What do you think?
Rate this book
Chanse MacLeod #4
Murder In The Rue Ursulines
As New Orleans continues to rebuild in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Chanse MacLeod becomes involved in a high-profile case involving a Hollywood golden couple who have committed themselves to helping New Orleans recover. It's up to Chanse to find out who is sending them threatening e-mails, but the secrets they are keeping lead to murder. With his own life now at risk, Chanse has to catch a diabolical killer before the body count escalates.
226 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2008
10 people are currently reading
126 people want to read
About the author
Greg Herren
80 books150 followersGreg Herren is a New Orleans-based author and editor. Former editor of Lambda Book Report, he is also a co-founder of the Saints and Sinners Literary Festival, which takes place in New Orleans every May. He is the author of ten novels, including the Lambda Literary Award winning Murder in the Rue Chartres, called by the New Orleans Times-Picayune “the most honest depiction of life in post-Katrina New Orleans published thus far.” He co-edited Love, Bourbon Street: Reflections on New Orleans, which also won the Lambda Literary Award. He has published over fifty short stories in markets as varied as Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine to the critically acclaimed anthology New Orleans Noir to various websites, literary magazines, and anthologies. His erotica anthology FRATSEX is the all time best selling title for Insightoutbooks. Under his pseudonym Todd Gregory, he published the bestselling erotic novel Every Frat Boy Wants It and the erotic anthologies His Underwear and Rough Trade (to be released by Bold Strokes Books in 2009).
A long-time resident of New Orleans, Greg was a fitness columnist and book reviewer for Window Media for over four years, publishing in the LGBT newspapers IMPACT News, Southern Voice, and Houston Voice. He served a term on the Board of Directors for the National Stonewall Democrats, and served on the founding committee of the Louisiana Stonewall Democrats. He is currently employed as a public health researcher for the NO/AIDS Task Force.
A long-time resident of New Orleans, Greg was a fitness columnist and book reviewer for Window Media for over four years, publishing in the LGBT newspapers IMPACT News, Southern Voice, and Houston Voice. He served a term on the Board of Directors for the National Stonewall Democrats, and served on the founding committee of the Louisiana Stonewall Democrats. He is currently employed as a public health researcher for the NO/AIDS Task Force.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
April 22, 2015
Rating: 3.75* of five
The Publisher Says: As New Orleans continues to rebuild in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Chanse MacLeod becomes involved in a high profile case involving a golden couple of Hollywood who have committed themselves to helping New Orleans recover.
My Review: Chanse is the tortured hero, broken and cracked and split but keeping on moving forward. Stopping would mean thinking, reliving the awful end of the last entry in the series. That pain is, it seems, endless. Chanse, the big strong man who's omnicompetent like MacGyver, carries his hurts quietly, but at least he's going to therapy.
This story isn't quite up to the characters telling it. It's not bad. It's interesting, it's exciting, but...I don't quite know what to mention...there's something missing, perhaps because there's no romantic interest for our titillation...?
At all events, I'm into the series too deep to back out. The final book is already out, series-o-philes! No surprises!
Pardon me, I need to get to Death in the Arts District.
The Publisher Says: As New Orleans continues to rebuild in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Chanse MacLeod becomes involved in a high profile case involving a golden couple of Hollywood who have committed themselves to helping New Orleans recover.
My Review: Chanse is the tortured hero, broken and cracked and split but keeping on moving forward. Stopping would mean thinking, reliving the awful end of the last entry in the series. That pain is, it seems, endless. Chanse, the big strong man who's omnicompetent like MacGyver, carries his hurts quietly, but at least he's going to therapy.
This story isn't quite up to the characters telling it. It's not bad. It's interesting, it's exciting, but...I don't quite know what to mention...there's something missing, perhaps because there's no romantic interest for our titillation...?
At all events, I'm into the series too deep to back out. The final book is already out, series-o-philes! No surprises!
Pardon me, I need to get to Death in the Arts District.
June 21, 2015
Book 4 in the Chanse Macleod series and another great mystery!!
This time finds Chanse caught up in the murder of a Hollywood star. He has to solve the mystery to clear his name and to hold onto the life he has started to rebuild for himself after the devastation of Katrina.
