All Dressed in White by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke
| All Dressed in White by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke | |
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| Category: Crime | |
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Reviewer: Louise Jones
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| Summary: A TV show investigates the cold case of the Runaway Bride by reuniting her wedding party at a grand hotel. Will they find out what really happened to her on the night before her wedding? | |
| Buy? yes | Borrow? yes |
| Pages: 288 | Date: November 2015 |
| Publisher: Simon and Schuster UK | |
| External links: [www.maryhigginsclark.com Author's website] | |
| ISBN: 9781471148682 | |
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Following the success of The Cinderella Murder case, people are lining up to be featured on Laurie Moran's successful TV show: Under Suspicion. Each episode revives a 'cold case' by returning to the scene of the crime, interviewing the friends and family of the victim and reviewing new evidence. The show has had 100% success record so far, which has resulted in an influx of potential new cases to feature. However, when a desperate mother begs Laurie to investigate the disappearance of her daughter on her wedding day, Laurie knows that her story will make great TV; especially as the scene of the 'crime' is a luxurious hotel in Florida...
The case of the Runaway Bride is different to Laurie's previous cases, as there is no proof that the victim was murdered. In fact, most people see her disappearance as a case of cold-feet prior to her wedding. It becomes apparent that the bride had doubts as to whether she should go through with the ceremony, so when she vanished on the night before her wedding day, the general consensus was that she had run away to start a new life elsewhere. Whilst most of the victim's friends and family have been able to move on with their lives (the groom married the bridesmaid 18 months later), her mother Sandra has remained desperate for closure and cannot rest until she knows what happened to her beautiful daughter.
As always with Mary Higgins-Clark, the story has plenty of plot twists and red herrings to keep readers guessing right until the end. She cleverly leads us down one path; only for us to realise that it is a dead end. She expertly builds up the tension by manipulating her readers.
The story had a small cast of characters, each with their own distinct personality. The setting of the grand hotel provided a picturesque backdrop as the tale unfolded. Unfortunately, some of the character had similar sounding names, so I got a little confused between Jeff, Jerry and Jeremy, even though they were very different people. I liked the fact that Laurie's relationship with Alex is continued from the previous book. They are both well-written characters with a great dynamic and we want them to be together, but Laurie has great difficulty moving on from the death of her husband, which drives an invisible wedge between them.
All Dressed in White is a great cosy murder mystery which will appeal to all ages, both young and old. I enjoyed the TV show theme, which gives the series a unique selling point and I can't wait to see which case Laurie will feature next in her show.
The book works well as a standalone novel, but to get the most out of it, readers should read the prequel: The Cinderella Murder, in which Laurie investigates the case of a UCLA student found murdered, wearing only one shoe.
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You can read more book reviews or buy All Dressed in White by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy All Dressed in White by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke at Amazon.com.
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