There Goes the Bride

November 13, 2010 - There Goes the Bride (M.C. Beaton). Agatha Raisin solves a few more murders but it sure takes her a long time to do it in this entry in the continuing British cozy series.

Our story begins with Agatha on holiday, touring historical sites so she can prove something to her ex-husband and recently-engaged neighbor, James Lacey. Turns out James and his fiancée, Felicity, are traveling a similar path and suspect Agatha of stalking them. No matter. Agatha and the members of her detective agency are still invited to the wedding.

The night before the wedding, James confesses to Agatha that he wants to call the whole thing off. Conveniently, the fiancée is shot to death in the morning. Agatha falls under suspicion for about five minutes, but she's quickly cleared and is hired by the woman's mother to find out who dunnit.

Over the course of the next several months, Agatha tracks down what leads she can with help from her employees and from her friends, particularly Sir Charles Fraith. She's also quite taken by a handsome Frenchman named Sylvan who may not be the gentleman he appears.

The main plot itself is OK. The problem is that there's not enough plot here to fill a whole book. So, the author drags it out over an extended period and fills the gaps with side issues: Agatha's search for a man; Agatha's crisis of confidence; Agatha's indecision over whether or not to retire. Even when you think the book is over, it's still not over as the final chapter continues the increasingly tedious story of Agatha's love life. I am quickly losing interest in this series.