Glitter Bomb (A Scrapbooking Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
15th in Series
Berkley (October 2, 2018)
Hardcover: 320 pages

Synopsis

An exploding Mardi Gras float has got to be the strangest murder weapon scrappy sleuth Carmela Bertrand has ever encountered in this latest Scrapbooking Mystery from the New York Times bestselling author.

It’s Mardi Gras in New Orleans and scrapbook shop owner Carmela Bertrand is excited to be attending the Pluvius Parade along with her best friend Ava. Carmela’s ex-husband Shamus rides by the duo on his float at the head of the parade, when suddenly the revelry turns to disaster. Shamus’ float crashes and explodes, and although Shamus escapes unhurt, a member of his krewe is killed.

Carmela and Ava plunge into an investigation of the krewe-member’s death, but as they dig deeper it starts to look less like an accident and more like a murder….and Shamus seems less like a victim, and more like a suspect.

Guest Post

Ok so how crazy is this?!   1 year ago today, Laura was visiting my blog and she is back today sharing thoughts on another subject.  AND it is my birthday so Happy Birthday to ME!

Dogs and Cats and Mystery!

Guest blog by Laura Childs, New York Times bestselling author of Glitter Bomb, a New Orleans Scrapbooking Mystery.

When I write a mystery – and I’ve written 42 of them so far in my career – my very first chapters literally begin with a bang. I’ve had dead bodies roll out of wine casks, exploding hot air balloons, Jeeps crashing through store windows, gunshots, stabbings, fires in haunted houses, cemetery murders . . . well, you name it, I’ve probably done it.

From there I try to keep my pace moving at breakneck speed. Sometimes there’s a second murder, an injury, car wreck, or someone pleading for help. Often my main character is threatened or her livelihood attacked. This is why I refer to my books as a hybrid between a mystery and a thriller – a thrillzy.

And, yes, I diligently focus on character, plot, timing, and internal architecture. But there’s one more wild card that I always toss in – a dog or a cat.

I firmly believe that caring for a pet gives my characters a more human side. In my Scrapbook Mysteries, Carmela has Boo and Poobah, two dogs. Her BFF Ava has a cat. In my Tea Shop Mysteries, Theodosia has her dog Earl Grey and Drayton has a recently acquired Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named Honeybee. And in my Cackleberry Club Mystery series, Suzanne has Baxter and Scruff, two dogs, as well as a horse, Mocha Gent, and a mule name Grommet.

You see, even the names in this menagerie make one smile. And three of these critters were rescued from the streets. So it just goes to reason that if one of my characters will go out of her way to help a stray animal, of course, she’s going to help a friend who’s been falsely accused of murder.

Sometimes, a dog or cat can even help investigate a crime. (The dogs and cats in my books are very smart). Or they can guard the home front when the killer shows up to seek revenge.

Dogs and cats are a wonderful plot device – and yet they’re wonderful characters just on their own. They can listen to my protagonist when she’s down or troubled, they can go on walks where ideas are worked out, or act as a perfect foil for “accidentally” bumping into a suspect.

Best of all, it’s just plain fun to toss a dog or a cat into the mix. They’re loveable fur babies with antics that tend to make readers chuckle. And if you as a reader enjoy curling up in your favorite chair, with your dog or cat at your feet, so much the better.

If you’re intrigued by the notion of dogs and cats in mysteries, you’re going to enjoy Glitter Bomb, my newest New Orleans Scrapbook Mystery. In fact, here’s a quick synopsis:

Mardi Gras in New Orleans is in full swing when the King Neptune float explodes, sending a plume of glitter into the night sky and killing a hedge fun bigwig. Scrapbook maven Carmela and her BFF Ava have front row seats to the mayhem – and get pulled in when Carmela’s ex, Shamus, becomes a key suspect. Running her own shadow investigation, Carmela tries to clear Shamus while dodging the watchful eye of her fiancée Detective Edgar Babcock. Haunted cemeteries, fashion show, sports car rally, and hungry alligators round out the humor and mischief.

Thanks for reading me!

Love, Laura Childs

About the Authors

Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. In her previous life she was CEO/Creative Director of her own marketing firm and authored several screenplays. She is married to a professor of Chinese art history, loves to travel, rides horses, enjoys fund raising for various non-profits, and has two Chinese Shar-Pei dogs.

Laura specializes in cozy mysteries that have the pace of a thriller (a thrillzy!) Her three series are:

The Tea Shop Mysteries – set in the historic district of Charleston and featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop. Theodosia is a savvy entrepreneur, and pet mom to service dog Earl Grey. She’s also an intelligent, focused amateur sleuth who doesn’t rely on coincidences or inept police work to solve crimes. This charming series is highly atmospheric and rife with the history and mystery that is Charleston.

The Scrapbooking Mysteries – a slightly edgier series that take place in New Orleans. The main character, Carmela, owns Memory Mine scrapbooking shop in the French Quarter and is forever getting into trouble with her friend, Ava, who owns the Juju Voodoo shop. New Orleans’ spooky above-ground cemeteries, jazz clubs, bayous, and Mardi Gras madness make their presence known here!

The Cackleberry Club Mysteries – set in Kindred, a fictional town in the Midwest. In a rehabbed Spur station, Suzanne, Toni, and Petra, three semi-desperate, forty-plus women have launched the Cackleberry Club. Eggs are the morning specialty here and this cozy cafe even offers a book nook and yarn shop. Business is good but murder could lead to the cafe’s undoing! This series offers recipes, knitting, cake decorating, and a dash of spirituality.

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Short-listed twice for The Best American Mystery Stories, Terrie Farley Moran is delighted to introduce mystery fans to the Read ’Em and Eat café and bookstore, which debuted with Well Read, Then Dead. followed by Caught Read-Handed and Read to Death released in July of this year.  The only thing Terrie enjoys more than wrangling mystery plots into submission is playing games and reading stories with any or all of her grandchildren.

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