Who Do, Voodoo?

I’ve been eagerly anticipating the release of WHO DO, VOODOO, ever since it showed up on my radar two months ago. The story is set in and around Hollywood. As a psychologist, Liz Cooper prides herself on being logical and level-headed, so when someone pins threatening voodoo-themed tarot cards on her friend Robin’s door, she assumes it’s a prank. Robin is scared that it may be much more, so Liz contacts her brother’s old friend, Nick Garfield, for help. Nick is a professor and an expert in the occult. While Liz and Nick set out to find the owner of the unique tarot cards, a young woman is murdered, and Robin is the prime suspect. Liz is faced with the possibility that she may need supernatural help in solving the case.

WHO DO, show more VOODOO is an impressive debut from Rochelle Staab. I thought that the occult aspects of this story were so interesting and well-researched. This book offered a fresh and unique approach to paranormal cozy mysteries. I learned the difference between Vodou, voodoo and hoodoo, and the inner workings of spells and curses. The solid mystery combined with supernatural elements captured my attention. I liked the characters; they seemed very genuine, and there was a nice romance forming between Nick and Liz. Liz’s mother was a pistol, but she made for some funny moments. WHO DO, VOODOO is the first book in Ms. Staab’s Mind For Murder series, and I’m looking forward to more!

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. show less

You may also read my review here: http://www.mybookishways.com/2011/10/suspense-sunday-review-who-do-voodoo-by-roc...

When Liz Cooper’s childhood friend,Robin,begins finding tarot cards with menacing messages tacked to her door,she doesn’t know what to think. What she does know,as the cards,and the stakes,grow higher,is that she needs to find out just who is harassing her best friend. Her search for answers will put her in touch with Nick,an old friend and theology professor who sidelines in occult studies. They soon discover that Robin’s tormentor has voodoo leanings,but voodoo and the Tarot don’t mix,and after a visit to a palm reader and charlatan who may have the key to the Tarot deck used in the threats,things get even more show more confusing. Not only are the threats escalating,but Liz is fighting a growing attraction (and frustration) to Nick and a mother that hounds her at every turn. Add to that an ex-husband that just won’t give up and eventually murder,and Liz will have to use everything in her resources to get to the truth.

I really enjoyed this debut novel from former music industry exec Rochelle Staab! Liz is my kind of reluctant sleuth,and her wit and tenacity kept me turning the pages. Nick frustrated me at times with his dogged devotion to the letter of the law,but provided a perfect contrast to Liz,complementing her and at the same time keeping some nice sexual tension into play,and also proving that you certainly don’t have to be in your 20’s to romance and be romanced. Liz’s mom provided a quirky (if at times annoying),but always loving,presence,even if she does keep hounding Liz to get back with her sports superstar (and cheating) ex. The voodoo elements are fascinating,and the author obviously did her homework,treating the subject with respect and attention to detail. The added fun of L.A. as the backdrop created a constant sense of urgency and fun,and Ms. Staab obviously knows the ins and outs of her setting. I’ll admit,I’m a fairly jaded mystery reader,but this one kept me on my toes,and I didn’t really get an idea of whodunit until the end,and all the clues were definitely there. To me,that’s important. Red herrings are fine,as long as they aren’t scattershot,and as long as you can look back,once the killer is revealed,and say “Ohhh,yep,those clues were there (head smack for not seeing them:). Bravo to Ms. Staab for a sparkling,fun,and solid debut mystery! show less

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. It was a fast read which is why I love cozies. But, I may or may not read the next book in this series.

I think my biggest issue with this book is that Liz does not act like a psychologist. At all. I have read too many books in which the main character is a psychologist and Liz does not measure up at all. I'm not saying that psychologists can't also believe in ghosts, but her acceptance of something otherworldly happened way too fast.

The mystery was interesting and I have to say, I saw it coming a little too soon. But that's okay. I still enjoyed watching Liz and Nick solve it. As for Nick, his character was a little too perfect for me. I have a problem with perfect characters.

