4-STAR REVIEW: SAZERAC, SLEUTH & SLAY by Mary Cunningham

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About The Book

An Andi Anna Jones Mystery: Book 2
Publication Date: February 27, 2023

It’s gonna be a great day! Or, so she thought.

Andi Anna Jones, so-so travel agent, amateur sleuth, doesn’t suspect her least favorite client, Stewart (The Pain) Payne, will set off circumstances that lead to disappearance and death.

After his wife is a no-show for a convention in New Orleans, his threat to sue Graves Travel for “ten times more than it’s worth”, and Andi’s wish to honor one of her late dad’s requests, leads her to The Big Easy in search of Grace Payne.

Five unsolved murders, a body caught in a crawfish cage, and a mysterious candle, magic, and incense shop, takes Andi deep into the bayou on a hunt for clues.

Will another victim be added to a serial killer’s list, or is the main suspect closer to Andi than she thinks?

The Review

Sazerac, Sleuth, and Slay is the second book in the Andi Anna Jones Mystery series by Mary Cunningham, and I’m looking forward to reading more.

Set in New Orleans, we are surrounded by voodoo, death, potions, murder, and more. Of course, once again, Andi is involved in helping solve a murder and is thrust into danger repeatedly. Someone is definitely looking out for her, or things could be much worse!

Several clues are sprinkled throughout as Andi travels from Miami to New Orleans when she hears one of her clients is found murdered when she’s supposed to be attending a ghost conference she never showed up for. There are some inconsistencies that Andi tries to make sense of, and she’s often one step in front of the police. She also seems to ask one too many questions about Grace’s disappearance and why Lucy, another of her clients, is in New Orleans and not on the Alaska adventure she signed up for.

There are twists and turns to the story and some wonderfully depicted characters. Of course, Andi’s ex-stepmother is also in New Orleans, and everything is always about Ruby!

I liked the descriptions of the various settings and could feel the heat, humidity, and crowds pressing in. I could hear the noise of the masses and the jazz being played. Andi is being helped by her assistant’s cousin and his wife, but others are looking out for her too. Unfortunately, Manny is nowhere in sight in this story.

There is some closure in solving multiple crimes, but the book ends very abruptly. There is a hint of where Andi will turn up next, and it’s not back in Miami.

Sazerac, Sleuth, and Slay is a cozy mystery with many crimes to solve, and some interesting characters kept me turning the pages to see whodunnit and what scrapes Andi could get into next.

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About The Author

Author, Mary Cunningham grew up on the northern side of the Ohio River in Corydon, Indiana.

Her first memories are of her dad’s original bedtime stories that no doubt inspired imagination and love of a well-spun “yarn”.

Through the author’s horrifying stint as a travel agent, protagonist Andi Anna Jones, travel agent and amateur sleuth, sprang to life. The adult/mystery series gives extra meaning to the phrase, “Write what you know.”

Cunningham also has a published biography depicting a military brat, college and professional basketball player, along with a five-book, middle-grade fantasy series.

She is a member of Sisters In Crime, Sisters In Crime-Atlanta Chapter, International Thriller Writers, Inc., and the Carrollton Writers Guild.

When she gives her fingers a break from the keyboard, she enjoys golf, swimming, and exploring the mountains of West Georgia where she makes her home with her husband.