Karen over at Anita Halton Associates sent me one of the best books I have read this year to review for this blog!
I love it when I get a great mystery that is set in New Orleans and involves the lore and history of the city as well. AND if it is also a cop procedural, well, color me Yellow with happiness!
In Yellow Moon, award-winning novelist Jewell Parker Rhodes, offers part three of a trilogy (Voodoo Dreams, and Voodoo Season are part 1 and 2 respectively, soon to be a 4th book- Hurricane Levee Blues) that brings to life the legend of Marie Laveau, and her descdants in New Orleans. Rhodes takes readers inside a pre-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, capturing the essence of the city and forecasting the themes surrounding those tragic events, in a magical yet realistic way.
The story begins with people being murdered, their bodies viciously and mysteriously drained of blood. There do not seem to be any motives or obvious connections amongst those killed, and the police have no suspects. Dr. Marie Levant, a descendant of the legendary voodoo priestess Marie Laveau quickly discovers that these are no ordinary killings and this is no typical case for the New Orleans Police Department.
Solving the murders goes far beyond what any detective or CSI would be able to uncover. Levant, as a doctor, and an increasingly powerful and respected voodoo priestess, is at a loss over how to stop the killings, until she realizes that all roads lead to her and, the killer, rather than being human, is an evil ancestral spirit known as a wazimamoto, an African vampire, determined to re-enter the human race to exact revenge, and gaining form and strength with each murder. Meanwhile, the investigation stirs emotions in Levant, which after the death of her boyfriend (who was a cop with NOPD) she never expected to encounter again – love. NOPD Detective Parks is an unexpected surprise as the lead detective in the cases. At the start of the investigation, Parks rails against the prospect of a spirit as murderer, but as the killing sprees escalate and Levant is pulled deeper into the seemingly unstoppable melee, Parks finds himself becoming a believer and falling hopelessly in love with her. His growing feelings for Levant and his skill as a seasoned detective, combined with her power, influence, and deep ancestral connection to Marie Laveau will either save New Orleans or enable the city to be destroyed forever. The lore of Marie Laveau is intricately interlaced with the city of New Orleans and Parker Rhodes understanding and use of this makes these books unique and greatly appealing!
YELLOW MOON grabs your attention and does not let go until the final page. SERIOUSLY I read almost HALF the book in one sitting and if I COULD have kept my eyes open (it was almost 3am!) I would have FINISHED it in one sitting- it was JUST that good! Parker Rhodes combines all the elements of a good mystery with GREAT dialogue and very interesting characters. Her locales and local mystique are right on- I knew the areas she spoke of and she could not have created a more perfect atmosphere for the book! I can NOT believe she is from Pittsburgh, as she so greatly absorbed all that is New Orleans on her visits here.I could not literally wait to go get the previous 2 books to read, and signed up to get on Parker Rhodes email list so I can find out ASAP when her new book will be out!
Yellow Moon is out in paperback, and is available at all bookstores- so go find it and read a GREAT book, it's a page turner!
Yellow Moon is out in paperback, and is available at all bookstores- so go find it and read a GREAT book, it's a page turner!
ABOUT JEWELL PARKER RHODES:
Jewell Parker Rhodes is the author of the acclaimed novels Voodoo Season, Voodoo Dreams, Magic City and Douglass’ Women, as well as the nonfiction Porch Stories, which received two Arizona Book Awards. She is the recipient of a National Endowment of the Arts Award, the American Book Award, the Black Caucus of the ALA Award, and the PEN/Oakland Josephine Miles Award for Literary Excellence. She is the Piper Endowed Chair and Founding Artistic Director of the Piper Center for Creative Writing at Arizona State University. She lives in Scottsdale, Arizona and Boston, Massachusetts.
Disclosure: Anita Halton Assc sent me this book, at no cost to me, for review purposes.I was NOT compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product!