Carmela Bertrand and her best friend Ava Gruiex are
checking out Medusa Manor to get ideas for helping their
friend Melody Mayfeldt convert the mansion into a haunted
house for a New Orleans horror convention. The horror
becomes a little too real when Melody's body flies out of a
third floor window. The primary suspect is Melody's
husband, Garth, especially when the cops, led by Carmela's
boyfriend Edgar Babcock, discover their business, Fire and
Ice Jewelers, is in financial trouble.
Knowing Carmela's history of amateur sleuthing, Garth asks
for her help in finding the real killer. Carmela's
investigation turns up Melody's ties to the supernatural
and more than one possible suspect. Delving into New
Orleans' haunted history puts Carmela and Ava in the path
of a killer who will do whatever it takes to achieve his
goal, including getting rid of two nosy sleuths!
Laura Childs' TRAGIC MAGIC is the latest in her
Scrapbooking Mystery series. Carmela and Ava are
entertaining amateur detectives, playing off one another
with the camaraderie of longtime friends. Ms. Childs has a
flair for creating terrifying moments as she takes the
readers into a variety of haunted locations. I was a bit
disappointed in the end as Carmela made what I felt was
an "are you kidding me?" move. Yes, it led to some
excitement, but it all felt contrived because it seemed a
bit out of character. That aside, TRAGIC MAGIC is one
mystery lovers will enjoy.
The next Scrapbooking mystery takes readers back to New
Orleans, where there are spookies, foodies-and crafty
killers. Carmela, owner of Memory Mine scrapbook shop, and
her best friend, owner of Juju Voodoo, have a big project.
Melody Mayfeldt is converting an old mansion in the
Faubourg-Marigny district into an unforgettable haunted
house for those who flock to New Orleans for a creepy fix.
She needs Carmela's crafty touch to make the Medusa Manor
come to life in time for the upcoming horror convention. But
Melody takes her house haunting too seriously-especially
when her flaming body comes crashing through a tower window
to 'welcome' them to the job. Sure there's been an increased
trend in murder lately, but someone specifically wanted
Carmela's client very dead.
Carmela's in some deep gumbo again and needs to crop out a
killer from the throngs of people flocking to New Orleans.
Then maybe it won't be so hard living in the Big Easy.
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