Maxine's Reviews > Glory Be

Glory Broussard is an older Black woman who grew up during segregation in Lafayette. Louisiana. She spends her Sunday mornings in church and the afternoons in the local coffee shop as a small time bookie. When her best friend, an activist nun, is found dead of an apparent suicide and the police quickly close the case, Glory refuses to accept that her friend would take her own life so she sets out, with the aid of her daughter, Daphne, to find out what really happened.

Glory Be is the first in a new cozy mystery series by Danielle Arceneaux and I have to say I loved every minute of it. The story is full of interesting descriptions of the area as well as looking at how Black people are most often the group most impacted by environmentally hazardous projects. There are plenty of twists and turns to keep the story moving and the reader guessing and, despite the serious nature of some of the issues explored, there’s a nice touch of humour running throughput. But the best thing about the story is Glory B, herself, a complete force of nature, brash and outspoken but also loyal, brave, and good-hearted, especially when it comes to friends and her daughter.

I listened to the audio version of the novel narrated by Bahni Turpin who does an excellent job bringing the story and its characters to life. A terrific start to this new series and I will definitely be watching out for future additions.

Thanks to Netgalley and Spotify Audiobooks for this book in exchange for an honest review