Murder
at Morningside
by
Sandra Bretting
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE:
Cozy Mystery
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Hat
designer Missy DuBois opened her shop, Crowning Glory, along
Louisiana's Great River Road to cater to the sophisticated Southern
bride. But bless her heart, who knew creating stylish wedding veils
would lead to murder?
Excerpt
Before
Beatrice could say more, the front door flew open and in stomped an
elderly gentleman. He was on the verge of a good old-fashioned hissy
fit.
“Y’all
don’t deserve a say in this wedding!” he said to a young woman
who’d slunk in behind him.
The girl
looked to be the right age for his daughter. She wore flip-flops and
a wrinkled peasant blouse, and she buried her head in her hands.
Well, that lifted the blouse an inch or two and exposed her bare
stomach.
Lorda
mercy. It seemed the girl and her fiancé must have eaten supper
before they said grace, as we said here in the South, because an
unmistakable bump appeared under her top. She looked to be about four
months along, give or take a few weeks, and I could see why her daddy
wasn’t too happy with her right about now.
After a
piece, she lifted her chin and glared at him. “I hate you!” Her
voice rippled as cold as the river water that ran nearby. “I wish
you were dead.” She stalked away.
I fully
expected the man to cringe, or at least follow her. Instead, he
merely glanced our way and shrugged. After a minute, he pivoted on
the spectacle he’d caused and casually strolled away, leaving a bit
of frost in the air.
“Oh
my. Why don’t we continue,” Beatrice said.
Poor
Beatrice. She obviously wanted to divert our attention elsewhere. It
couldn’t have been every day one of her hotel guests wished another
guest was dead. She hustled us farther into the ballroom, as if
nothing had happened, all the while explaining the history of
Morningside Plantation.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR
Bio and Links:
Sandra
Bretting works as a freelance feature writer under contract to the
Houston Chronicle. She received a journalism degree from the
University of Missouri School of Journalism and wrote for other
publications (including the Los Angeles Times and Orange Coast
Magazine) before moving to Texas.
Her
Missy DuBois Mysteries series debuts from Kensington/Lyrical
Underground in May 2016. Bretting’s previous mysteries include
Unholy Lies (2012) and Bless the Dying (2014). Readers can reach her
online at www.sandrabretting.com and through Facebook at
www.facebook.com/sandra.bretting .
Buy
Links:
BN:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/murder-at-morningside-sandra-bretting/1122597549?ean=9781601837134
a Rafflecopter giveaway
You know what they say, if one of your clients is murdered, best to keep it under your hat.
ReplyDeleteYou are so funny! It's too early for me to have a witty comeback, so I'll just raise my coffee cup to you. Cheers!
DeleteThanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteLove the excerpt!!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Gabrielle! This was a very fun series to write, because the main character is sooo sassy.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear from you, Sara! I hope you liked the excerpt, too.
ReplyDeleteIf the gentleman (ahem) is elderly, then his daughter is either
ReplyDelete1. middle aged (not likely from the description/actions, but maybe)
2. very young and perhaps the elderly gentleman had her late in life. So,... perhaps "daddy" is a bit of a hyprocrite or perhaps that wasn't the reason for the animosity after all or perhaps I just overthink things!
Mmm...sometimes overthinking things isn't a bad thing. That's how mysteries are solved :)
ReplyDeleteP.S. You have the world's greatest ID!
Thanks! Even better, I have a custom arf2 hat (r2 design with floppy dog ears) that my guy crocheted for my birthday.
DeleteOkay - your guy is crafty and he's thoughtful like that? Hold onto him!! (I'm still smiling about your ID, by the way.)
DeleteThis is quite the cover! I love it...
ReplyDeletekat8762@aol.com
Thank you, Kathleen! Missy DuBois is a sassy gal, so I'm glad the artist captured that :)
DeleteThis sounds like a fun read. Looking forward to reading it.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Wendy! It was a lot of fun to write. It's nice when your lead character is someone you enjoy :)
DeleteAny book with a "hissy fit" in it is a winner with me! I adore books written in the South!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked that, Donna! There are tons of "Southern-isms" in the book, not to mention a "bless your heart" or two :)
ReplyDeleteDid you have a fun Mardi Gras?
ReplyDeletesavewish@yahoo.com
Sherry Compton
Hi Steph,
ReplyDeleteI didn't get to celebrate much this year, because I had so much going on. Did you? And--even more importantly--did you find the baby in the King Cake? :)
Hi Sandra, I really enjoyed the excerpt and your book sounds delightful! Thank you for sharing and for the contest!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Betty, and thanks for the compliment! I'm glad you enjoyed meeting Missy DuBois. She's a hoot to hang out with, and I never know where she's going to take me next :)
DeleteYou're welcome, Patrick. I hope you enjoy reading about Missy DuBois and her friends!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great book! Thanks for the great giveaway
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Tammy! I hope you liked reading about Missy DuBois...she's one of my favorite main characters so far!
DeleteGreat excerpt! This book sounds like such a fun, interesting, and intriguing read! Can't wait to read this book!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the compliment, Ally! I really think you'll have fun with Missy DuBois and her Southern crew!
ReplyDelete