I really enjoy these mysteries set in New Orleans. The author has a way of drawing the reader not just into the story, but into the life of New Orleans as well. I always find that I am satisfied with the mystery and the way the story ends, but I am left with a hunger to visit New Orleans and to see the life of this city for myself.
I also love how this series runs alongside the Scotty Bradley series. Sometimes there are small cross overs. Venus and Blaine the police detectives also feature in the Scotty Bradley series and in this book Storm Bradley (Scotty's brother) makes an appearance.
I would so love for Scotty and Chanse to solve a mystery together one day. Hint, hint.
Greg Herren has become one of my favourite mystery writers. He really knows how to craft a story with a good pace and how to develop the story without giving anything away. His stories are also very realistic and his characters are very human with all their own ups and downs and difficulties.
I also appreciate the way in which he has managed to weave the difficulties from hurricane Katrina into his stories. In this way he brings the fiction together with real life and we get to learn a little about this shocking event and its impact on the lives of the people of New Orleans and their beloved City.
Most of all I love Chanse with all his fears, anxieties and difficulties. I love his determination and courage and his ability to take what life throws at him, lob it back and solve the crime.
If I had one gripe about this book it would be that I managed to guess who did it before the end. It didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book but it was a tad too predictable and not as knotty as the earlier books, but it was still very good.
Another great book in this series and still a few more to go!!
This time finds Chanse caught up in the murder of a Hollywood star. He has to solve the mystery to clear his name and to hold onto the life he has started to rebuild for himself after the devastation of Katrina.
I really enjoy these mysteries set in New Orleans. The author has a way of drawing the reader not just into the story, but into the life of New Orleans as well. I always find that I am satisfied with the mystery and the way the story ends, but I am left with a hunger to visit New Orleans and to see the life of this city for myself.
I also love how this series runs alongside the Scotty Bradley series. Sometimes there are small cross overs. Venus and Blaine the police detectives also feature in the Scotty Bradley series and in this book Storm Bradley (Scotty's brother) makes an appearance.
I would so love for Scotty and Chanse to solve a mystery together one day. Hint, hint.
Greg Herren has become one of my favourite mystery writers. He really knows how to craft a story with a good pace and how to develop the story without giving anything away. His stories are also very realistic and his characters are very human with all their own ups and downs and difficulties.
I also appreciate the way in which he has managed to weave the difficulties from hurricane Katrina into his stories. In this way he brings the fiction together with real life and we get to learn a little about this shocking event and its impact on the lives of the people of New Orleans and their beloved City.
Most of all I love Chanse with all his fears, anxieties and difficulties. I love his determination and courage and his ability to take what life throws at him, lob it back and solve the crime.
If I had one gripe about this book it would be that I managed to guess who did it before the end. It didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book but it was a tad too predictable and not as knotty as the earlier books, but it was still very good.
Another great book in this series and still a few more to go!!
May 12, 2021
I really am so happy I've savored these Chanse MacLeod books from Greg Herren. The darker more serious series from Herren feels more and more a part of me with each new book. At first I wasn't sure of the celebrity angle of the book, but the twists and turns made me so happy and I flew through the book, even guessing the killer at 90%. I am really loving this mystery reading time in my life. Can't seem to get enough of them. 3 more books to go. Don't be surprised if I put some space between them. Just don't want this to end.
May 4, 2016
Chanse MacLeod is a New Orleans Private Detective. Still reeling from the death of his lover and the general Post-Katrina PSTD, Chanse is simply doing the best he can to get by. And for now that means he has a job to do. Hired by two famous actors to hunt down a blackmailer, Chanse gets tangled up in a lot more than he bargained for. When a suspect ends up dead, and he becomes a target for not only the police, but the media and probably the killers themselves, Chanse could very well end up losing more than just the fragile peace he has begun to stick back together.
From what a few of the other reviewers have been saying about the books they picked up in this series, I have to say I lucked out quite a bit. While apparently there are some very sad and very bad things going on in previous books, this one was pretty light. Just a good old mystery and a little bit of heart to keep it going.
I am so damn happy about that as well. I am so not in a place that needs more dark and depressing.
