Karen D. Badger

1140 Rue Royale - Karen Badger

This is an interesting and unusual book, based on a horrible period of history, brought to life by the impact on two likeable and loveable modern women.

Two scientists, together over twenty years, living in NYC, and like many long term relationships they have stopped paying attention, work has taken over, the relationship is drifting. Confronted with a stark choice to sort herself out, Elliot vows to put her wife first, and when Lia is offered a dream jon in New Orleans, they decide to take a leap and start afresh.

House hunting very quickly leads them to 1140 Rue Royale, a fully furnished 10,000 square foot French Quarter Mansion with an affordable price tag. They soon start to find out why the house has changed hands so many times, why the locals wont go near it, and why it is considered the most haunted house in New Orleans.

I don’t usually read ghost stories, but this one grabbed me and pulled me right in. The historical facts are gruesome and the impact on the modern residents hair-raising at times. The book is not particularly fast paced but it pulls you along with an inexorable cadence towards the climax.

Cleverly juxtaposing the family ties of Lia with the slightly butch/alpha dominance of Eliot gives a balance to the narrative of then and now, both unknowingly involved and threatened by evil. As the story progresses the past characters and present situation gradually slot into place weaving an extremely clever pattern of connection.

The characters of Lia and Eliot are excellently drawn, likeable and loveable in their own ways, certainly we cannot help but root for them to survive this ordeal. Aided and abetted by their best friends Marissa and Julie and a couple of locals, the close nit group need to listen to an irritating but adorable cat to solve the primary mystery and we, the readers, can see that Miss Thing is far more important than the humans realise.

I have to admit I didn't think the suspense element of the funeral was needed, this book oozes suspense throughout without contriving it, but that didn't detract from what was an excellent and intriguing story, well told, cleverly brought to life, and ultimately a story of hope and redemption from the past.

Definitely one for the re-read pile and a highly recommended - which is high praise from somebody who doesn’t do ‘the paranormal' and has little cultural connection to the slave history of New Orleans.


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