The Bride Wore Size 12: A Novel

Review originally posted on The Book Addict's GuideCompleted: September 21, 2013Publishing Info: September 24th 2013 by William MorrowSource: eGalley approved by Harper via EdelweissGenre: Chick Lit, “Cozy” Mystery (Adult)POV: First Person (Heather Wells)I’ve been a fan of Meg Cabot for YEARS now and entirely because of the Heather Wells series. This was one of the series that got me back into reading when I was in my reading slump so I owe my sister a big thanks for letting me borrow these books way back in the day! I actually don’t read a lot of adult fiction anymore since I’m busy reading ALL THE YA BOOKS so it was really nice to fall back into some chick lit and a touch of mystery with the latest Heather Wells book.While I haven’t actually started my wedding planning yet, I felt like I could relate to Heather a little bit with her crazy wedding plans! (This may also be the point I realized that I might actually start to enjoy adult lit more than I used to because I’ve actually been through some LIFE THINGS now haha!) Heather always has a lot on her plate, but I love how much she really cares about the kids in her dorm. When everything else is going wrong, she’s always got their best interests at heart, sometimes even over her own personal issues.One thing I’ve always loved about Meg Cabot is the amount of humor in her books. Each chapter starts with a funny little collection of song lyrics, written by Heather, and in this book, they’re all about her crazy wedding plans. I think it helps the reader not take the book too seriously because there are darker subjects because hi, it’s a murder mystery — Except you almost don’t feel like classifying it as that because the tone IS so light. I definitely had another good group of laugh out loud moments at both characters and funny situations!Then of course, there’s Cooper. I am SO HAPPY for Heather Wells! I’ve been reading this series for YEARS so I’m so happy that she gets her dream guy (and he’s dreamy too)! I’ve always loved their romance and their relationship is just so natural. Somehow I forgot how funny Cooper is too! I always felt like he was more serious… Which I guess he is, but he and Heather have some seriously hilarious conversations.It’s actually kind of hard to review this book because overall, it was just a nice, quick, and easy read. Sure, the plot was exciting and interesting but the Heather Wells series has just become a “fun” read for me and as much as Heather’s personal life changes, it’s the standard go-to mystery. It’s definitely for a light reading kind of mood and if you’re a fan of the series, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!

Summary: Heather wants the year to start of smoothly. No murders and no unexpected wedding guests. But when a girl shows up murdered, and people, who she didn't invite to the wedding, RSVP, Heather realizes that making it to the alter will be harder than fitting into her wedding dress...Review: I wanted more from the conclusion of the Heather Wells Mysteries series. I feel like now the series really ended at "Big Boned" and we got a couple of sequels.As always, Heather's witticism is full evident in this book, and with her new found confidence, she's even more fun. Her friends and co-workers are kooky as ever. Cooper is sweet and overprotective, not unsurprising from previous books. But his love and trust for her shines through each page.Heather has grown a lot in the past books, readily accepting herself and her life. It is refreshing to see a plus size girl not worry about her weight or what is on her plate. At the same time, a major character flaw of hers was not accepting herself. That flaw was corrected a book or so ago, so how did she grow in this novel? Frankly, not much.On top of that, the murder mystery was lackluster. It had a great beginning with the spoiled Prince's parties and the mysterious "flu" going around. But then it fizzled. I think part of the problem was the numerous subplots. Lisa's "flu", the RA's "flu", Shiraz and Ameera, Heather's mom, Nicole... need I go on? And what about Jordan and Tania!?!!? Jordan and Heather might have resolved their issues, but they needed at least a page or two interaction. It seems Cabot put too many needless storylines in the book while missing out on opportunities from the old favorites.Still, the book was a fast and enjoyable read. For those of you who love the series, you should read this book to at least see Cooper and Heather's happy ending. That was my favorite part.Sex: references to sex. Definitely kissing.Violence: Tame, one scene with the murderer at the end is only a little bit brutal.Rating: 3 out of 5 starsSeries Rating: 4 out of 5 starsQuote:"This year, everything is going to be different. No one in Fischer Hall is going to die this year. Not even accidentally.""How are you going to manage that?" Coop asks, gnawing on a Chinese sparerib. "Bubble wrap all your residents?"

Heather Wells should be in the final stages of planning her wedding to private investigator Cooper Cartwright, but the beginning of the semester brings all sorts of problems at Fischer Hall, where she is assistant residence hall director. Moving freshmen in usually involves issues, but when a new student happens to be a prince, there's bound to be trouble. Oh, and one of the resident assistants turns up dead...Yeah, the wedding may have to take a back seat.Heather is a fun, real character whose antics and thoughts are often enough to make me laugh out loud. The relationship she has with her boyfriend is both sweet and mutually supportive, and her friends all have unique personalities that bring life to the story. There isn't a very deep mystery here; in fact, Heather gets sidetracked early on by a noisy rebellion of some fired resident assistants, as well as the situation with the prince and assorted other issues. And really, the mystery's not the point; Heather's so busy looking forward to her wedding and deciphering the problems that that much alone would be enough. To be honest, the mystery was only of interest to me in seeing how Heather would deal with it.I'm not sure if this is the final book in the series, but it definitely has the hallmarks of being so; Heather's mother finally makes an appearance, and despite everything, the wedding day approaches with all the technicalities usual to such a date. If it is the last in the series, it's a good one; if not, I'll be more than happy to see where Heather goes next.

I quite like Meg Cabot as a writer but found this book a little slow in places . It's the usual romance with a touch of mystery but the pace is slow and the subject matter was not a favourite. I have found her to be quite funny and light hearted before but this was not one of her best books.

This series of books gets better with each book. The characters are really brilliant and so nice. really enjoyed this

Fantastic. Very gripping, I got through this book ridiculously quickly & loved every minute of it. The story is gripping, funny, heart warming and the plot is well thought out. Definitely one to read.

Loved this book and the whole series, A MUST READ.

Love this series. Great read.