I thought this was a good story, even if I have never read any of the previous books. It did a great job of standing up on its own, and giving you enough detail to let you know why certain things are happening–-without rehashing everything in minute detail. I really liked that. It meant that I was able to enjoy the story even with the lack of a full backstory.
I did have a problem with some of the actions taken by Chanse, though. I’m torn between understanding that the dude is a PI, and this is a mystery, and my desire to slap some fucking sense into the dude. I have no idea if this is a thing with him or not, but the way he refuses to use some common sense (or see a fucking doctor because last time I checked they did not hand out medical degrees with PI licenses), just rubbed me the wrong way. I just…I just don’t like the kind of MC who goes all He-Man and decides to take on the world with no back-up and against the advise of anyone with sense of self-preservation. It is a huge pet-peeve of mine and even if I enjoyed the story, his decisions sometimes made me want to scream.
Also…the dude was dense as fuck as to who the bad guy was. Like, it was pretty bloody obvious.
And yet…I did enjoy the story. The characters and the setting really grounded this story in real life and made me interested in knowing more about them. Had Chanse been a bit less hard-headed I probably would have rated this higher, but as it stands I do recommend you read this if you have been liking this series, or maybe even if you are looking for a bit of light detective work to keep you entertained.
3.5 stars
This book was provided free in exchange for a fair and honest review for Love Bytes. Go there to check out other reviews, author interviews, and all those awesome giveaways. Click below.
From what a few of the other reviewers have been saying about the books they picked up in this series, I have to say I lucked out quite a bit. While apparently there are some very sad and very bad things going on in previous books, this one was pretty light. Just a good old mystery and a little bit of heart to keep it going.
I am so damn happy about that as well. I am so not in a place that needs more dark and depressing.
I thought this was a good story, even if I have never read any of the previous books. It did a great job of standing up on its own, and giving you enough detail to let you know why certain things are happening–-without rehashing everything in minute detail. I really liked that. It meant that I was able to enjoy the story even with the lack of a full backstory.
I did have a problem with some of the actions taken by Chanse, though. I’m torn between understanding that the dude is a PI, and this is a mystery, and my desire to slap some fucking sense into the dude. I have no idea if this is a thing with him or not, but the way he refuses to use some common sense (or see a fucking doctor because last time I checked they did not hand out medical degrees with PI licenses), just rubbed me the wrong way. I just…I just don’t like the kind of MC who goes all He-Man and decides to take on the world with no back-up and against the advise of anyone with sense of self-preservation. It is a huge pet-peeve of mine and even if I enjoyed the story, his decisions sometimes made me want to scream.
Also…the dude was dense as fuck as to who the bad guy was. Like, it was pretty bloody obvious.
And yet…I did enjoy the story. The characters and the setting really grounded this story in real life and made me interested in knowing more about them. Had Chanse been a bit less hard-headed I probably would have rated this higher, but as it stands I do recommend you read this if you have been liking this series, or maybe even if you are looking for a bit of light detective work to keep you entertained.
3.5 stars
This book was provided free in exchange for a fair and honest review for Love Bytes. Go there to check out other reviews, author interviews, and all those awesome giveaways. Click below.
April 22, 2012
So often in a mystery series, the main character seems to bounce back from every body found, every gunshot, and every violent assault with the resiliency of a superball. Chanse, the gay private detective hero in Greg Herren's New Orleans mystery series, isn't such a protagonist. He has scars, emotional and otherwise, and is all the more realistic and sympathetic for it.
Still suffering from the events of the previous books, Chanse is offered a too-good-to-be-true pay rate to uncover the source of some nasty e-mails that are landing in the in-box of a rich and famous couple living in New Orleans. When the simple job turns nasty, Herren's ability to twist the tale comes to the forefront, and you find yourself wondering who - if anyone - Chanse can trust to get out of this mess.
New Orleans is as much a living and breathing character as Chanse himself, and there's a gritty reality to Herren's post-Katrina New Orleans in this book that is unrelenting; the water and the Government support are gone, but the damage is not. Chanse loves New Orleans, and when the truth might damage recovery efforts, there's a real moral dilemma to his thoughts that rang true to me.
There's more Paige to this book as well, which I really enjoyed. She's Chanse's reporter friend and confidante, and her character is definitely one I enjoy reading.
