Marilyn's Musings

City of the Dead , by Daniel Blake The book begins with a tsunami where Franco Patrese escapes with his life, but his girlfriend doesn't. The story jumps to a murder in New Orleans and Marie Laveau, so-called Queen of the Underworld and voodoo authority where Patrese is now an FBI agent. He is caught up in the investigation of unusual and gory murders involving the amputation of a leg and an axe in the middle of the forehead. Many threads are woven through this sometimes wild and adventurous thriller--threads that at times become what seem to be hopelessly tangled. Much is revealed about New Orleans politics and the mysticism of the city itself as the story moves along at a breath-taking pace. The climax and solution to the mysteries coincides with Hurricane Katrina with conclusions that have a strong element of truth. Highly recommended to those who like excitement on nearly every page and don't mind a bit of gore. Marilyn This books was sent to me by Simon and S...

(The author of the post that was supposed to be up today had trouble with her e-mail and I didn't get everything I needed, as soon as I do, I'll put that up.) Last night I watched footage of the tsunami in Japan again. It was like watching a horror movie that is all too real. There's no way that we sitting at home can even begin to imagine what those poor people are going through. So many lives lost, the horrendous chaos, the continuous earthquakes, fear of what might happen with those leaky reactors, no longer having a place to live, being cold, not enough food and it goes on and on. Oh, and I heard this morning that a volcano is spewing ashes and rocks. My prayers go out to them all. It hasn't been that long ago that Australia had a similar, though not quite as huge, catastrophe. But for anyone who lives there, I know it was every bit as horrific. Haiti still hasn't recovered. And in other countries there is war, nations wanting to get rid of oppression. ...