Christmas Bliss by Mary Kay Andrews (Unabridged Audio Version)

It's been a few years since fans of Mary Kay Andrews' partners in crime pals Weezie Foley and Bebe Loudermilk have been heard from. In fact, the last time was in 2006 with her previous Christmas tale, BLUE CHRISTMAS. Readers were first introduced to the duo way back in 2002 in her smash hit SAVANNAH BLUES.

CHRISTMAS BLISS was released in 2013 and picks up with Weezie mere days away from her wedding to chef Daniel and Bebe very pregnant with her first child with beau, Harry, the deep-sea fishing captain. Both women seem to be charting near perfect lives but rough waters are soon on the horizon. As Weezie is making final preparations for her second, and hopefully, last wedding, her fiance is in New York City working as a guest chef in one of the city's premier establishments. As the days go by and the wedding gets closer, Daniel is almost impossible to reach. To make matters worse, newspaper clippings of photos with him and the beautiful owner of the restaurant cause Weezie's insecurities to surface. At the same time, Bebe gets a visit from a mysterious woman indicating that Bebe's divorce from her previous husband and con-man, Richard was never finalized, which means she is still married to him and could legally, according to the laws of the state of Georgia, could be considered her baby's legal father!

While Weezie jets off to NYC to find out what's going on with her fiance and his sexy boss, Bebe is determined to locate Richard and get divorce papers re-filed before Harry finds out she's still married before the baby comes.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE STORY:

Although I always love when MKA brings these two fun characters back, I was a bit disappointed there wasn't a little more substance to the story. I hate even saying that as it is a Christmas-themed book and it was charming in that regard. In the past, Weezie and Bebe have been through some crazy fun adventures and compared to those, this was a bit tame. That being said, I was glad to see both of their relationships moving forward, especially since it's been forever since we've heard form them. The story had all the charm as in previous books with the same fun characters and it was a cute story to read for Christmas time. However, I do hope that MKA won't wait so long to bring them back and maybe with more of an adventurous storyline.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE AUDIO PERFORMANCE:

When this book first came out in 2013, I received a hard copy from the publisher. Unfortunately, I only made it a third of the way through and had to set it aside because it was too difficult for me to read the print in the book. (My eyes had started getting worse at that time). I was very sad I couldn't finish the book then and felt terrible about it.  So earlier this month I used one of my credits at Audible and purchased the audio version so I could listen to it for this Christmas season. Better late then never, I say!

Kathleen McInerney did a good job of bringing these two lovable characters to life and her Southern accent was spot on without going overboard. Though I will say, later on in the book, it started to be a little syruppy for me. I know I'm just being picky and maybe I was a bit frustrated by the lack of adventure in the story, but I have to be honest. I think if there is to be a Weezie and Bebe Mystery Number 5, I will read it reather than listen.

The bottom line is this is a cute, quick Christmas-themed book that I don't regret reading at all. The characters are beloved and I will never give up on them. This book would make a great Christmas present and is perfect for reading on a Christmas break either from school or work.

CHRISTMAS BLISS (Unabridged Audio Version)
Series: Weezie and Bebe Mystery
Author: Mary Kay Andrews
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Published:     October 2013
Length: 7 Hrs 39 Mins
Source: Purchased