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 The gardener has been replaced by the murdered body of the hostess's next-door neighbor.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?