Death of the Midway Mermaid
(2026)(Book 14 in the Pelican Shores Cozy Mystery series)
A novel by Bessie Barr
The mermaid was supposed to be an illusion. She wasn’t supposed to be dead.
When a traveling carnival rolls into the charming Texas beach town of Pelican Shores, artist and café owner Finn Dockrey expects funnel cakes, Ferris wheel kisses, and one uninterrupted evening with Detective Pace Stringfellow. Instead, the midway’s shimmering mermaid fails to surface, pulling Finn into another round of sleuthing.
As Finn traces the victim’s final hours, she uncovers uneasy rivalries, guarded secrets, and shifting stories hidden behind the carnival’s cheerful facade. Barker Bellows is protecting more than ticket sales. Madame Zella has vanished behind her fortune-teller scarves. And nasty jewelry seller Nell Perkins seems to know more about the dead mermaid than she’s willing to admit.
With sharp-tongued, best friend Birdie, scent-savvy Beau, judgmental Queen Bean, and Pace beside her, Finn must unravel the truth before the carnival packs up, the evidence disappears, and another innocent person becomes the killer’s next victim.
Death of the Midway Mermaid is a warm and twisty Texas beach cozy mystery filled with quirky suspects, seaside charm, loyal friends, slow-burn romance, laugh-out-loud humor, and enough four-legged sleuthing to keep you guessing until the lights go dark.
EXTRA INFORMATION FOR YOU, READER:
When a traveling carnival rolls into the charming Texas beach town of Pelican Shores, artist and café owner Finn Dockrey expects funnel cakes, Ferris wheel kisses, and one uninterrupted evening with Detective Pace Stringfellow. Instead, the midway’s shimmering mermaid fails to surface, pulling Finn into another round of sleuthing.
As Finn traces the victim’s final hours, she uncovers uneasy rivalries, guarded secrets, and shifting stories hidden behind the carnival’s cheerful facade. Barker Bellows is protecting more than ticket sales. Madame Zella has vanished behind her fortune-teller scarves. And nasty jewelry seller Nell Perkins seems to know more about the dead mermaid than she’s willing to admit.
With sharp-tongued, best friend Birdie, scent-savvy Beau, judgmental Queen Bean, and Pace beside her, Finn must unravel the truth before the carnival packs up, the evidence disappears, and another innocent person becomes the killer’s next victim.
Death of the Midway Mermaid is a warm and twisty Texas beach cozy mystery filled with quirky suspects, seaside charm, loyal friends, slow-burn romance, laugh-out-loud humor, and enough four-legged sleuthing to keep you guessing until the lights go dark.
EXTRA INFORMATION FOR YOU, READER:
- AUTHOR GUARANTEE: Bessie Barr Books can be read in any order and are free from profanity, graphic descriptions of violence, and explicit bedroom activities.
Check out the cute maps at the front of the book and the recipes at the back!
Genre: Cozy Mystery