If you've not read any of Herren's Chanse books before, read 'em all - you're in for a very good mystery, every time.
Still suffering from the events of the previous books, Chanse is offered a too-good-to-be-true pay rate to uncover the source of some nasty e-mails that are landing in the in-box of a rich and famous couple living in New Orleans. When the simple job turns nasty, Herren's ability to twist the tale comes to the forefront, and you find yourself wondering who - if anyone - Chanse can trust to get out of this mess.
New Orleans is as much a living and breathing character as Chanse himself, and there's a gritty reality to Herren's post-Katrina New Orleans in this book that is unrelenting; the water and the Government support are gone, but the damage is not. Chanse loves New Orleans, and when the truth might damage recovery efforts, there's a real moral dilemma to his thoughts that rang true to me.
There's more Paige to this book as well, which I really enjoyed. She's Chanse's reporter friend and confidante, and her character is definitely one I enjoy reading.
If you've not read any of Herren's Chanse books before, read 'em all - you're in for a very good mystery, every time.
January 17, 2018
Rating: 3.5/5
I liked this book well enough. It's a fairly quick read, the story is good and well-paced and I loved the New Orleans setting. The mystery is such that I figured it out only about two pages before Chanse figured out the first part of it, which was really nice timing.
So why not 5 stars? Well, the book seemed, to me, a little unpolished in some places - e.g. there is a time when Chanse unplugs his landline twice a few pages apart (p91 and p97). Beside that, some parts seemed a little repetitive. He'd give us the information at some point in the book, then give us the same information plus a little more at another time, which made me go, "But haven't I read about this already?"
Was this still a good, fun book to read? Yes, yes absolutely, and I would recommend it.
I liked this book well enough. It's a fairly quick read, the story is good and well-paced and I loved the New Orleans setting. The mystery is such that I figured it out only about two pages before Chanse figured out the first part of it, which was really nice timing.
So why not 5 stars? Well, the book seemed, to me, a little unpolished in some places - e.g. there is a time when Chanse unplugs his landline twice a few pages apart (p91 and p97). Beside that, some parts seemed a little repetitive. He'd give us the information at some point in the book, then give us the same information plus a little more at another time, which made me go, "But haven't I read about this already?"
Was this still a good, fun book to read? Yes, yes absolutely, and I would recommend it.
June 28, 2019
3.5/4* read
I am invested in Chanse now, especially seeing how he can pull himself out of the malaise he has suffered since Paul and Katrina. No real progress on this score in this installment, though he does get lots of practice dealing with near panic atacks.
An interesting mystery though I kind of guessed the who dunnit early but the why came later.
The second murder was kind of expected in a way, thought Chanse should have done more.
Once again, the author puts you right in NO, very strong sense of place.
I am invested in Chanse now, especially seeing how he can pull himself out of the malaise he has suffered since Paul and Katrina. No real progress on this score in this installment, though he does get lots of practice dealing with near panic atacks.
An interesting mystery though I kind of guessed the who dunnit early but the why came later.
The second murder was kind of expected in a way, thought Chanse should have done more.
Once again, the author puts you right in NO, very strong sense of place.
November 19, 2018
An enjoyable read. There were interesting and well-drawn characters, and a good mystery (though I figured it out about 3/4 through). I wouldn't call this a gay book, but rather a mystery book with a gay lead and other gay characters. Chanse MacLeod is a very flawed hero, making some major errors in judgment, but it kept my interest throughout. I will read the next one.
February 3, 2021
I liked the mystery. Being familiar with New Orleans, I enjoyed wandering around through the streets with the story. However, I had a bit of a hard start getting into it and the main character annoyed me at times. But, I think I'll check out another of the series with this PI and see if I warm up to him.
October 24, 2022
with a 1/2....
I have enjoyed all the book in this series and #4 is no exception.
The atmosphere surrounding the story {seedy New Orleans } is a big PLUS !!!
The characters are well developed and unravel along with the story...with some gay sex thrown in to add to the 'spice' ...a gay Jacki Collins??? :}}
I have enjoyed all the book in this series and #4 is no exception.
The atmosphere surrounding the story {seedy New Orleans } is a big PLUS !!!
