Tuesday, October 30, 2018

Mardi Gras Murder by Ellen Byron-Great Escapes Tour-Review/Giveaway


About the book 
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.
And others are saying
The book is well-written with a steady pace and humor scattered throughout . . . Ellen Byron combines Southern charm, Mardi Gras, humor, a cast of quirky characters and a beguiling mystery into one rousing cozy mystery.
~The Avid Reader

Mardi Gras Murders by Ellen Byron is simply outstanding, all that a great cozy mystery should be and more.
~The Power of Words
And I thought
Don't let book 4 scare you off  if you haven't read the rest.  
This is a great series and you can jump in at anytime. 

You've only missed a little romance and alot of mystery but you can always go back.  

Mardi Gras  Murder was a fun read.  I did have a bit of a hard time keeping the pageant contestants and moms straight but I finally got them all straight. 
There are quite a few characters in the story/plot but they all have their own places in the story and everything comes together in the end.  

The series takes place around an historical home turned museum.
The main character Maggie works at the museum as a tour guide.
But she is really a talented artist.  When it's realized that a painting in the museum has been painted over Maggie gets the job of doing the restoration.  While restoring the painting a 'can of worms' is opened and more drama/conflict.

All the while she is hoodwinked by her granny into judging the 
Miss Gumbo pageant.  More drama/mystery begins when one of the other judges is murdered.

And so while the gumbo simmers the plot thickens until the climatic end when the real villain tries to take out not only Maggie but her best friend and Maggie's beau.  On a side note the ending reminded me of one of my favorite movies Romancing The Stone. You'll have to read it yourself to find out why!

If you enjoy a good great cozy you'll be hooked on this series.  

I received a complimentary copy.
My review will appear on Good Reads Net Galley and retail sites

Buy the book 
Amazon – B&N  –  Crooked Lane – BookBub  – Kobo

Visit the tour
To read more reviews, interviews and guest posts click here
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2 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for the post and the great review!

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  2. Thank you for your review on "Mardi Gras Murder" by Ellen Byron and for being part of the book tour.

    Love the cover and can't wait for the opportunity to read this book on my TBR list.
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

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