Rating: 
Summary: Emotionally satisfying and well written
Review: Benni Harper has got too much going on in her life to get involved in an ancient unsolved murder case. She's got to plan for two weddings, a Mardi Gras party, and then there's the little matter of her husband's old girlfriend showing up--and looking very much like she has her claws out for Gabe Harper. Still, once she learns about the 50-year-old murder and the woman who supposedly killed her husband, Benni can't rest until she learns more. How could a marriage that started so well have gone so badly so quickly? At some level, her own marriage problems become transferred to her need to solve the mystery. Author Earlene Fowler does a wonderful job delivering an emotionally rich mystery. Bennie is a teriffic character with a full set of skills and fears. Her job at the local California museum gives her the ability to track down ancient clues to the long-forgotten mystery--a mystery that still rankles with many of the older residents. Her concerns about her husband's love, and increasing understanding of the murder make it hard for Bennie to put all of her positive attention on the upcoming weddings, but somehow Fowler manages to pull all of this together into an emotionally satisfying story.
Rating:
Summary: A rich, warm quilting read
Review: Earleen Fowler has added a thick,warm, encompassing read to her quilting series. She has deepened the characters that have become so familiar in her previous books making STEPS TO THE ALTAR very satisfying to read.
Benni and Gabe's various insecurities lead to problems within their marriage that are believable. More interesting is how multidimensional the solution to all the tangled threads in her story. This time the mystery is secondary to the characters and it makes for a lovely pattern.
Rating:
Summary: A rich, warm quilting read
Review: Earleen Fowler has added a thick,warm, encompassing read to her quilting series. She has deepened the characters that have become so familiar in her previous books making STEPS TO THE ALTAR very satisfying to read.
Benni and Gabe's various insecurities lead to problems within their marriage that are believable. More interesting is how multidimensional the solution to all the tangled threads in her story. This time the mystery is secondary to the characters and it makes for a lovely pattern.
Rating:
Summary: Wedding blues
Review: Earlene Fowler has written a wonderful series of cozies set on the central California coast and featuring Benni Harper, head of an art co-op and her police chief husband, Gabe. In this ninth book of the series, Benni's best friend Elvia and her grandmother Dove are plannng their respective weddings. At the same time she is busy helping them, Benni is asked to catalogue the letters and keepsakes of a woman named Maple Sullivan who reputedly killed her wealthy husband and ran off with another man. Benni reads Maple's love letters to her husband and has a hard time believing that she could have actually murdered him. The decades old mystery intrigues Benni and it also keeps her mind off her own deteriorating marriage. Gabe has encountered an old girlfriend who makes no secret of the fact that she is out to rekindle their old romance. Fowler seems to hit all the right notes as she continues to develop the characters and situations in this well-written series.
Rating:
Summary: A very special book
Review: Earlene Fowler's 9th novel is the most riveting yet, right to the very end. I bought the book on the way home from work one evening, began reading right away, and stayed up till it was finished. I knew I'd never be able to sleep anyway without knowing how Benni and Gabe resolved their problems. I re-read it again over the next few days to savor it more slowly. I was glad for the prologue to Earlene's earlier book, Mariner's Compass, which let us know they were still going strong after 40 years. I think it would have been harder to read without knowing that. I felt so incredibly sad reading this book, perhaps reliving the feelings from the breakup of my own marriage. Sad also that Benni was unable to really enjoy the celebration of the marriage of her best friend and her favorite cousin. I was glad they finally tied the knot, however, and that their wedding was included in the book. I especially liked the themes of forgiveness and the grace of God, and how both Benni and Gabe sought advice (albeit unwillingly) from their respective spiritual advisors. Having chapters written from Gabe's point of view this time was enlightening, and made him a more well-rounded person. It's now easier to understand why he sometimes acts the way he does. The other mystery in this book (besides the one about Benni and Gabe's marriage) was, the fifty-year-old unsolved murder that Benni got involved in to catalog items for the historical society. What she discovered gave her insights into love and marriage, as well as the search for what really happened. Grandma Dove was a hoot, as always. I wish she were my Grandma! These characters feel so real to me, it's almost hard to believe they are not. As difficult as it was to experience the feelings this book invoked in me, I think it was very realistic as to what can happen in a marriage to either break it apart or make it stronger. Thanks again to Earlene for yet another wonderful chapter in the lives of Benni and Gabe.
