Review: Veiled Threats

Rarely do I read a book so recently published that I have new clue what type of book I'm about to experience. On this one I had to depend on the the back cover blurb which told me the main character is a wedding planner, and its set in Seattle.

Donnelly created some good 3 dimensional characters that should wear well through a series. Her wedding planner is single, mid-30's, owns her own business with an accountant partner in his '70s. She lives on the first floor of a houseboat with her office on the second floor. Donnelly also painted some nice word pictures in telling the tale.

I liked that the mystery she is forced to solve takes place over a period of weeks rather than just a couple days. While there are some "soap opera" type misunderstandings (talk to everyone else except the person you've got a problem with) between characters there is less angst than average and its plot driven and resolved in the book, which I consider a major plus since it eliminates that as a series theme.

There are some flaws. I recognized most of the "bad guys" as soon as they appeared even in their goody goody form. The plot in general and the motive were pretty darn obvious to me and I couldn't figure out why this relatively smart woman was having such a hard time picking up on the clues.

More importantly the plot revolves around a court case about an S&L scandal, which seems about 10 years out of date. Likewise, the comments about the trends in weddings are about a decade out of date. And the Seattle environs described in the book do not take into account the changes in Seattle economy brought on by the presence of Microsoft in the last few years, nor the earthquake of the late 90's. This book just shouts that it was written a while ago, and yet nothing was done to update the book before publication. There had to be a certain amount of lead time because the next book in the series is already written and scheduled for publication. It would have taken very little effort, changing just a sentence here and there to update this book into the 21st century making it more compatible with its publishing date and making the reader feel they experiencing something happening now.

The most important flaw is that the final "bad guy" discovered by the sleuth was several chapters before the conclusion of the book which ends with pages and pages of desperate captivity, escapes, more captivity, escapes, chases until it got boring for me.

Those who don't care for onstage sex, on stage violence or animal abuse may not care for this book. It has way too much edge to be considered a cozy despite the 3 weddings, some funny wedding moments and some warm fuzzy moments. Despite all these flaws, the book is worth a read. Donnelly is a talented writer and this book has lot going for it.

I don't think the appeal of this book would be limited to female readers despite the wedding theme. There are strong male characters. There is no dumb male sidekick. In fact while reading it, I could picture this being made into a movie with a young Clint Eastwood, or Harrison Ford playing a male role. I suggest persons who like reading Joanne Pence, Barbara Jaye Wilson, Susan Wittig Albert or Earlene Fowler might find Donnelly a good read.

As a first effort this is much better than average and avoids both my "first mystery" pet peeves. I didn't particularly care for this book because despite my hopes its not my favorite genre, but I'm not going to consequence the rating for my taste, especially as a first effort.

Book Review: Veiled Threats