Plantation Shudders: A Cajun Country Mystery

Byron’s debut brings energy and verve to the cozy formula of a woman returning home after troubles in the big city. Magnolia “Maggie” Crozat, disappointed in love and in her career as an artist in New York, returns to her childhood plantation home in Louisiana, now a family-run B&B. It’s full-up with people eager to attend the local food festival, but the unexpected deaths of a recently married older couple set the cat among the pigeons. Since the local sheriff has a long-standing grudge against the Crozat family, he would be only too happy to accuse one of them of murder. The arrival of the sheriff’s cousin Bo Durand, the new deputy, changes things for the better, and it’s clear from the get-go that he’ll provide a romantic interest for Maggie, who is described as having a lithe body. Maggie’s banning of some tourists from conducting Civil War reenactments on Crozat land injects a note of political correctness that some readers may find unnecessary. [em]Agent: Doug Grad, Doug Grad Literary Agency. (Aug.) [/em]