Blood on the Bayou by Heather Graham Series: Cafferty and Quinn #3.6
Publication Date: January 26th 2016
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Pages: 120
Source: Publisher
Format: eARC
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Buy Online: Amazon
Disclaimer: I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book. All opinions stated are solely mine.
From New York Times bestseller Heather Graham…
It’s winter and a chill has settled over New Orleans, binding a stream of blood that leads a tourist to a dead man, face down in the bayou.
The man has been done in by a vicious beating, so violent that his skull has been crashed in.
It’s barely a day before a second victim is found . . . once again so badly thrashed that the water runs red. The city becomes riddled with fear.
An old family friend comes to Danni Cafferty, telling her that he’s terrified, he’s certain that he’s received a message from the Blood Bayou killer–It’s your turn to pay, blood on the bayou.
The two quickly become involved, and–as they all begin to realize that a gruesome local history is being repeated–they find themselves in a fight to save not just a friend, but, perhaps, their very own lives.
Review
New Orleans is very rich in culture and history and of course with that goes the superstitions, myths and legends which make it such an interesting place.
After a body is found in the water, the locals are terrified that a murderous creature has returned from time past to resume its killing spree. With more bodies turning up, Danni and Quinn need to get to the bottom of this mystery as quickly as possible before they find themselves in the cross-hairs and with so many suspects and motives to pick from, this is no easy task.
BLOOD ON THE BAYOU was actually very engaging and without reading the previous books in the series I was still able to enjoy it and it has ignited my interest in the rest of the books. My favorite thing about this book is the detailed historical background and how the reader is kept wondering if the violence is being perpetrated by a flesh and blood criminal or some old murderous spirit. Let’s face it, it’s New Orleans and I was coming down on the side of the woo-woo stuff.
I have to say that while I was able to enjoy BLOOD ON THE BAYOU without reading any of the preceding books, I found it a little confusing trying to figure out the players without any background on them and I will strongly recommend starting from the beginning of the series.
Excerpt
“People in this area all know the legends about the rougarou. Someone out there might be using the legend. In this day and age, it’s quite possible to fake a monster.”
They both looked at him with huge eyes, seemingly wanting to trust in him.
“Sound like a plan?” Quinn asked Larue.
The detective nodded. “Let’s move, though. We have to get out to Honey Swamp. We’re going to help the task force with the investigation.”
Ten minutes later they were at the hotel where the young women were staying. Quinn inspected the balcony while they gathered their belongings together. The room sat on the second floor, but the balcony might have been easily accessed from the street. There was a heavy pipe near enough for someone to crawl up and gain a grip on one of the wrought iron rails. “How did someone walk through the French Quarter all dressed up without being noticed?”
“This is New Orleans,” Larue said. “Not far from Bourbon Street. Think about it, Quinn. Does anyone really notice crazy around here? I mean, there’s a lot of crazy.”
“Something like the rougarou? A giant man with a wolf’s head?”
“Somebody walked stark naked down Bourbon Street about two days ago, and it took that long for anyone to report it to the police,” Larue told him.
“That’s not a rougarou.”
Larue shrugged. “Okay. I’ll give you that.”
“To put a spin of logic on this, I’d say that it was more than possible for a man to dress up, then crawl up here to scare Jane and Lana. It’s also possible that whoever was here had nothing to do with the murder in the swamp, or maybe someone got wind of the situation and knew that the two young women had been on the tour and decided to scare them. They’re visitors, yes, but they know the city and they might have met a young man anxious to scare them. Then he comes along and offers his presence as protection against whatever has them frightened.”
Larue did not argue.
“At any rate,” Quinn said. “Let’s go meet your friends from Pearl River.”
About Heather Graham
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, Heather Graham, majored in theater arts at the University of South Florida. After a stint of several years in dinner theater, back-up vocals, and bartending, she stayed home after the birth of her third child and began to write. Her first book was with Dell, and since then, she has written over two hundred novels and novellas including category, suspense, historical romance, vampire fiction, time travel, occult and Christmas family fare.
She is pleased to have been published in approximately twenty-five languages. She has written over 200 novels and has 60 million books in print. She has been honored with awards from booksellers and writers’ organizations for excellence in her work, and she is also proud to be a recipient of the Silver Bullet from Thriller Writers and was also awarded the prestigious Thriller Master in 2016. She is also a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from RWA. Heather has had books selected for the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild, and has been quoted, interviewed, or featured in such publications as The Nation, Redbook, Mystery Book Club, People and USA Today and appeared on many newscasts including Today, Entertainment Tonight and local television.
Heather loves travel and anything that has to do with the water, and is a certified scuba diver. She also loves ballroom dancing. Each year she hosts the Vampire Ball and Dinner theater at the RT convention raising money for the Pediatric Aids Society and in 2006 she hosted the first Writers for New Orleans Workshop to benefit the stricken Gulf Region. She is also the founder of “The Slush Pile Players,” presenting something that’s “almost like entertainment” for various conferences and benefits. Married since high school graduation and the mother of five, her greatest love in life remains her family, but she also believes her career has been an incredible gift, and she is grateful every day to be doing something that she loves so very much for a living.
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