Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Bridal Shower Murder is book #31 in the Lucy Stone Mystery series. Admittedly, this series is best read in order because you get to read about the characters' progression in a way that is easy to understand. Nevertheless, Bridal Shower Murder can easily be enjoyed on its own. In this book, Lucy, the main character, is writing an article that requires her to get information from the Historical Society. Also, Lucy's daughter, Zoe, is getting engaged to a young man whose background has something to do with Tinker's Cove area. To add to it all, the head of the Historical Society is found dead. Lucy investigates to uncover the reason behind the murder.

Bridal Shower Murder brings us once more to Tinker's Cove for a murder investigation. Lucy is a very likeable main character and amateur sleuth. Her strong ties to her community makes her investigation all the more interesting. There is a nice blend of daily life and sleuthing, which brings a good balance to the story. The characters are multi dimensional, which makes the storyline all the more interesting. It also creates a mystery that is more vivid and does not fall flat. As a long-time reader of the Lucy Stone Mystery series, Bridal Shower Murder is a strong entry. I definitely recommend both Bridal Shower Murder and the series. It is one of my favorite cozy mystery series, and it was an absolute delight to read the latest book.

Bridal Shower Murder by Leslie Meier is one of her more complicated stories. Of course, how many murders can there be in a small Maine town before things get out of hand? Lucy Stone is a reporter for the Courier. It used to be the Pennysaver until her boss bought the newspaper in Gilead, a nearby community. It also used to be entirely print but now had an online edition that he expected to be updated the moment something of note happened. The big news in Tinker’s Cove right now was Lucy’s daughter, Zoe’s, engagement. Lucy had inadvertently spilled the beans to the town’s biggest gossip and now things were getting out of hand. Zoe was stressed because of her new job and this was one more thing she didn’t need. Her future mother-in-law had even chosen the wedding date for her. It was out of control. Lucy didn’t know how to help so she turned to her other daughter, Sara, to talk with her sister. Lucy had only recently found out that Sara was gay, a fact that apparently everyone in town had known except her.

The murder was a grisly one and the police were trying to hang it on a young Native American man, saying it was race-based. It got complicated fast and Lucy, as always, was in the thick of it. This is a fun series and this book was a terrific read. There was a lot of backstory involved, which I always find intriguing. Lucy had plenty going on outside of Zoe’s problems. The mystery was a good one and there were plenty of red herrings and misdirection to satisfy any avid reader, plus a lot of history. Lucy is a lovable and ordinary woman, living an ordinary life in an ordinary town. That’s what makes her so appealing. Meier managed to weave in some issues that are very contemporary but do it in an inoffensive way. Good book.

I was invited to read Bridal Shower Murder by Kensington Publishing. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #KensingtonPublishing #LeslieMeier #BridalShowerMurder

Bridal Shower Murder is book #31 in the Lucy Stone Mystery series by Leslie Meier.

I can’t believe this is book #31 in the series. It’s been fun seeing Lucy and her family’s growth throughout the series. In this book, Lucy‘s daughter, Zoe, is engaged and her future mother-in-law is an absolute nightmare. As if that wasn’t enough to deal with, there’s a gruesome murder and Lucy has to get to the bottom of it to save her daughter’s day. I really enjoyed this book.

Lucy is excited that her youngest daughter Zoey is now engaged to Chad a rising star in minor league baseball. Things kind of get turned upside down when Lucy meets the soon to be in-laws. Chad's mother Penny seems to want to take over everything from the bridal shower to the wedding. She has even arranged the bridal shower before Zoey has even announced the upcoming wedding. Even with her involvement the shower goes well but everyone is shocked when Hetty Furness, head of Tinker Coves Historical Society, goes missing and eventually turns up dead. Lucy doesn't want anything to go wrong with the upcoming wedding so she dives into investigate. Will she figure out who the killer is and live to see her daughter get married?

Y’all. This one left me blinking at the page like, “Ma’am, are we okay??” I picked up "Bridal Shower Murder" fully expecting what this series usually serves: Lucy Stone doing her classic juggling act — part mom, part nosy local reporter, part murder-solving MVP — all while dealing with family chaos and small-town weirdos. But this time? I got way more than I signed up for.

Here’s the setup: Lucy’s youngest daughter, Zoe, just got engaged to Chad — a minor league baseball player with Southern charm dialed up to eleven and just enough shady family backstory to make Lucy’s investigative reporter radar start beeping. Enter Chad’s parents, Penny and Nate Nettleton. Penny is the kind of in-law who will “graciously help” and actually bulldoze everything. She hijacks the wedding plans, throws a surprise bridal shower before Zoe even publicly announces the engagement (rude!), and honestly, I wanted to throw a canapé at her.

Shockingly, the bridal shower doesn’t implode. But then, plot twist: Hetty Furness — the head of the Tinker’s Cove Historical Society, known for knowing everyone’s skeletons and where they’re buried — goes missing. And of course, turns up dead. Brutally murdered. And suddenly, Lucy’s not just balancing wedding chaos and murder; she’s knee-deep in long-buried secrets about the town’s treatment of Indigenous people, racial tensions politely dusted under Tinker’s Cove’s antique rug, and the kind of historical cover-ups that make you side-eye every plaque in the local museum.

