Mardi Gras Murder: A Cajun Country Mystery by Ellen Byron

About the Book

Mardi Gras Murder: A Cajun Country Mystery

Cozy Mystery 4th in Series Crooked Lane Books (October 9, 2018) Hardcover: 304 pages ISBN-10: 168331705X ISBN-13: 978-1683317050 Digital ASIN: B078LZ5W3H

Southern charm meets the dark mystery of the bayou as a hundred-year flood, a malicious murder, and a most unusual Mardi Gras converge at the Crozat Plantation B&B.

It’s Mardi Gras season on the bayou, which means parades, pageantry, and gumbo galore. But when a flood upends life in the tiny town of Pelican, Louisiana—and deposits a body of a stranger behind the Crozat Plantation B&;B—the celebration takes a decidedly dark turn. The citizens of Pelican are ready to Laissez les bon temps rouler—but there’s beaucoup bad blood on hand this Mardi Gras.

Maggie Crozat is determined to give the stranger a name and find out why he was murdered. The post-flood recovery has delayed the opening of a controversial exhibit about the little-known Louisiana Orphan Train. And when a judge for the Miss Pelican Mardi Gras Gumbo Queen pageant is shot, Maggie’s convinced the murder is connected to the body on the bayou. Does someone covet the pageant queen crown enough to kill for it? Could the deaths be related to the Orphan Train, which delivered its last charges to Louisiana in 1929? The leads are thin on this Fat Tuesday—and until the killer is unmasked, no one in Pelican is safe.

A simmering gumbo of a humorous whodunit, Mardi Gras Murder is the fourth piquant installment in USA Today bestselling author Ellen Byron’s award-winning Cajun Country mysteries.

My Thoughts: I've been reading this series since the beginning and it just keeps getting better with each book! This one involves floods, Mardi Gras, pageants, history - some less than savory, and of course a dead body or two. I love how the author really makes the setting come alive. This is small town Louisiana which is a bit different from the typical New Orleans setting but no less quirky. The mystery is solid with all kinds of twists and turns which is what I expect from this series. I loved all the personal elements too - seeing more of the Crozat family as well as catching up on her love life. This is a fun cozy series with a great setting. While I think it would probably be more enjoyable if started from the beginning of the series just so you can get to know the characters you could easily jump in here and have no problem understanding what was going on. Rating: Very Good

About the Author

Ellen Byron authors the Cajun Country Mystery series. A Cajun Christmas Killing and Body on the Bayou both won the Lefty Award for Best Humorous Mystery and were nominated for Agatha awards in the category of Best Contemporary Novel. Plantation Shudders was nominated for Agatha, Lefty, and Daphne awards. Mardi Gras Murder launches October 9th. Ellen’s TV credits include Wings, Just Shoot Me, and Fairly OddParents. She’s written over 200 national magazine articles, and her published plays include the award-winning Graceland. She also worked as a cater-waiter for the legendary Martha Stewart, a credit she never tires of sharing.

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