Bride or Die

Claire Hartley Accidental Mystery, Book 1

By: Madison Score

Narrated by: Lila Winters

Length: 15 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

“At best, it was going to be a very long day. At worst, she might end up in jail for running Luke over with her car.”

Proposal planner Claire Hartley thought calling off her own wedding would be the most traumatic event of her year. But when her ex-college roommate vanishes without a trace and Claire begins receiving mysterious threats, she realizes she has bigger problems.

Could she be the next victim of West Haven’s suspected serial killer?

Her only escape from the imminent danger is her adorably derpy rescue corgi and her job as the city’s most awarded marriage proposal planner. Unfortunately work turns into a war zone when she’s forced to collaborate on the biggest project of her career with a hunky, grumpy filmmaker. In addition to six-pack abs, he’s got one big secret and way too many opinions.

Claire can’t afford to wait for the police to solve this case. The clock is ticking and the threats against her are escalating.

Can her meticulous organizational and research skills help her catch a killer before she becomes the next victim?

Equally important, will she make it through her best friend’s surprise proposal without murdering—or falling for—the annoyingly handsome filmmaker?

©2024 Madison Score (P)2024 That's What She Said Publishing, Inc.

Cute and hilarious RomCom

Flirty and banter are so adorable in this one! Narrator nailed the whole story! Can’t wait to see what Madison releases next! Congrats girl! First published book!

Good debut novel!

The story was good and engaging. Luke’s character could have used more development. The supporting characters were great. Don’t know that I’d agree with the other reviews that would call it a romantic comedy. Probably my fault for jumping to that conclusion based on the reviews. There were lots of laughs surrounding a dark mysterious plot with a splash of romantic interest. Definitely worth a read.

Captivating story line

I’ve been anxiously awaiting the release of Bride or Die; and it totally exceeded all my expectations! I loved this lighthearted romantic suspense, the characters were well developed and I definitely did not see the “villain” coming.
Claire is a Wedding Proposal Planner and I found her company and services quite intriguing. She lives on her own with her sweet corgi Rosie and spends her days making couples’ dreams come true.
Luke is returning home to East Coast after serving in the Navy to pursue his interest in film making and investigative journalism.
Luke and Claire meet through a mutual friend and become business associates, when Luke assists as film director and videographer for Claire’s company.
Together they’ll face a serial killer threatening their small town and while pursuing leads they’ll also realize there may be romantic feelings involved.
We get to meet Claire’s best friends and associates, as well as her mother and local residents. We get to witness several fairy tale and high adrenaline proposals, and ultimately the dramatic conclusion of the criminal case.
Bride or Die is great, captivating story; and a most excellent Debut Novel by the brilliant Madison Score. I definitely recommend!

First time author! Knocked it out of the park

Loved the story, the narrator and characters ! Will be an auto buy for me going forward..

Thrilmantical thrilling romantic and hysterical!

Such a great read! It had me swooning, laughing and standing on my toes! So well done!

Enjoyable read!

I enjoyed the story - GREAT banter between Claire and Luke which I loved! There were a few places that slowed down, but overall great pace with the story - I was able to guess "whodunit." Must add that Rosie sounds like the most adorable dog ever! Also, narration was perfect - huge Lila Winters fan.

Very entertaining story

I enjoyed this story because it included a lot of elements I enjoy. There is a great deal of humor built in to the dialogue between the characters. The mystery that needs to be solved grew throughout the story and I had no idea who the bad guy was until it was revealed. Romance was prevalent throughout the story but there was a very slow burn for the main character. I felt there was a lot of character building from the first chapter to the last. Great book overall. I enjoyed the narrator’s performance and felt she brought a lot of emotion to the story.

Such a fantastic perfect read!

This story was fantastic a perfect blend of mystery and laugh out loud humor. The female characters you want as girlfriends. The lead males you may need to find in real life. A wonderful example of modern romance escapism at its best!

Quipy RomCom with a side of serial killer

Quirky, loveable characters, a cute pet, workplace enemies to ❤️, a bitter rival out for revenge, a crummy ex, multiple over the top proposals, jet ski stunts, horse drawn carriages, mishaps aplenty, slow burn/subtle he falls first, best friend trio, danger, suspense, one gory scene, HEA with more to come. Overall a fun romantic mystery, long but not slow, can't wait for book 2!

I like the originality of the story!

As I said in the title, I really like the originality of the story. I really enjoyed the development of each character, especially the feistiness of the girls 😄. I liked that Luke wasn’t the typical super nice guy that does everything for the girl he likes. Honestly, it was a very refreshing story.

I would have liked a bit more of an ending to the story though; it kind of leaves you hanging. I wanted to know what happens to the relationship. You sort of have to make up your own thoughts on that. To be honest, I’m not a big fan when authors do that. I would prefer more closure to the story. Whether that’s letting us know what’s going on in their lives a few months down the road or even a few years, but give us something.

The narrator was good, but sometimes could be a bit whiny for some of the character voices. She was pretty good aside from that.

This is my first book by this author and will definitely look for more! ☺️