Scrapbooking Tips and Recipes included

I had so much fun reading this book! From the beginning I was whisked off from my comfy chair and set down in New Orleans, just in time to celebrate Mardi Gras! The authors did an amazing job bringing the sights, sounds, taste, fun and excitement come alive. I was bewitched! The hours flew by and interruptions were barely tolerated. I wanted to stay immersed in the vivid party atmosphere that was going on in my mind. This was my first adventure in A New Orleans Scrapbooking Mystery Series but certainly not my last. Glitter Bomb is one of those books that invites you to delight your senses, as well as your mind, between its covers.
I love the characters and their senses of humor. They play off of each other with the warmth and knowledge that long time friends have. I felt like I was a part of the friendships even though I haven’t read the previous books. The mystery was well done, starting the book off with a bang! I was kept guessing and even included a suspect whose job normally keeps me from suspecting them. In the end, I was wrong about my list. I love it! That’s entertainment! ( )

Carmela Bertrand and her BFF,Ava Gruiex, are watching the Mardi Gras parade when the King Neptune float directly in front of them explodes spewing glitter and bodies allover! Carmela's ex-husband, Shamus, was part of the krewe and when it is discovered that the Krewe captain has been killed, Shamus is a suspect in the murder. Begging Carmela for her help, Shamus's request could cause problems with her relationship with her fiancé Detective Babcock.

Carmela and Ava keep the action moving while entertaining the reader with their jazzy repartee. ( )

Glitter Bomb by Laura Childs is the fifteenth A Scrapbooking Mystery. Carmela Bertrand and Ava Gruiex are watching the Pluvius Parade and are not surprised when they see that Carmela’s ex-husband, Shamus Meechum hitched a ride on the head float. The head float features King Neptune with gold glitter pluming out from his head over the revelers. All the sudden the float starts acting wonky and then—BOOM! An explosion erupted from King Neptune’s head and gold glitter is everywhere as well as the riders of the float. The men start getting up, but one lays unmoving on the ground. Hughes Wilder, the Pluvius Krewe captain, is pronounced dead at the scene and Lt. Edgar Babcock, Carmela’s fiancé (sort of) is on the case (this could be awkward). The next day, Shamus stumbles into Memory Mine seeking Carmela’s help (of course). A bomb had been set in the float right under Hughes Wilder’s seat and Shamus is at the top of the suspect list thanks to an unwise investment. Carmela knows that Shamus does not have the brain power to execute this type of killing. Carmela, with Ava’s eager assistance, begins investigating the other krewe members and investors. They need to proceed carefully, or they could up as confetti on Bourbon Street.

Glitter Bomb is part of the delightful A Scrapbooking Mystery series. While Glitter Bomb can be read alone, I highly recommend reading all the books in the series. I have enjoyed watching Carmela develop over the course of the series as she went from divorcee to savvy business owner and sleuth. I still do not know what she saw in Shamus (it is baffling). Carmela is currently engaged to Lt. Edgar Bertrand. I am on the fence about this relationship. I wish he would quit discouraging her investigations. Bertrand should know by now Carmela will always help those in her circle (even Shamus) and she is just plain curious. I love the scrapbooking projects mentioned in the book. There are some creative ideas that I am looking forward to playing with in my studio. I found Glitter Bomb to be well-written with a fast pace. Carmela and Ava are a hoot. I enjoy their witty repartee. Ava and Carmela do not let grass grow under their feet on this investigation. Of course, you can always count on Ava to spice things up. This time Ava promised to house sit for her boyfriend’s parents and committed the pair to appearing in a fashion show. Laura Childs brought the French Quarter during Mardi Gras alive for me with her word imagery. The mystery had several suspects along with a red herring or two and good clues. Cozy mystery sleuths, though, will find it a cinch to identify the guilty party. The ending is exciting, suspenseful, romantic and funny. The last line is amusing which is a great way to end a book. There is a preview of Eggs on Ice at the end along with scrapbooking tips and recipes for New Orleans delicacies. I am giving Glitter Bomb 4.5 out of 5 stars (I loved it). I cannot wait to read Mumbo Jumbo which is the next installment in A Scrapbooking Mystery series. ( )

Carmela Bertrand lives in New Orleans and owns a successful scrapbooking shop. She's enjoying the Mardi Gras festivities when a float practically explodes right in front of her. Since her ex-husband was one of the krewe, she rushes over to make sure he's okay, then sees that someone else is hurt badly. When the man dies, everyone thinks it was a horrible accident. But when Shamus, her ex, shows up at her shop the next day begging for help, her first instinct is to refuse.

Shamus insists that he's on the suspect list - and her fiancé Edgar Babcock, homicide detective for the NOPD, is targeting him as the killer. While she knows Shamus is sleazy, she also knows he's too weak to be a killer and decides to help him. But when she starts investigating, she doesn't count on the many suspects to be closed-mouthed about their hatred of the dead man. Still, she keeps on digging - on the down low, since Babcock has warned her away - but it's not low enough as someone discovers what she's doing and decides that Carmela needs to go away...permanently...

I really enjoyed reading this book. While I thought it started with a bang as it were, it stalled for a couple of chapters but then picked up again almost immediately. Carmela is an interesting character; she's smart, strong, a savvy businesswoman, devoted to her friends fiercely, in love with Babcock deeply, annoyed by her ex-husband, and detests Shamus' sister Glory. She's definitely a colorful personality, and I like that.

She's also smack-dab in a murder investigation, and doesn't want to be, but she has an innate curiosity that won't let her back out. Unfortunately, it's also that curiosity and her bluntness that, merged together, rub some people the wrong way. Some of the wrong people. And one of them is out to do her in. But with a host of suspects - the victim's wife and various krewe members - it seems every one of them had a reason to want the man dead. He had a hedge fund that somehow went wrong and people lost money...a lot of it. Now she's trying to figure out who decided that a final revenge was the way to get even.

Ava is a hoot as a best friend, always on the lookout for a new man in her life, and pretty much dresses as risqué as she can get away with. Carmela realizes she's not going to change her, but does her best to be the voice of reason. Ava just eggs Carmela on to investigate. They're quite a pair together. The situation with Ava house sitting would have made my blood boil and I can tell you that there would have been a few choice words with every single member of Harrison's family when they returned. It wouldn't have been pretty to watch.

I did have a couple of moments that made me cringe a little when Carmela was blatantly asking people questions about Wilder (the dead man). For some reason, it seemed terribly invasive and not like she was merely curious. No wonder they clammed up. While I realize this is just her personality (and while I also consider myself to be brutally honest, I try to step back when need be) it still made me skim those pages a little bit.

But when the last chapter finally arrived and I got close to the end, everything fell into place just as it was supposed to. Carmela finally got the pay off (just as expected) the killer was discovered, and it came as a complete surprise. There was a hairy moment or two (not a situation I'd like to find myself in at any stretch of the imagination) but everything tied together nicely.

There were plenty of twists in the story and it seemed around every corner there was another question that needed to be answered; and lots of red herrings to sift through. While I thought a few of the characters were nasty pieces to deal with, Carmela managed to hold her own with them. She's an admirable woman and I'm happy to see that she's successful, not with a struggling business like so many of the cozy characters. Carmela's got it going on.

I'm sorry to say that this is only the second book in this series that I've read by this author; but in my defense I have to add that I have read her other series, and with so many other authors I try to give everyone an even chance, and it really was on my list to begin again. I also will add with this book, I plan on going back and reading every single one from the beginning. This is a series worth following, and worth reading every single book. Highly recommended. ( )