The Devil's Muse, Hardcover

A Southern Indie Bookseller Alliance 2017 Summer OKRA pick One of Kirkus Review's "11 Thrillers That Will Keep You Awake This Summer"In the thrilling fifth book in the critically acclaimed series that's "edgy, dangerous, but pulsing with life" (Bill Ott, Booklist), a Mardi Gras parade turns deadly. It's Mardi Gras in New Orleans and rookie cop Maureen Coughlin has no idea what she's in for. Her night working the parades begins calmly enough--until a half-naked man careens through the crowd and throws himself onto the hood of an oncoming SUV. As she tries to deal with the incident amid the pulsing chaos of the parade, Maureen hears gunshots. Moments later, with three wounded and a handful of drunken witnesses, Maureen has a full-fledged investigation on her hands. Who was the shooter? Who was he after? Who's the next target? City bigwigs begin pressuring Maureen and her crew for quick answers. And with an amateur camera crew intent on capturing "the real Mardi Gras" for their You Tube channel, an incompetent supervising detective, and tense race relations in a city more likely to mistrust cops than ever, it's going to be a very long night--and a memorable first Mardi Gras--for Maureen. With The Devil's Muse, the acclaimed crime writer Bill Loehfelm conjures rowdy New Orleans in all its mess and marvel, and sends Maureen deep into the city on another wild, high-octane adventure.