Love letters, scrapbooking among new releases

New releases
    Best-selling author Laura Childs uses New Orleans as a background for her new “scrapbooking mystery.” An anchorwoman strangled and hung from the balcony of a hotel was supposed to interview scrapbooking maven Carmela Bertrand in “Postcards from the Dead” and so sets the stage of a mystery that comes with scrapbooking tips and Creole recipes.
    Covington native Christian Garcia’s uncle Bradford Lancaster entrusted him with 200 love letters written between his maternal grandparents Joseph Bradford Lancaster and Amanda Doerr. Garcia compiled the letters into “Now and Always: A Louisiana Love Story,” which spans the romance between 1901 and 1916. The book is available at lulu.com.
    Katrina Owens is an American nurse working in a Riyadh hospital in Saudi Arabia but she’s ready to move on from the dysfunctional Saudi society, especially with its treatment of women. On the same day Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans, Katrina is harassed by a religious fanatic and flees when she fights back. She takes refuge on the palace grounds of a powerful Saudi prince and lands in the center of an international plot. The book is penned by authors Thomas Joseph Perez, a native of Mobile who has lived for years in Saudi Arabia.
    Josephine Templeton of Baton Rouge has published an historical romance titled “A Pirate’s Kiss” as an ebook. For more information, visit www.josephinetempleton.com.

Book events
    Phil Sims has self-published his first novel through Cross Books titled “Not Without Purpose” and will launch the title from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the American Legion Post 13 Clubhouse, 401 Forsythe Ave. in Monroe. He will also be presenting a program at the Cpl. J. R. Searcy Library in the Woodlawn community at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 2. The book is available at amazon.com in print and ebook.
    An open mic en Francais, or la scene ouverte, begins at 7 p.m. Thursday at Casa Azul in Grand Coteau. Participants are invited to share poems, stories, songs and other forms of creative expression in French or listen and enjoy.  Works can be borrowed or original. For information, contact Patrice Melnick at (337) 662-1032 or festivalwords@gmail.com.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” She teaches writing at UL-Lafayette’s Continuing Education. Write her at chere@louisianabooknews.com.