**The Little Blog of Murder welcomes guest blogger Laura Durham, Agatha nominee for Best First Novel, and the author of the Annabelle Archer mystery series.**

I have to admit that my favorite part of a new book’s release is the launch party. Since I’m a wedding planner by day, this makes complete sense. And planning a party for a book sure beats the pants off planning parties for occasionally delusional brides. It also helps that I have a slew of friends from the D.C. wedding planning business I work in who are eager to help. I guess they think a party for a book is a nice change from bridezillas and Monsters-in-Law, as well.

My best friend happens to be one of the swankiest caterers in town (at least that’s what he tells everyone) and took charge of “styling” the event. This is event lingo for picking food and tablecloths. We decided to go with a wedding kitsch theme (after some eye-rolling from the self-appointed event stylist) since the Annabelle Archer mysteries feature a wedding planner turned amateur sleuth. We settled on holding the party in a bridal salon and having wedding cake, champagne served in old-fashioned champagne saucers, pink and white cocktail napkins printed with the book title, and hot pink Pucci print linens. And, of course, a wedding planner turned mystery writer must have good favors or people will talk. Since the first chapter of For Better Or Hearse features an Asian-inspired wedding, I ordered customized fortune cookies with fun fortunes like “Weddings Are Murder,” “You are Better Off Wed,” (a nod to my debut novel in the Annabelle Archer series) and “Confucius says to buy For Better Or Hearse. The event stylist/caterer/arbiter of good taste declares the whole thing “pinch me” cute.

The actual book launch party was a blur of books, cake and champagne. Not that I had so much as a sip to drink the entire night. I didn’t even taste the cake until after everyone had gone and I sat around with the bridal salon owner eating leftovers with my fingers. Come to think of it, I’ve ended up at many a wedding eating leftover cake in the kitchen because I’d been too busy running around all day to eat. Maybe a book launch is more like a wedding than I thought. At least there were no bridezillas!

~Laura

www.lauradurham.com
And with The Mystery Chicks