Brick Dust and Bones by M.R. Fournet

A twelve-year-old cemetery boy and monster hunter-along with his flesh-eating mermaid friend-has to race against the clock to save the ghost of his dead mother in Brick Dust and Bones, M.R. Fournet's magical middle grade debut.

Marius Grey hunts Monsters. He's not supposed to. He's only twelve and his job as a Cemetery Boy is to look after the ghosts in his family's graveyard. He should be tending these ghosts and-of course-going to school to learn how to live between worlds without getting into trouble.

But, Marius has an expensive goal. He wants to bring his mother back from the dead, and that takes a LOT of mystic coins, which means a LOT of Monster Hunting, and his mother's window to return is closing.

If he wants her back, Marius is going to have to go after bigger and meaner monsters, decide if a certain flesh-eating mermaid is a friend or foe, and avoid meddling Demons and teachers along the way. Can Marius navigate New Orleans's gritty monster bounty-hunting market, or will he have to say goodbye to his mother forever?

M.R. Fournet's ties to New Orleans are part of her own origin story. As as kid, she would go fishing in South Louisiana and eat crawfish with her family in Houma. She has always been fascinated by the myths and legends of New Orleans. When not writing, she is a professional artist, belly dancer, and autism mom. She now lives in Texas with her husband, son, and ungrateful cat. Brick Dust and Bones is her middle grade debut.