Speak Now
By Margaret Dumas
Read How You Want, (2010)
EasyRead Large Print, in 16 Point Font
(Originally Published in Standard Print by Poisoned Pen Press)
ISBN: 978-1458743015 Genre: Mystery Reviewed by Auggie Moore - January 31, 2011

Speak Now is Margaret Dumas's debut mystery novel. The 'stars' of this mystery are Charley Van Leeuwen, who runs a non-profit rep (theater) company and Jack Fairfax, her thirty-eight-year-old, perfect husband who is a meteorologist and, until very recently, a commander in the U.S. Navy. Charley, for her part, is a rather wealthy thirty-four-year-old who has a passion for the theater and who was thought of, by her friends, as romantically challenged. That was until she met Jack, a stereotypical perfect manly male. Six weeks after meeting him, she married him. As the story opens, they have been married for two-days and are returning to San Francisco, from London, where they met and married. Things really start to get juicy when they check into a posh hotel in San Francisco and find a body in their bathroom!

As soon as it becomes apparent, and it does rather quickly, that the body is somehow connected to Jack, Charley doesn't even bat an eye. She simply sets out to discover who the killer is, and to clear the name of her newly beloved. If for no other reason than to prove to her overprotective Uncle Harry, who raised her after her parents where killed, that she did not marry in haste just to repent in leisure!!

Charley is a woman of means, and she is willing to expend whatever it takes to solve this mystery, including money, time, or her own safety. Along the way she'll have to juggle her dysfunctional rep company, a host of noisy friends and relatives, and the odd kidnapping.

Set against the backdrop of San Francisco's theater and high society crowds, this book is sure to be a hit with fans of cozy mysteries as well as chick-lit fans. Dumas's writing style is witty, and in Charley he has created a lively and sympathetic heroine and a spectacular amateur detective that is sure to please. Dumas's writing is funny and the story moves along at a brisk pace with slight overtones of wanting to be a spy thriller. Most important, for mystery fans, in Speak Now, Dumas has crafted a charming and logical mystery that will leave you wanting to learn more about Charley and her adventures. Luckily, the second book in this series, How to Succeed in Murder is already out in large print, so no need to wait to read the next book!