Book 97, 2025

[chez_jae]

Photo Finished by Laura Childs

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


View all my reviews

Finished my work book at work today. Woo! It was Photo Finished by Laura Childs. This is the second book in the author’s “Scrapbooking” mystery series. The main character is Carmela Bertrand, who owns a scrapbooking shop in NOLA.

Carmela is hosting an all-night “Crop Till You Drop” event at Memory Mine, but the night comes to an abrupt end when a neighboring shopkeeper is found in the alley behind their shops, dead via stabbing. When certain clues point to the possibility that one of Carmela’s customers may have done the deed, she is determined to discover the truth and clear the names of her dear friends. In the meantime, she’s busy helping with the upcoming Old Masters & Monsters Ball, running her business, and thinking about filing the divorce papers from her estranged husband, Shamus. Carmela realizes she’s closing in on a killer when she starts getting threats.

The story was interesting, and Carmela is a compelling character. There was a nice mix of working, sleuthing, and socializing. The main sticking point, in my opinion, is that Carmela won’t shit or get off the pot where Shamus is concerned. He did her dirty, and his family has been vile to her ever since they separated, but she won’t file the damned divorce. Worst of all is when Carmela was offered an amazing opportunity, one which Shamus had been gunning for, and he was an utter ass to her about it. Is she supposed to hide her light under a basket? It won’t make his shine any brighter. Tell him to suck it, Carmela. It’s not your job to protect his fragile ego nor spare his fee-fees from being hurt. Guh. He even had the gall to take a date to the Old Masters & Monsters Ball...while still married to Carmela!

Favorite lines:
♦ ”Those kids make the bushmen of Borneo look like a bunch of Methodist ministers.”
♦ “I’ve been trying to convince myself that cellulite is really fancy French fat.”
♦ “I thought maybe a bunch of rogue Irish folk dancers swept in and kidnapped you.”


Fun story, headed for a solid four, but I’m dropping it to a three because Carmela can’t find her spine when it comes to shithead Shamus.

Comments

[felaine]

That's my objection to that series also, as much as I love New Orleans.
I'd only keep reading in hopes somebody murdered Shamus.

[chez_jae]

Why give such a lovely lady such a jackass for a husband? Ugh.