House of Blues (edition 1996)

I checked this one out of the kindle libary. It's the fifth in the Skip Langdon series.
This was another look into the lives of the upper classes in New Orleans.
A prominent citizen in gunned down in his own home. His daughter, granddaughter and son-in-law are all missing. As Skip investigates the murder and what looks like a kidnapping, terrible tragedies occur within the police department.
Skip also struggles with her personal life. She and Steve are still seeing each other, but the relationship is up in the air.
O'Rourke is still a major jerk, and Skip had to do things in the line of duty that will haunt her for the rest of her life.
This was a really dark time for Skip. The whole murder/kidnapping story was a little off somehow.
The conclusion of the mystery part was too similiar to another one of the Skip Langdon novels. The ending of the book was utterly depresssing. I didn't like this one as much as the other book in this series that I read. It was still interesting and by now the characters are familiar. Overall I would give this one a B-/C+ ( )

Skip Langdon is a different kind of detective (a six foot tall, tough but, attractive, intelligent cop) in a different environment (New Orleans, a one of a kind type of city). I was struck by the character of the city especially when compared to my only other exposure during the Katrina Hurricane crisis a couple of years ago. The expectation of larceny being part of any encounter with government and crooks being scattered among the righteous in the police departments also was an awakening for me. If you can handle or perhaps even enjoy shadowing a strong women with a well developed sense of what is right, this is a chance for your passions to be whetted. Julie Smith presents her characters as tough and invincible with a rough and tumble plot much like a Chamberlain detective story of old. If that is the type of character and story you enjoy, get your fix with one of the stories from the Skip Langdon Series. Julie Smith knows her way around a good police procedural exercise. The review to this point ignored the special food and drinks aspect of this deep south city, just an additional reason to peruse this book to garner a cultural understanding of this area. ( )

It is a great way to learn about a place by reading what mystery writers have to tell about their own city. Will be reading more of Julie Smith books ( )