The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party by Alexander Mcall Smith

This is number 12 in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency books. This was another fun read in the series but I was a little disappointed this time around. All the good things were there, the culture, the atmosphere, the Red Bush Tea, but those things weren't concentrated on enough in this outing. I love the fact that Mma Precious Ramotswe is so attached to her white van since I am attached to my jeeps so I understand. The only problem is, we've covered how much she is attached to it in several other books and too much of this book is taken up with her talking about it again. She thinks she sees her old van on the road and spends quite a few pages chasing after it and trying to get it back. Then there is the long awaited wedding between Phuti Radiphuti and Grace Makutsi, and A LOT about wedding shoes, more than I ever cared to know about shoes really. There is a mystery of course, involving cattle being killed and the man being afraid that he will be next. Mma Ramotswe "fixes" it, but doesn't solve the mystery, deciding some mysteries should just be left alone. And don't forget that man stealing hussy, Violet Sephotho, she is running for Parliament now, but won't get very far if Mma Makutsi has anything to say about it. These books are always nice laid back fun reads and the only mysteries I read, but this one just wasn't long enough for me. The van and the shoes shouldn't have taken up so many pages and more pages about Mma Ramotswe and Botswana should have been added. Still, if you're a fan of the series you'll want to read it, to visit with Precious, and have some Red Bush Tea.