How to Host. . .

I have read many mysteries in my life, but I have never read one with a person who runs a crime scene cleaning service as one of the leading character (or any character for that matter). How to Host a Killer Party by Penny Warner features Presley Parker, event planner, and Brad Matthews, crime scene cleaner, and hunky to boot.

This series takes place in California, and is worth a laugh or two. I'm especially fascinated by the crime scene cleaner - ugh - think about that job.

Presley, downsized from her job, decides to use her childhood experience planning events with her mother Veronica Parker, to start her own event planning company. She cobbles together an array of freelancers to help her with the events. Presley is unexpectedly called on to plan a "surprise wedding" for Mayor Green and his socialite fiancee after the previous event planner is found dead.

As a possible suspect in the murder of  the other planner, Presley is anxious about pulling off the

perfect wedding, even if it is being held on Alcatraz. To no one's surprise, the prospective bride is furious about the wedding and storms off, only to be found dead the next day. There are suspects galore, but somehow the police seem to focus on Presley again.

There is some funny banter between Presley and Brad, but overall she is a little too ditzy for my liking. She wanders into dark corners and deserted places knowing full well there is a killer on the loose. I want to shout at her to use caution, but I think she is blindly going to follow her own path.

There are several other books in the series and I have read them as well. I did warm up to Presley, but the murderers are a little too obvious. For more books by this author, click here.