Today, Dienece Darling is reviewing her favourite (and recently released) book in a contemporary romance series with strong mystery elements Wedding at Sea by Melissa Tagg.
Book Blurb
Two enemies. One wedding. And a seaside mystery decades in the making.
Lilian doesn’t remember anything about her life before the day Maggie Muir found her on her front porch—a toddler, abandoned and alone. And maybe that’s okay. She has a beautiful life at Muir Farm, including an adopted family she adores and a successful career as a lawyer. But she also has a secret . . . one that raises just as many questions about her future as it does her unknown past.
And, of course, it would be private investigator Wilder Monroe, her brother’s best friend and the bane of her existence, who sniffs out her secret before anyone else.
Wilder has spent the past three years trying to close the one case his father couldn’t—the mystery of Maggie Muir’s long-lost granddaughter. But the decades-long search has become more tangled than ever. It’s become more personal, too. Not only are the Muirs the closest thing to family he has left, but if he can solve this mystery, maybe he’ll keep himself from drowning in the one he can’t . . . the truth about his father’s death.
In the midst of secrets and swirling questions, Maggie asks a favor of both Lilian and Wilder: put aside their bickering and work together to plan her summer wedding. It’s a big ask, made all the more difficult when danger comes calling at Muir Farm. But if the two enemies can stand each other long enough to pull off the event of the year, they just might solve a mystery in the process.
And the biggest discovery of all? That sometimes the one your heart longs for is the last person you ever would’ve expected.
Wedding at Sea is the breathtaking finale in bestselling, award-winning author Melissa Tagg’s Muir Harbor series.
Dienece’s Book Review
This book was gripping.
I must confess. I am a skimmer. If something lags or they start describing scenery, I’ll skim until I reach an interest bit. But not with this book. Every paragraph held my attention. I tried to skim once (it was 1:30am on a school night after all), but I couldn’t do it. I had to go back and read what I’d missed because I wanted to know everything!
This book held my attention until its satisfying end.
Wedding at Sea is the third in a contemporary romance series with strong mystery elements. Unfortunately, the mystery spans all three books, which means this doesn’t work very well as a standalone. Luckily, the rest of the series is great too and on Kindle Unlimited if you are looking for a binge read!
Wedding at Sea is by far my favourite of the series. I was looking forward to reading about this couple the first time Lilian glared and hissed at Wilder in Autumn by the Sea. You don’t need to read the other books to enjoy their banter (it’s just for the mystery’s sake). The reason Lilian hates Wilder was much more interesting than I thought it would be, but I can’t explain without spoiling things. Let’s just say it had something to do with a boat jetty…
Wilder is her big brother’s best friend, and he had things going on I hadn’t even guessed at. His journey was so much deeper and complex than I expected. It really touched me. Wilder was a complex and intriguing character who complimented Lilian so well. You could really see this couple going somewhere and flourishing together.
The romance was great, but the mystery was even better!
And that’s saying something because the romance was really good. The banter and tension between the couple was awesome, but ALL the strings of the mystery get tied up. I won’t say it is in a pretty bow, but you aren’t left wondering what happened to someone.
You will need to concentrate at times. There are a lot of string to follow. That being said, I haven’t reread the first two books since they were released in 2021 and 2022 respectively and still followed along just fine.
One of the things I loved about this enemies-to-more story was its uniqueness. Lillian doesn’t have a secret crush. Wilder isn’t even interested in Lilian romantically. He likes her crusty side because it distracts him from his troubles and amuses him. I really liked this fresh take on the enemies-to-more trope. The romance side hits them both out of the blue.
Looking for a gripping mystery with a beautiful love story? Crave strong spiritual elements that are honest, heartfelt, and deeply moving? Look no further than Wedding at Sea.
You can read Narelle’s review of book two here!
