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| Laura Plantation |
Ellen
Byron's debut novel, Plantation Shudders, made the USA Today Bestsellers list, and was nominated for Agatha, Lefty,
and Daphne awards. The second book in her Cajun Country Mystery Series, Body
on the Bayou, was recently released. Learn more aobut Ellen and her books
at her website.
A great way to build a day
trip from New Orleans is to tour one Creole plantation and one American
plantation, with a lunch break between tours –which is exactly what I did with
my family on a recent visit to Louisiana.
Creole plantations are of an
earlier vintage and were painted in vivid colors. American plantations tend to
date after the Louisiana Purchase, when planters from other parts of the
country migrated to Louisiana. They were usually white and leaned more toward
Greek Revival in style. (There was a reason Creole planters avoided white - colors
did a much better job of hiding Louisiana's mold and mildew. However, once
American rule was imposed on Louisiana, many Creoles wound up painting their
houses white so that they blended in with their new neighbors.)
My husband, daughter and I
began our adventure at Laura, a Creole plantation on the west River Road. They
give a wonderful tour where you get a wide-ranging view of what plantation life
was like. The owners had the miraculous good luck to locate the diary of Laura
Lacoul Gore, who grew up on the plantation (hence the name) and documented her
life there and her home's history. The tales of Br'er Rabbit originated in
Laura's slave cabins, and that’s an important part of the tour. You see the
grim lodgings where enslaved people were forced to live, and learn about the
brutal difficulties they had to endure.
Before crossing the
Mississippi to our destination on its east bank, we stopped for lunch at
B&C Seafood, a local haunt that also enjoys national popularity. I love its
authenticity and delicious dishes.
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| Houmas House |
Next up on our agenda was a
tour of Houmas House, once known as The Sugar Palace. Houmas House is a classic
"American" plantation, although it’s currently painted pale yellow
instead of white. The tour is detailed and fascinating, with even a little
gossip thrown in about what happened when Bette Davis and Joan Crawford butted
heads on the set of Hush, Hush, Sweet
Charlotte. (Hint: Joan Crawford isn’t in the movie.)
Both Laura and Houmas House have
excellent gift shops. Houmas House also offers great dining options, so
hopefully you’ve worked off that lunch at B&C’s by the time you’re done
with their tour. I've had dinner at The Carriage House, and it was outstanding,
as was the Burnside Cafe, where I had one of the best oyster po'boys ever. And
my husband fell in love with the sweet concoction that they served with their
bread. It's made from butter, Steen Cane Syrup, and pecans, and trust me, if he
could have packed it in his suitcase, he would have! Enjoy a light bite – or
even a heavy one – before you return to New Orleans after a day spent stepping
back into Louisiana’s unique past.
Body on the Bayou
The Crozats feared that past murders
at Crozat Plantation B&B might spell the death of their beloved estate, but
they’ve managed to survive the scandal. Now there’s a très bigger story in
Pelican, Louisiana: the upcoming nuptials between Maggie Crozat’s nemesis,
Police Chief Rufus Durand, and her co-worker, Vanessa Fleer.
When everyone else refuses the job of
being Vanessa's Maid of Honor, Maggie reluctantly takes up the title and finds
herself tasked with a long list of duties--the most important of which is
entertaining Vanessa’s cousin, Ginger Fleer-Starke. But just days before the
wedding, Ginger’s lifeless body is found on the bayou and the Pelican PD, as
well as the Crozats, have another murder mystery on their hands.
There’s a gumbo-potful of suspects,
including an ex-Marine with PTSD, an annoying local newspaper reporter, and
Vanessa’s own sparkplug of a mother. But when it looks like the investigation
is zeroing in on Vanessa as the prime suspect, Maggie reluctantly adds keeping
the bride-to-be out of jail to her list of Maid of Honor responsibilities.
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