Wedding Bell Blues" the 13th instalment in the "Tourist Trap” Mystery series by Lynn Cahoon. This is one of my favourite cozy mystery series!

In the California coastal town of South Cove, Jill Gardner, owner of Coffee, Books, and More, becomes more engaged in sleuthing than wedding preparations when there’s a murder in a dress shop . . .

As always I love visiting South Cove, California and Coffee, Books & More, this story was really good. I love the main set of characters Jill, Amy, Aunt Jackie, Greg, Toby and now we have Deek and Evie as part of the CBM family. Deek is a budding writer and I hope we see more of this development in future books.

As for the mystery I found it to be well plotted and it moved along at a steady pace. There were only a few suspects for the murder but you still find yourself second guessing on who the murderer can be. Overall I found this to be a great story and I loved the surprise ending!
I can’t wait for the next instalment to come out.

I highly recommend this series to all my cozy friends.

I requested and received an advance reader copy of this book from Kensington Books and Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I enjoy this series very much! I do recommend reading them in order. Wedding bells are ringing for Jill and Hreg but when she goes to pick up her gown she finds a murder victim. Another fun read from a great author! Thanks #netgalley and #Keningston for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

This is utterly ridiculous. I am sorry I do not buy into auras and colors and all this garbage. This book had such promise but just no. Dnf

Wedding Bell Blues by Lynn Cahoon (Tourist Trap Mysteries #13) 4 stars

In South Cove, California Jill Gardner owner of Coffee, Books and More is is getting married to Greg King who is Chief of Police. With an engagement party in the near future, isn't it lucky that a new clothing shop is being opened by Harper Sanchez. However, when Jill goes in to pick up her gown she discovers a dead body. The victim is Harper's sister who looks a lot like her. So who is the intended victim, Harper or her sister, Alicia. Being an inquisitive mind, Jill looks for information high and low to find the killer.

This is the thirteenth book in the series with several novellas interspersed between books. I haven't read the entire series. I read the 12th book "Picture Perfect Frame" because I was curious about the author. She has another series - The Kitchen Witch mysteries that I love. I found that you don't have to read the previous book to enjoy the mystery. I'm sure that there were incidents and characters that would be fleshed out if I had read the other books, but it isn't necessary. One of the highlights for me was the preparation and execution of the readathon; that was very entertaining. The mystery was very good and the killer was unexpected. I look forward to the next book in this series.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Books for this ARC.

Loved reading this book and all of this authors series. If you haven't read it yet I highly recommend her and all her series. I suggest reading in order.

A festival, a read-a-thon, an engagement party and oh yeah, a murder all equals tons of entertainment to be had for the Coffee, Books and More gang once again! Especially when you throw a jealous ex-wife into the mix for Jill and Greg to deal with. I absolutely love this series and the depth of characters that are intwined throughout the story lines. The author gives each book more depth by having multiple plot lines running throughout the book, so each story has more meat on its bones than the average cozy mystery! I can't wait to see what comes next for the CBM gang!

Through NetGalley, I received a free copy of WEDDING BELL BLUES (Book 13 of the Tourist Trap Mysteries), by Lynn Cahoon, in exchange for an honest review. Now engaged to police chief Greg King, Jill Gardner is struggling to adjust to the change in her relationship even though she loves him. When Jill shows up at the new frock shop to pick up her dress for their engagement party, she wasn’t expecting to see the murdered body of the shop’s owner, Harper Sanchez. Then, she even more shocked to see the same shop owner crossing the street with lunch in hand. It’s odd when Harper can’t identify the body, and it’s even more odd when the deceased is eventually identified as Harper’s estranged sister. With her curiosity raging, Jill can’t help herself from seeking answers to all of the oddities in the case. This, again, causes some tension between Jill and Greg.

I liked this book as well as the rest of the series. I recommend this book to fans of cozy mysteries featuring murder, small towns, small businesses, bookstores, coffee shops, frock shops, and special events.

#WeddingBellBlues #NetGalley

I received an ARC of, Wedding Bell Blues, by Lynn Cahoon. This is a good mystery. Why kill someone in a bridal store? Jill is a great character and mystery solver, though her fiance does not always agree.