October is the Spooky Season

  



THE FEATHERS
CYNTHIA LOTT, Narr. Courtney Patterson
ListenUp Audio
August 2015

We all know that October is the time for "ghoulies and ghosties and things that go bump in the night" so I got the month off to a good start with The Feathers". Set in New Orleans in the first few days of 1978, Detectives Brenda Shapira and Roy Agnew are faced with a horrific murder scene. A talented teenager living in the Garden District has been discovered, murdered and dismembered, in her own bedroom. In fact, the family let the murderer into the home; a man wearing one of the fantastical feathered masks so common at Mardi Gras time. He seemed to have some sort of hypnotic effect on the family, making them trust him completely. As the days go on, the bodies are piling up and the Detectives scramble to discover what links there are between the victims. Everything points to a man who has been dead for a hundred years.

The Feathers is a unique twist on the traditional ghost story coupled with a police procedural. Both Brenda and Roy are people who have dealt with loss and grief and we get to know them intimately in the course of the book. Brenda is much more open to a supernatural solution than Roy, but even he eventually can see no other explanation. The suspense builds steadily to an ending that I never saw coming; one that is far from a traditional "happy ever after". There are more stories here and I am looking forward to them. I especially liked the 1978 setting, back when the police actually had to use libraries and cross-directories for research. DNA and cell phones were not even on the radar. I remember those days!

Courtney Patterson does a very nice job with the narration. It is well-paced and consistent. The New Orleans accent is very distinct, so I was glad that she did not attempt it. Better no accent than a badly done one and this was a pleasant experience. The Feathers won't scare you silly or keep you awake, but it's a very good ghost story for the ghostliest month of the year.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com."

RATING-4 Stars