Wedding Cake Crumble

Wedding Cake Crumble by Jenn McKinlay is the tenth book in A Cupcake Bakery Mystery series. Angie DeLaura is marrying Tate Harper in just one week. Angie and Mel have left Fairy Tale Cupcakes in the capable hands of Oz and Marty while they head out to issue payment to wedding vendors. After visiting the florist, they head to Blaise Ione's studio, the wedding photographer and old friend of Tate's. They find Blaise sitting at his desk with a camera strap twisted about his neck. Later that day, they discover that the driver Angie hired was found bludgeoned to death. Is someone trying to sabotage Angie and Tate's wedding? To keep their minds and hands occupied, they agree to provide five hundred cupcakes for a book signing Cassie Leighton of A Likely Story is hosting the next day. The event is for the release of Elise Penworthy's The Palms which has many people up in arms. It turns out that Cassie needed a new baker because the one she hired had been murdered. It seems that Cassie had hired the same photographer and driver for Elise that Angie was using for the wedding. Mel and Angie rush off to find Elise, but they are too late. Elise has been stabbed in the back with her own pen (ouch). Cassie ends up arrested. Angie and Mel know she did not kill anyone and set out to find the guilty party. The suspect list for those who disliked Elise is quite lengthy thanks to her book. Can the cupcake ladies find the killer before the wedding march begins?

Wedding Cake Crumble is not a standalone novel. You need to read the other books in the series prior to picking up Wedding Cake Crumble. I thought the book was well-written and had a nice, steady pace. Jenn McKinlay has a writing style that draws the reader in and keeps their attention. The characters are well-developed and relatable. There is a nice mix of personalities and Angie's brothers will have you in stitches. Marty is a unique character that has issues with his daughters and his girlfriend, Olivia Puckett. I was happy to see him stand up for himself (finally). Oz has come such a long way. From the descriptions provided, the cupcake tower he made for the wedding was beautiful (the color scheme for the wedding was aqua and pewter). My favorite character was Peanut, Elise Penworthy's puppy (he stole the show). His hijinks will have you laughing out loud. Peanut and Captain Jack are adorable together. The mystery was not complicated (unfortunately). Identifying the guilty party was child's play. I thought it was clever how the author managed to work in a mention of an incident from the of A Hat Shop Mystery series. There are plenty of cozy moments in Wedding Cake Crumble with the family and friends coming together for Angie and Tate's wedding. I am looking forward to Joe and Mel's upcoming nuptials now that they have set a date. I am giving Wedding Cake Crumble 4 out of 5 stars (I liked it). Jenn McKinlay has provided readers with an entertaining cozy mystery that they will delight in devouring as quickly as possible.