NOLA, private-investigators, family-dynamics, friendship, friction, situational-humor, verbal-humor, laugh-riot, wedding-madness, relatives, cultural-heritage, witchery, witches, murder, murder-investigation, urban-fantasy***** All the family and friends madness is what has me laughing out loud! It's nice to have read most of the earlier books in series, but it isn't vital because so many hints and recollections keep the reader up to date. There really is a mystery plot, but also a family craziness and French Quarter craziness that kept me laughing and far away from the news media! I love the way Madeline Mrozek brings the whole atmosphere as well as the characters' personalities into the work! Fantastic read!

I admit I am a dedicated fan of Traci Andrighetti's series - they are a tonic. Filled with characters I KNOW (okay, filled with characters I WISH I knew), filled with AMAZING characters to delight, entertain and intrigue readers. This author brings to life the mystique of New Orleans with jazz, food, the famous cemeteries, history of the Italian food markets, the Mardi Gras, the Black Hatchet tribe, Louis Prima's trumpets, jazz funerals, cauchemars (nightmare witches), enigmatic voodoo queens, dancing skeletons at midnight, a stripper landlady's truly astonishing outfits, family warfare over a bride's bomboniere (favours for guests), a murderer copycatting a series of axe murders ... an intimidating Russian widow who bandies an axe and, making a surprise appearance, a slutty VW Bug. The fluency of writing belies the extensive research into the Cajuns, the Mardi Gras Indians, the escaped slaves who hid in the bayous, vendetta, all blended into a rich tale of murder, culture and history, for our delectation. The slickness of the words on the page lead one's eyes on to the next laugh, the next shock, the next original character. I love the time out each book affords me - somehow Traci Andrighetti produces a volume when times are not 100% - and the laugh aloud sense of humour, the off-the-wall range of those peopling these reads and how cleverly the titles connect with the stories. Slick, classy and fun.