And while Lucy’s out here connecting dots like a pro, back at home? She’s missing something big — and not because the clues were obvious (they weren’t), but because she never quite created the space for that truth to land safely. There’s a moment where one of her daughters questions whether Lucy would’ve been supportive, and that hurt. I wasn’t shocked by the revelation; I was sad her daughter ever had to wonder. For someone so intuitive and community-minded, it felt like a blind spot. I wanted to hug her and say, “You could have made this easier.”

The supporting cast — bless them — shows up more than they have in recent installments, but mostly to shuttle plot points around. The dialogue sometimes sparkles, sometimes clunks. And the pacing? Some chapters drag like a never-ending wedding toast, while others sprint by so fast I had to flip back and check if I’d missed a paragraph.

I do love that Leslie Meier is swinging for the fences here, tackling bigger conversations about family, community, and who gets to decide what stories we tell — even if the execution occasionally feels like trying to frost three cakes while the kitchen’s on fire. It’s messy. It’s bold. It’s well-intentioned. And it left me both intrigued and a little anxious about where Lucy’s headed next.

Three and a half stars. If you’re here for small-town murder, complicated families, and a plot that swings between cozy comfort and “Oh wow, we’re really going there,” buckle up. Lucy Stone’s world is changing — and she might be the last one to realize it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the ARC.

Bridal Shower Murder by Leslie Meier has Lucy Stone’s youngest daughter, Zoe getting engaged to a baseball player. While Lucy is happy for her daughter, she is less thrilled with the groom’s domineering mother. Lucy is going to need patience if she is going to make it through this wedding. Bridal Shower Murder is the thirty-first A Lucy Stone Mystery. I have read every book (and novella) in this series, but this story can be read as a standalone. The series, though, has changed since the beginning. Over the last few years, the author features a hot button topic (i.e. she gets on her soapbox) which overshadows the mystery. I like the main characters in this series (Lucy and her family, Sue, Pam, Ted, etc.). I like that the author has continued to age the characters as the series progresses. I could not stand Penny, Zoe’s mother-in-law to be (which is the point). I felt for Lucy for having to deal with this overbearing woman. I would not have been okay with this woman trying to take over every aspect of the wedding (reminded me of a steamroller). The story is easy to read, but the pacing was a little slow in places. The whodunit was simple, but it was interesting. Lucy uncovered town secrets during her sleuthing. I wish it were more difficult to identify the responsible party (I identified the guilty party before the murder took place). I did enjoy catching up with Lucy, Bill, and the rest of the Stone family. Bridal Shower Murder is bridal brouhaha with a joyful family declaration, wedding shower woes, historic society protest, an alarming murder, exposing surprising secrets, and navigating family dynamics for a cheerful resolution.

Leslie Meier is a prolific author of cozy mysteries who consistently gives her readers an entertaining read where we recognize many of the personalities the characters are famous for. This is book 30something in the Lucy Stone series. I lost count but that's on me, not the books. Lucy Stone is a reporter for the Tinker's Cove newspaper but more importantly to Lucy, she's Zoe's mom. As Zoe introduces her new fiance to everyone and meets his parents, emotions get stirred and tempers rise just a little bit. The mother in law to be is a textbook example of what an evil mother in law should be. But to Zoe and Lucy's credit, they don't kill her. But someone does get killed and Lucy will investigate to keep Zoe's special days from becoming memorable for murder. As always Meier's stories are quick reads because they are so good. If you love cozy mysteries, you probably are familiar with Leslie Meier and have been waiting for this new title. If you haven't read her books before, you now have an excellent author to follow and a series to binge.

I enjoyed this book, it has a nice balance between the emotional & mystery. Just to be clear, the murder does not occur at the bridal shower. The characters are well done, I found myself frustrated with how everyone let Penny and Janice roll over they. The person I thought was the murderer isn’t, but close. #BridalShowerMurderb#NetGalley

Bridal Shower Murder by Leslie Meier

This was one of my favorite Lucy Stone mysteries in recent years. As usual, the mystery was great, and I didn’t know who the murderer was until the very end. But, the main reason that I enjoyed it was that we got to catch up with the whole family! I have been reading these books for so long that Lucy’s family feels like my own. Don’t hesitate to buy this book!

Lucy Stone is a very dedicated part-time reporter for the Courier newspaper in Tinker's Cove Maine. When Hetty Furness, the chairperson of the historical society, is  found dead, Lucy questions the motive and people who may be behind her murder. While all this is happening, her daughter Zoe has announced that she will be marrying Chad, the grandson of one of the most prominent men in Tinker's Cove, Zebulon Logue. But when Lucy begins to suspect that the Logue family has a long lost history of theft of indigenous lands, racism and perhaps even murder, things start to turn ugly in this little cozy town.

Bridal Shower Murder is packed with mystery, deadly hidden secrets, lies and even murder.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Publishing for this jam packed loaded murder mystery with a twist.

