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A Glory Broussard Mystery
by Danielle Arceneaux
Book Reviewed by:The first in a vivid and charming crime series set in the Louisiana bayou, introducing the hilariously uncensored amateur sleuth Glory Broussard. Perfect for fans of Richard Osman's Thursday Murder Club series.
It's a hot and sticky Sunday in Lafayette, Louisiana, and Glory has settled into her usual after-church routine, meeting gamblers at the local coffee shop, where she works as a small-time bookie. Sitting at her corner table, Glory hears that her best friend—a nun beloved by the community—has been found dead in her apartment.
When police declare the mysterious death a suicide, Glory is convinced that there must be more to the story. With her reluctant daughter—who has troubles of her own—in tow, Glory launches a shadow investigation into Lafayette's oil tycoons, church gossips, a rumored voodoo priestess, nosey neighbors, and longtime ne'er-do wells.
As a Black woman of a certain age who grew up in a segregated Louisiana, Glory is used to being minimized and overlooked. But she's determined to make her presence known as the case leads her deep into a web of intrigue she never realized Lafayette could harbor.
Danielle Arcenaux's riveting debut brings forth an unforgettable character that will charm and delight crime fans everywhere and leave them hungry for her next adventure.
1
Glory Broussard was tired of waiting. She figured this barista was new, and she would know since she was a regular at CC's Coffee House. With each drink order, he nodded and flipped through the pages of a thick manual, going back and forth betweenthe espresso machine and the book.
It didn't help that he was grinning like a goddamn fool at that white woman. She was wearing a pink ribbed tank top, and as far as Glory could tell, no bra. Her jean shorts were so scant that you could see the bottom curve of her ass. Glory had seen enough of this recently at the Acadiana Mall to know it was not an accident but a trend, and a disgraceful one at that. Wet hair crept down to her waist, making her look like a creature that had crawled out of the Atchafalaya swamp.
Glory edged up to the counter, closely behind the braless woman. "Excuse me," she said to the barista. "Are you the only one working behind the counter? Y'all should be better staffed for the afterchurch crowd."
"I'm not sure. I'm new ...
Glory is a woman of contradictions, and it's those contradictions that make this such a refreshing read. Just as she begins to frustrate with her petty prejudices and cutting remarks, we are given a window into where her feelings of inadequacy and bitterness come from, and instead of getting angry, we find ourselves understanding her hurt. Arceneaux deftly reminds the reader of how her judgments were born, how someone so often brutally punched down by life and circumstances cannot help but want to punch back. Glory is used to having the worst thought of her because of her race and precarious economic situation. However, finding herself investigating a friend's murder provides a new way to channel that pent-up rage and lets her use the very conditions that cause her so much pain to find the killer. Being overlooked makes it that much easier to access places in which a more conspicuous detective would stand out. Her harmless "little old lady" exterior also lulls suspects into a false sense of security and makes them that much more likely to let vital clues slip...continued
Full Review
(878 words)
(Reviewed by Sara Fiore).
Harini Nagendra, author of The Bangalore Detective's Club
Glory Be is a hilarious and thrill-filled ride through the bayous of small-town Louisiana and is filled with rich descriptions of place and superb characterization. Glory Broussard grabs you by the collar and doesn't let go. I can't wait to find out what Glory and her daughter Delphine will get up to in their next set of adventures.
"When I am an old woman I shall wear purple / With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me." These opening lines to the poem "Warning" by Jenny Joseph serve as inspiration (and uniform) for Glory Broussard, protagonist of Danielle Arceneaux's Glory Be, and for real-life members of the Red Hat Society, an international social organization for women "of a certain age" that began in 1998. Its founder, California artist Sue Ellen Cooper, was hunting for the perfect birthday present for a friend when she discovered a beautiful red hat in a thrift store. Wanting to encourage her friend to embrace later life with a sense of fun, she presented it along with Joseph's poem, and before long other friends and their friends and their friends...
If you liked Glory Be, try these:
by Richard Osman
Published 2024
Solving murders. It's a family business.
by Emily Critchley
Published 2023
A mystery she can't remember. A friend she can't forget.
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