The characters are well developed and unravel along with the story...with some gay sex thrown in to add to the 'spice' ...a gay Jacki Collins??? :}}
November 2, 2025
This was another book I read on vacation. I love Greg Heren mysteries. His books have a sense of the south without it becoming another character. This series is set in New Orleans and has Katrina PTSD in its heart. The story moves nicely and Chanse is one of my favorite detective characters.
April 8, 2022
Good character development, interesting plot and fluid writing. I really enjoyed this continuation of Chance’s story.
October 18, 2022
I enjoyed not for the whodunit I thought that was pretty obvious but because the main character was a private eye who happened to be gay
August 31, 2024
Exellent who-dun-it with a cross over to the author's Scotty Bradley mystery series.
May 4, 2016
Chanse MacLeod is a New Orleans Private Detective. Still reeling from the death of his lover and the general Post-Katrina PSTD, Chanse is simply doing the best he can to get by. And for now that means he has a job to do. Hired by two famous actors to hunt down a blackmailer, Chanse gets tangled up in a lot more than he bargained for. When a suspect ends up dead, and he becomes a target for not only the police, but the media and probably the killers themselves, Chanse could very well end up losing more than just the fragile peace he has begun to stick back together.
From what a few of the other reviewers have been saying about the books they picked up in this series, I have to say I lucked out quite a bit. While apparently there are some very sad and very bad things going on in previous books, this one was pretty light. Just a good old mystery and a little bit of heart to keep it going.
I am so damn happy about that as well. I am so not in a place that needs more dark and depressing.
I thought this was a good story, even if I have never read any of the previous books. It did a great job of standing up on its own, and giving you enough detail to let you know why certain things are happening-–without rehashing everything in minute detail. I really liked that. It meant that I was able to enjoy the story even with the lack of a full backstory.
I did have a problem with some of the actions taken by Chanse, though. I’m torn between understanding that the dude is a PI, and this is a mystery, and my desire to slap some fucking sense into the dude. I have no idea if this is a thing with him or not, but the way he refuses to use some common sense (or see a fucking doctor because last time I checked they did not hand out medical degrees with PI licenses), just rubbed me the wrong way. I just…I just don’t like the kind of MC who goes all He-Man and decides to take on the world with no back-up and against the advise of anyone with sense of self-preservation. It is a huge pet-peeve of mine and even if I enjoyed the story, his decisions sometimes made me want to scream.
Also…the dude was dense as fuck as to who the bad guy was. Like, it was pretty bloody obvious.
And yet…I did enjoy the story. The characters and the setting really grounded this story in real life and made me interested in knowing more about them. Had Chanse been a bit less hard-headed I probably would have rated this higher, but as it stands I do recommend you read this if you have been liking this series, or maybe even if you are looking for a bit of light detective work to keep you entertained.
3.5 stars
This book was provided free in exchange for a fair and honest review for Love Bytes. Go there to check out other reviews, author interviews, and all those awesome giveaways. Click below.
From what a few of the other reviewers have been saying about the books they picked up in this series, I have to say I lucked out quite a bit. While apparently there are some very sad and very bad things going on in previous books, this one was pretty light. Just a good old mystery and a little bit of heart to keep it going.
I am so damn happy about that as well. I am so not in a place that needs more dark and depressing.
I thought this was a good story, even if I have never read any of the previous books. It did a great job of standing up on its own, and giving you enough detail to let you know why certain things are happening-–without rehashing everything in minute detail. I really liked that. It meant that I was able to enjoy the story even with the lack of a full backstory.
I did have a problem with some of the actions taken by Chanse, though. I’m torn between understanding that the dude is a PI, and this is a mystery, and my desire to slap some fucking sense into the dude. I have no idea if this is a thing with him or not, but the way he refuses to use some common sense (or see a fucking doctor because last time I checked they did not hand out medical degrees with PI licenses), just rubbed me the wrong way. I just…I just don’t like the kind of MC who goes all He-Man and decides to take on the world with no back-up and against the advise of anyone with sense of self-preservation. It is a huge pet-peeve of mine and even if I enjoyed the story, his decisions sometimes made me want to scream.
Also…the dude was dense as fuck as to who the bad guy was. Like, it was pretty bloody obvious.
