Glory Be by Danielle Arceneaux was published in 2023.
Our Sleuth: Glory Broussard, a cranky bookie of a certain age — not yet old enough for Social Security is all she allows — and former beauty queen, Miss Lafayette, Louisiana, “colored division” winner.
The Setting: Present day. It’s August in Louisiana, hot and sweltering.
The Premise: Glory is ensconced at her favorite table in her local coffee shop, where she collects bets, when she overhears a police radio call of a possible suicide at the home of her best friend, Sister Amity Gay. The police take the scene at face value and file the death away as suicide but Glory is convinced otherwise.
My Take: Glory is stubborn, opinionated, grouchy, a hoarder with bad knees and feet, with a bit of kleptomania thrown in. She’s also uninhibited, funny, brave, and often right, refusing to let her age or her fear get in the way of finding justice for her friend. I loved hearing her thoughts on aging, race and relationships, and seeing her fight her way out of a depression that she’s refused to acknowledge as the novel progresses.
For me, the best parts of the story are the relationships. The interactions between Glory and her daughter Delphine, a lawyer living in Manhattan who comes home for Amity’s funeral, are relatable and hilarious. So is the side plot between Glory and her sister Shirley, which provides comic relief when things get dicey. There’s a bit of romance as well with Delphine and a hometown love interest. I can’t wait to go back for another adventure in Lafayette.
Opening Lines:
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 between the expresso 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.
Of Note: The second Glory Broussard mystery is scheduled for release in fall 2024. A chapter of the new book is included in Glory Be.
FemaleSleuths.com 
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