Rating:
Summary: I couldn't put it down!
Review: Every time a read a Bennie Harper Mystery I'm ready to pack my bags and move to San Celina. The characters are wonderful, believable people and their interations with each other so real you feel a part of it as you read. This story line is great! Bennie struggles with some difficult personal problems while juggling maid of honor duties and solving a mystery from the past WWII era. Her life never has a dull moment and neither does this book. I highly recommend Steps To The Altar as well as the other books in the series.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best
Review: I am an avid mystery reader and the Benni Harper series is one of the best. Reading the books in order allows the reader to see the growth of Benni Harper in all aspects of her life, but you don't need to do this to enjoy a Benni Harper mystery. It's clear Ms. Fowler has a strong faith in God and is able to bring this to her characters in a natural, non-threatening way. I have enjoyed every book in the series and STEPS TO THE ALTAR is one of my favorites.
As Benni is involved in planning wedding showers for her grandmother, Dove, and her best friend, Elvia, she's asked to go through trunks owned by a woman, who disappeared after the murder of her prominent San Celina husband 50 years before. As Benni does so, with the help of San Celina sheriff, Hudson Ford, her curiosity grows as does her conviction of the the innocence of the "murderess". There are also some interesting twists in the evolving relationship between Benni and Hud.
Paralleling this is the appearance of one of Gabe's former undercover partners, who just happens to be a woman with whom Gabe had more than a professional relationship years before, which contributed to the break-up of his first marriage. This brings unexpected and possibly devastating consequences to his relationship with Benni.
As is generally the case in her other books, Earlene Fowler deftly weaves the various stories together into a satisfying conclusion and leaves the door open for more adventures for Benni Harper. All in all a great read for anyone who loves well-written mysteries.
Rating: 
Summary: She's too good for this
Review: I enjoy Earlene Fowler's characters and her plots are intriguing, but some things are beginning to bug me. Two of the last three books have had (pretty blasted similar) subplots involving a threat to Benni and Gabe's marriage, yet she's already told us, in the Prologue to Mariner's Compass, that their marriage lasts for 40 years. I can suspend disbelief for a good read, but I think an author should be true to the reality that he or she has created. In fact, she does respect that reality when she steps away from Benni's narration in the "Gabe" chapters. And I find it incredibly annoying when in one chapter, she writes that Benni and Emory were 11 and 12 in 1970, then in another that Benni is 36 in the present day. And Michael Jackson does not spell his name "Micheal". And "givin'" doesn't mean the same thing as "given". Nobody's "prefect", but that sloppiness got in the way of this reader's enjoyment.
Rating:
Summary: Latest Benni Harper
Review: I just finished this book and I greatly enjoyed reading it. I have read and own all of the Benni Harper mysteries. I like all the characters. They are so well described that they seem real. I liked this latest entry because Ms. Fowler had chapters that gave the readers a chance to see Gabe's viewpoint.(Gabe is the other main character) I also think these novels/mysteries are well written.
Rating:
Summary: 7 STARS!
Review: I look forward to April each year knowing that the next Benni Harper edition will be at the book store. I took my time reading STTA simply because I didn't want it to end. Each book is true to the characters of Benni Harper and her husband Gabe and her entire family. Seeing another side of Gabe added to the intrigue of STTA. Also, it was great bringing back Hud! I am amazed at how each book is so completely different from the previous book. While so many authors become stagnant after writing nine or more novels, Earlene keeps growing with each book. Benni and Gabe's marraige hits a fork in the road. While happiness fills the air around their family with two weddings, Benni and Gabe have some big decisions to make. Benni stumbles across a murder in San Celina after agreeing to help the historical society. How will she work on solving a murder and her marriage at the same time?
I can't wait for April 2003!
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