A nice cozy mystery in Tinker’s Cove, Maine. I really enjoy the Lucy Stone series and like revisiting the town. Always fun..

Being that there are 31 books in the Lucy Stone Mystery series, one would think that books would start to fall off. However, not the case with this series. I have thoroughly enjoyed each book. In the latest, Lucy is thrilled that her youngest daughter is getting married. She is not thrilled with the future in-laws though. When Hettie Furnes, head of the historical society, goes missing and then is found dead, Lucy races against time to find out the true reason she died and who did it. Will she be able to navigate all of the obstacles? Will she see her youngest daughter walk down the aisle? One of the reason I so enjoy these mysteries is that the reader has basically watched this family grow and mature. We have seen the kids from young to teen to adulthood. While I may not always agree with some of the messages in the book, I do enjoy seeing the progression of the characters. Hoping for a 32nd. I received a copy through Netgalley. A review was not required.

If there's a wedding, there's going to be trouble, especially when Lucy is involved. This latest in the very long running series, sees Lucy's youngest daughter, Zoe, engaged to Chad. In this universe, it isn't Zoe who is the bridezilla, it's Penny, the mother-in-law to be. And she's awful. Even as Lucy is dealing with this, Hetty is murdered and, well, we're off on another cozy mystery. As always,. Lucy is intrepid. there are red herrings, and there's some humor. This series has sagged occasionally but this one sees Meier back in good form. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A good cozy read.

This is a series I have read for about 30 years. This has always been a solid cozy mystery. Through the years it sometimes drifted away, but this book is a good solid mystery. Zoe the youngest daughter is getting married. The fiancé Chad is handsome, from a wealthy family, and very pleasant. Chad also has a half brother in town that Chad is anxious to meet. Chad’s mother Penny has moved into a local rental for the summer. Penny is anxious to get this wedding on the move. Penny although not the bride is the ultimate bridezilla. Unfortunately, a local is historian in killed just before the bridal shower. Now Lucy has a wedding and a murder to deal with. I really enjoyed another episode of Lucy and her family. #NetGalley

Get ready for a cozy mystery, written to keep you reading. Lucy's daughter is gets engaged and her future mother in law is taking over the wedding/shower planning. She is overbearing with a back story. Mixed in with a murder, when a local resident in murdered. Lucy investigates and ends up in a dangerous situation. Great series. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book, for an honest review.

I was lucky to get the free ARC from #NetGalley and #LeslieMeier. I have always loved Leslie's cozy mysteries and this one was really fun. It involved a secondary main charcter and a semipro baseball player and his extended family. I loved the humor throughout the story and the mystery was engaging as hers always are.

This one reminded me why I love this series. The family, the town, the people! So much like the earlier books in that way.

I love that we have gotten to watch Lucy and Bill age and the children grow up. This time, Zoe is engaged and this engagement brings with it all the usual excitement and then some.

Chad, Zoe’s fiancé, and his family added a layer of intrigue, aggravation, and entertainment to this one. It will be interesting to see if we see them again.

And of course, the mystery in this one. I was convinced I knew who killed Hetty, but as is often the case. I was wrong.

Fans of this series will enjoy this one. While Meier touched on issues related very much to current events. It wove into the story so well and didn’t feel as thrown in as in previous books.

Thank you to Kensington Books for the copy of this book. All views are my own.

Another solid installment of the Lucy Stone series, which finds her youngest daughter engaged and two deaths. After so many books in the series, not too hard to predict what sort of things might happen. I do appreciate that lately Lucy is becoming more aware of social issues this time Native American mistreatment, and the tiniest bit of LGBTQIA, along with drug addiction as well.

Bridal Shower Murder is a cozy mystery filled with some actual tragedy, but also a nice happy ending.

I felt that Bridal Shower Murder was a little slow to start, but once the murder took place, the book really got going. The murder itself was pretty brutal, nobody would have expected poor Hetty of getting murdered! Lucy Stone puts on her sleuthing hat and starts researching a local family that has been around for hundreds of years, and starts to uncover some very dirty secrets that have been hidden from the town. When a man is arrested for Hetty's murder, Lucy makes her it mission to prove his innocence, and find the true killer.

I have to say, I really disliked the mother in law to be, Penny (which I know was the point, so she was written well!), she really got on my nerves, and I really felt the pain that Lucy was dealing with, because I know exactly how hard it can be to have to try and keep the peace with family when you really, really want to say something! If that was my wedding, that my mother in law to be just decided to hijack and do as she pleased, I would have been extremely mad! I was a little surprised how Zoe even allowed it at first, granted the bridal shower itself did sound very nice. I enjoyed Lucy's sleuthing, and reading about all the town secrets she was able to uncover. I don't agree with some of Lucy's "wifely" duties that she feels are the norm or expected, but I think her and her husband just have a more old school relationship.

Overall, I recommend Bridal Shower Murder, especially to anyone who enjoys uncovering dirty secrets that have been covered up for many years!

I've read every single Lucy stone novel and this was a great addition to the series.
While you don't need to read these in order I think you get more if you do we've seen Lucy's children grow up from littles to adults and it's so worth it to read them all
A fantastic cozy series