McCarren's Rules Creole Secret

Julianne McCarren and her niece, Rippa, are in New Orleans to attend a wedding and enjoy Mardi Gras. Their visit takes a peculiar turn at the bridal shower when they discover their hostess's gardener had requested upon his death that he be embalmed and displayed in her back garden. Even stranger--the body turns out not to be the right one. The gardener has been replaced by the murdered body of the hostess's next-door neighbor. Julianne and Rippa embark on a quest to find out why. Was his death a random killing, or are the rumors of hidden treasure in his house true?