Murder in the Bayou Boneyard: A Cajun Country Mystery
- Author Ellen Byron
- Release Date September 8, 2020
- Publisher Crooked Lane Books
- ISBN/ASIN B082H3BT6F
- Our Rating
- Reviewed by SJ
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Our Review
MURDER IN THE BAYOU BONEYARD by Ellen Byron is the sixth book in her A Cajun Country Mystery series. It can totally be read on its own, as I hadn’t read any of the author’s previous books and had no problem getting into the story. The author does a great job of introducing you to the characters and the town of Pelican, Louisiana. Though the book takes a slow start to the mystery, the characters are engaging and keep the pages turning.
This mystery is set at Halloween, and the town delivers its cute, spooky scares with festive celebrations amidst the local bed and breakfast (B&B) crowd, as well as with the arrival of rougarou sightings! Since rougarous—Cajun werewolves—clearly aren’t real, something is definitely amiss in town. And then come the murders…
Maggie Crozat is the lead sleuth in this charming mystery. Along with her mother, father, and grandmother, who all run their plantation B&B, Maggie does her best to figure out who killed her newly-arrived, newly-met cousin. Along with her police officer fiancé, Maggie does her best to clear her name when she’s accused of killing her new cousin. And when more people get murdered, Maggie seems to be once again be the chief suspect.
The setting is a character itself, not overdone, but perfectly lending to the Cajun caper. Who has motive to kill the first victim other than Maggie? And who wants the second victim dead? Who is dressing up as a rougarou to scare away visitors? And just as the plot thickens, Maggie’s antique wedding dress is stolen!
The plots are woven together nicely and the mysteries cleverly develop, with enough clues to point to the villains without being over the top or easy to guess. I had a feeling I knew who the murderer was, yet I wasn’t altogether right. And I love that!
With a wonderful cast of characters, suspects, and an intriguing mystery on top of a mystery, MURDER IN THE BAYOU BONEYARD is a terrific book for those who love a great whodunit. Now I have to go back and read the first five books in this series!
