Death threats, voodoo and murder add up to a dangerous visit to New Orleans for professors-turned-detectives Penny Spring and Toby Glendower. During their stay with Jules Lefau, head of an aristocratic Creole family, they probe several bizarre accidents, unsavory business deals and disturbing tensions that are destroying the calm of their host's plantation home. As New Orleans explodes in wild revelry, Penny and Toby stalk a murderer — who will not wait until next Mardi Gras to strike again.