And yet…I did enjoy the story. The characters and the setting really grounded this story in real life and made me interested in knowing more about them. Had Chanse been a bit less hard-headed I probably would have rated this higher, but as it stands I do recommend you read this if you have been liking this series, or maybe even if you are looking for a bit of light detective work to keep you entertained.
3.5 stars
This book was provided free in exchange for a fair and honest review for Love Bytes. Go there to check out other reviews, author interviews, and all those awesome giveaways. Click below.
February 8, 2013
Picked this book up from a charity shop (always on the lookout for a bargain) as it said on the cover that it was a lambda award winner for best mystery. It's the first book by Greg Herren that I have read but unfortunately the fourth in the Chanse MacLeod series.
I found the writing style took me a while to get used to but nevertheless got drawn into the story - it is a shame that I haven't read the previous novels as I am certain I would have enjoyed the story more as certain events which obviously happened in previous books were alluded to along the way. Although the main character is a gay detective there are no sex scenes in the book - a refreshing change for M/M fiction where at times it seems to be the prime motive for the book. The mystery was quite well planned out and the characters well formed, my only grouch was that it became obvious who the murderer was quite a while before the detective put two and two together. Nevertheless a thoroughly enjoyable read and I definitely will try and find the previous books to learn the whole story.
4.5 stars
I found the writing style took me a while to get used to but nevertheless got drawn into the story - it is a shame that I haven't read the previous novels as I am certain I would have enjoyed the story more as certain events which obviously happened in previous books were alluded to along the way. Although the main character is a gay detective there are no sex scenes in the book - a refreshing change for M/M fiction where at times it seems to be the prime motive for the book. The mystery was quite well planned out and the characters well formed, my only grouch was that it became obvious who the murderer was quite a while before the detective put two and two together. Nevertheless a thoroughly enjoyable read and I definitely will try and find the previous books to learn the whole story.
4.5 stars
March 12, 2022
Chanse finds himself in really deep trouble, naturally. He is hired by Frillian, a married Hollywood couple, to investigate some threatening e-mails. When Freddy's ex-wife turns up dead, Chanse finds himself as a murder suspect, because he has taken money from Frillian, touched the murder weapon, and is the only witness to the possible murder suspect.
I liked this book, but I must be getting use to Greg Herren's writing, because I was able to figure out this mystery on my own. There was no surprise or shock at the end, for me. Still, a very good read!
I liked this book, but I must be getting use to Greg Herren's writing, because I was able to figure out this mystery on my own. There was no surprise or shock at the end, for me. Still, a very good read!
July 1, 2016
Murder in the Rue Ursulines is my favorite Chanse MacLeod mystery yet! Although, I must confess - it's only the second one I've read. Reading Herren's latest only makes me want to go back and read the first two - which I've purchased and will be starting shortly. Murder in the Rue Ursulines kept me on my toes the entire time, trying to out-think the writer to solve the case. I thought I had everything figured out until Herren dropped the "secret", then back to the drawing board for me. A fine, well-crafted, mystery
Read
August 2, 2011In-fighting among hollywood celebs, murder, and revenge highlight this New Orleans mystery, with private eye Chance MacLeod on the case, along with the usual gang, cops Venus & Blaine, and potty-mouthed journalist friend Paige.
I read this in all of 2 or 3 days... a very fast read. Greg Herren never disappoints.
I read this in all of 2 or 3 days... a very fast read. Greg Herren never disappoints.
June 1, 2013
At approximately 250 pages, this novel is fairly short. It's therefore no surprise that the plot is pretty basic. It's not a layered story, but it's interesting nonetheless. What I liked most is the New Orleans setting, more specifically the French Quarter, which is prominent in the book. I also liked the development of the main character, a gay P.I., and his good friend Paige.
May 26, 2013
I liked the overall story, but I was actually really angry at how long it took Chanse to solve the mystery. It felt like he was being personally obtuse. Also, as someone who has panic attacks, I was really, really annoyed at him for his self-pity about his. *shrugs*
March 16, 2011
My favorite Greg Herren mystery yet!!!
July 15, 2015
A terrific romantic mystery with the heart of New Orleans.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews