In Haines's taut 24th Sarah Booth Delaney mystery (after 2021's Independent Bones), the Zinnia, Miss., PI is approached by Frances "Frankie" Moore, an old friend of her late mother, to find Frankie's daughter, Christa, who has gone missing in New Orleans. When Sarah Booth travels to the Big Easy and delves into the case with her sheriff boyfriend, Coleman Peters, and her partner in the Delaney Detective Agency, Tinkie Bellcase Richmond, she discovers a trail of disappearances--not only Christa but also Christa's artist friend, Britta Wagner, as well as a friend of Britta's. As a budding investigative journalist, Christa was examining the disturbing activities of a local cult, heightening Sarah Booth's apprehension about the intended fate of Christa and Britta, as well as her own personal danger, as Halloween--a key event for the cult--approaches. Haines's message about vulnerable people who are prey to unscrupulous individuals, juxtaposed with the determination of Sarah Booth's circle to find the missing women, adds poignancy. Cozy readers will enjoy spending time with Sarah Booth and company. Agent: Marian Young, Young Agency. (June)

Sarah Booth Delaney and her PI partner, Tinkie Bellcase Richmond, are looking forward to the first Halloween with Tinkie's new baby. In the midst of a decorating party with their eclectic group of friends in the Mississippi Delta town of Zinnia, Frances, a friend of Sarah Booth's long-deceased mother, arrives to ask their assistance in finding her daughter, Christa, missing in New Orleans. As they talk, Tinkie realizes her high-school classmate, Pouty, might be involved in the "cult of immortality" that Christa was investigating. The partners split up, Tinkie staying home doing research and pumping Pouty, Sarah Booth heading to New Orleans with her boyfriend, county-sheriff Coleman. Once in New Orleans, they are drawn into the cult's shadowy world, quickly learning they can trust no one. With all things pointing to a blood sacrifice by the cult on Halloween, they call in all their friends, including Jinty, the family ghost, hoping to find Christa and her roommate, who was also taken by the cult, before it's too late. An entertaining romp for devotees of the irrepressible Sarah Booth.

Is there a secret to eternal life, or is its promise just a big con? That's the question Sarah Booth Delaney has to answer in her 24th adventure. Now that Tinkie Bellcase Richmond, the partner in Sarah Booth's Mississippi detective agency, has finally given birth to the adorable Maylin, not even the sudden appearance of her household haint, Jitty, dressed as death can distract Sarah Booth for more than a short time. Jitty does offer up a cryptic warning, so when Frances "Frankie" Moore arrives seeking help in finding her journalist daughter, Christa, Sarah Booth prepares for the worst. Because Tinkie must stay home in Zinnia with Maylin, Sarah Booth's boyfriend, Sheriff Coleman Peters, accompanies her to New Orleans, where Christa was investigating human trafficking and a cult. Christa's roommate, free-spirited German artist Britta Wagner, had already vanished, and Christa's disappearance makes Frankie fear for their safety. Christa's boyfriend, Carlos Rodriguez, and her friends in the apartment complex where she lived are not much help, but the sleuths do learn that she was looking into the People of Earth, a cult whose charismatic leader claims she can stop the aging process. Her search for a magical garden Britta was hired to paint takes Sarah Booth all over New Orleans until she finds hints of strange rituals in the garden of a deserted house. Carlos goes AWOL, Christa's friends come clean, and there's a race against time to find the missing women before they're sacrificed. A spooky, dangerous adventure whose premise is all too believable. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.