12 Cozy Mysteries of Christmas - Louisiana Traditions

Some traditions are so old no one remembers how they got started. Some are so special, the argument isn’t worth having anyway. 

Ask the people who live in one of the many small towns lining the banks of the Mississippi River. They’ll tell you that most of life’s lessons aren’t taught at home or in the churches dotting every other corner of every other street. Some things you just know from the cradle and act accordingly. 

 For example, you know that if the automatic barricade swings down at the railroad crossing outside an oil refinery, that doesn’t necessarily mean that a train is coming anytime soon. Since holding up traffic is just plain bad manners, look both ways, and then drive carefully around the barricade. If you want to be really polite, have someone get out of the car and hold up the bar until another 5, 10 or 15 cars get across. 

And even as a child you know that Papa Noel, known in some parts of the world as Santa Claus, cannot possibly find his way into this dark, swampy pocket of Earth unless you light a really big fire to help him find his way. 

There is some disagreement as to whether lighting fires began as a beacon for Papa Noel or just to light the way for travelers going to midnight Mass. Either way, these bonfires are not your typical “let’s roast a marshmallow” blaze. They are carefully constructed towers, built around a frame of willow and covered with cane reed. It takes as long as a month to do it right, and most families begin work on Thanksgiving. 

Then, about 7:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve, after the sun has set in the low country, the towers are doused with diesel fuel and lit, lighting up the riverfront with the glow of hundreds of bonfires. 

 For Louisianans, however, the finale to this tradition isn’t watching the fires burn. No, the best way to enjoy this tradition is to dish up a spicy bowl of gumbo and wander from fire to fire. After all, isn’t being neighborly what Christmas is all about? 

‘Tis the season for a great whodunnit! 

If you love cozies as much as we do, then you’re in for a holiday treat! From December 12 – 23, we’re giving away one cozy mystery EVERY DAY! So light the fireplace and grab a cup of hot cocoa, because you just may have a free cozy mystery coming your way! 

HOW TO ENTER… There are two ways to enter: 

1. Create a Pinterest Pinboard entitled My 12 Cozies of Christmas. Fill it with 12 Spyglass Lane titles that either you want to read, or have already read and love! Be sure to use the #12CoziesofChristmas hashtag in the description of each pinned book cover. People who create boards will have to leave a comment here with a link to their board for their board to be entered. One pinboard will automatically enter you in each daily drawing! 

2. Tweet about Spyglass Lane mysteries. Simply Tweet about the giveaway or one of your favorite Spyglass Lane Mysteries or authors and include the #12CoziesofChristmas hashtag along with the www.spyglasslanemysteries.com link. You may Tweet as many times as you want each day! Only Tweets sent out the day of the giveaway will be considered for that day’s drawing. 

Follow us on the Spyglass Lane blog, Twitter @SpyglassMystery or Facebook for the latest info on the 12 Cozies of Christmas giveaway! Each day, we’ll reveal which Spyglass Lane cozy mystery we’ll be giving away. 

GIVEAWAY INFO 

1. Each day, we will reveal which Spyglass Lane mystery will be given away that day 

2. A “giveaway day” runs from 12AM EST to 11:59PM EST. 

3. There will be one winner per day 

4. Winners will be announced the following morning 

5. A Pinboard (see rules above) counts as one entry each day of the giveaway. Tweets (see rules above) only apply to the day in which they were originally Tweeted. For example, if you send 10 Tweets on Thursday the 13th, you will be entered 10 times in that day’s drawing. But those Tweets will not apply to the next day’s drawing. 

6. Winners will be chosen via Randomizer.org, with Tweets and Pinboards each assigned a unique number 

7. Winners will be announced via our blog, Twitter @SpyglassMystery or Facebook. Winners will be contacted via email or social media. If a winner does not hear from Spyglass Lane, they may contact us at SpyglassLaneMysteries (at) gmail (dot) com. 

8. Winners will receive their prize in the form of a Smashwords coupon that they can redeem at Smashwords.com. Smashwords accommodates all ereader devices, though it may require the device to be directly connected to a computer for proper download. 

9. The same person may win more than once! 

10. There is no entry limit 11. Participants are expected to play nice! Inappropriate behavior (including but not limited to foul language, bullying, trolling, arguing) will not be tolerated and Spyglass Lane reserves the right to exclude such people from these and future giveaway.