Reviewed by Anne Boling for Readers' Favorite

There was an air of mystery from the first page of Mindy Starns Clark’s latest book, Whispers of the Bayou. A man showed up unexpectedly, asking Miranda Miller to restore an old painting that was obviously worthless. A bell containing a cross had been painted at a later date. Two men assault her in an alley. The mystery all relates to the symbol of a bell containing a cross. There was a tattoo on her head, hidden by her long thick hair; again, it is the symbol of a cross within a bell. Miranda was born in Louisiana and lived there until she was five-years-old. After her mother’s death, she went to live with her Aunt Janet. After twenty-five years, it was time to learn the family secrets. A dying man requested her presence in Louisiana; he claimed to have a secret he can only tell her. What she did not know may kill her.

Mindy Starns Clark is a master at suspense. Her novels are clean and wholesome, but do not lose their sense of mystery. Too many novelists depend on sordid details and gutter language to carry the book. Clark does not have to fall on these tactics! In Whispers of the Bayou, she creates a plot that takes the reader to Cajun country. Whispers of the Bayou’s is not your run-of-the-mill fiction. Clark combines a great murder mystery with interesting characters to make readers want to continue reading. I could not put this book down and read it in one sitting.