Pretty guilty women by Gina Lamanna

Hachette, 2019. ISBN: 9780751576696.
(Age: Adult) This is a story of a wedding, and conversely, and unexpectedly, a story of a murder. While these two events may seem incongruous, in this narrative there is such a large amount of loving friendship, and indeed a large amount of love, that a murder, in this context, somehow seems even more terrible. Yet the guests make the decision to put aside the issue of one guest murdered, and to go ahead with the drinking, partying, socialising and preparation for the big day.
Unexpectedly, while flying across the US, one woman rather unexpectedly has a sexual encounter with a man in the toilets of the aircraft. We read about the great amount of alcohol consumed, while the pre-wedding drinks and socialising takes place, ironically entailing the murder of one man. Even more ironically, all four women, friends since university days, confess to having committed the murder. Why, we might well ask! It is certainly not easy to understand their motivation to confess, yet we are persuaded that it is the bonds of friendship that drive these confessions, obviously not all being true.
Not a book for younger children, nor indeed for young adolescents, this is pitched at a mature adult audience, and is most notable for the mystery at its heart. A light read about a strange group of people, albeit well educated, who seem to simply be happy to spend their money on pleasure and frivolity, fuelled by copious quantities of alcohol.
Elizabeth Bondar