Review: Fiber & Brimstone

Fiber & Brimstone (Scrapbooking Mystery series - Book 8) by Laura Childs

Publication Date: October, 2010
Publisher: Penguin
Format: Hardcover, 336 pp
Genre: Mystery
ISBN-13: 9780425236741
ISBN: 0425236749

(Received for review from Penguin)

Synopsis (Courtesy of Barnes & Noble):

It's Halloween in New Orleans - and the festivities are going to be killer.

With the help of her best friend Ava, Carmela Bertrand is building a giant monster puppet for the Halloween Monsters & Mayhem parade. Things get terrifying earlier than expected when they overhear an argument between Jekyl Hardy and Brett Fowler - and just minutes later they find Fowler's dead body.

Carmela has known Jekyl for years and can't believe he'd ever resort to murder, despite the fact that Fowler owed him money. But when another victim is discovered - who also had an unfriendly relationship with Jekyl, Carmela is convinced that someone is framing her friend and now must find a way to unmask the real killer.

Thoughts:

Laura Childs uses a post Katrina, New Orleans as the backdrop in her latest Scrapbooking Mystery series novel, Fiber & Brimstone. Carmela Bertrand is at it again! When her friend, Jekyl Hardy is accused of murder, it's up to Carmela and her sidekick Ava to find the real killer. With help of Carmela's boyfriend, Lt. Babcock of the NOPD they find themselves looking for someone who has used the Halloween Monster & Mayhem parade to mask a murder.

Childs gives us another addition to a great series. Carmela the owner of Memory Mine, a quaint scrapbooking shop, never ceases to amaze with her artsy style of solving crimes. She just seems to have a knack for finding herself in the wrong place at the wrong time. I love Carmela's character for all her quirkiness. She is forever getting into scraps of one kind or another. Ava, her best friend and partner in crime is loyal and always ready to try to help Carmela figure out whodunit.

If you're like me and love a good mystery, this one will be right up your alley. With New Orleans as the setting, I was enthralled from the first page. I have always been interested in the French Quarter and all of the interesting things that take place there, from Mardi Gras to the other festivals and fairs. I really liked how Childs was able to use the Halloween season as well. We always have Christmas novels and novels based around summertime pursuits, but I liked the change of pace with Halloween as the focal point.

This is a great series that not only is filled with the thrills of a great mystery but scrapbooking tips and great recipes as well. I liked this one a lot.

Fiber & Brimstone is releasing next week and can be pre-ordered now from your favorite bookseller.

I'm giving this one 5 out of 5 apples from my book bag! Great little cozy mystery!




Here is some additional information about Laura Childs.

Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author Cackleberry Club, Tea Shop, and Scrapbooking mysteries. In her past life she was a Clio Award-winning advertising writer and CEO of her own marketing firm. She lives in Plymouth, Minnesota.