I also really show more enjoyed learning the difference between voodoo, Vodou, and hoodoo. Nick is a religion and philosophy professor and so I really enjoyed it when he was giving Liz lessons.

If you are looking for a fast book to read that is entertaining, you should give this book a try. You may like it. show less

First Line: "Wait until the third date to fool around?"

Clinical psychologist Liz Cooper has a practice in Los Angeles and one of those annoying mothers who loves tarot cards (and Liz's snake of an ex-husband). Liz is pre-programmed not to believe in the occult or the supernatural, but when someone keeps tacking tarot cards to her best friend's door and that friend is later jailed on suspicion of murder, Liz has to set her preconceptions aside to help save her friend.

The best way to do that is to team up with her brother's friend, college professor Nick Garfield who's an expert in the occult. Liz's search for the truth turns dangerous when more people begin to die. Could there really be anything to this voodoo stuff?

Liz Cooper is a show more strong, calm, likable woman whose only real handicaps seem to be her mother and brother. Nick Garfield is handsome, available and definitely shows interest in the psychologist, but between Liz's mother preferring her ex and her brother not wanting his friend to be romantically involved with his sister, do Liz and Nick have any sort of future?

Liz has been friends with Robin for most of her life, and it's admirable how she (almost literally) puts everything else aside to fight to prove her friend's innocence. The new detective who's got the case is focusing on the obvious to the exclusion of all else, and Liz's brother-- who's also a member of the Los Angeles Police Department-- isn't doing much better. However, in Liz's fight to get Robin out of jail, she does cross the line a few times, which could put the police investigation in jeopardy.

Liz's friend, Robin, comes off as a well-meaning but easily distracted person who can't seem to believe that what is happening to her is real. Liz gives her excellent advice which Robin refuses to take several times-- to the point where the reader may begin to think that this woman is really going to wind up in prison.

For those of you who shy away from books with a paranormal slant, there's really no reason to stay away from this one. There's extremely little hocus-pocus or things that go bump in the night. However, there is quite a bit of information about voodoo and similar religious beliefs that are commonly associated with it, and for that reason alone I found the book very interesting to read.

What will keep me coming back for more are Staab's characters, Liz and Nick. They are an attractive couple with plenty of smarts and good chemistry between them. I like how they solved their first case and look forward to others. show less

Liz has been best friends since childhood with Robin. Robin is just emerging from grieving about her husband's death in an accident when somebody begins leaving Tarot cards on her front door. The specific tarot cards left match the ones that predicted her husband's death a year prior, but they have a voodoo theme. Liz decides to try and help when a more sinister message is left on Robin's door. Liz turns to her brother's old college buddy Nick, who has become an expert on the occult and teaches. Nick and Liz try to trace the unique Tarot cards for a lead. They begin to make progress when Robin is accused of murder and the police are quite confident Robin is the killer. Now they must investigate quickly to clear Robin.

Liz is practical show more and has a hard time with the metaphysical aspects, even though her mother is the scattered and wacky "woowoo" stereotype. Besides her mother, Liz has a manipulative, egocentric, sports star ex-husband that still plagues her. I grew tired of the mother trying to get Liz and her ex back together repeatedly. I appreciated that Liz was rational and tended not to indulge the ex or her mother. Liz even managed to stay open minded to the paranormal without going whole hog. Nick provides some spice for Liz and challenges her paradigms. He will make an interesting love interest, even though dear brother doesn't like mixing his best friend and sister.

The plot of who really killed Sylvia is mixed up with voodoo, a spell book, and a curse. Events unfold in a manner that are not overtly paranormal yet make you wonder. The pacing was steady. The killer confrontation occurs because Liz stumbles upon the killer not because she deduced it. This debut entry was a bit simplistic in style but managed an enjoyable tale with a sprinkling of romance.

Series: # 1 in A Mind for Murder Mystery

Main Character: Liz Cooper, Clinical psychologist

Setting: Modern day Los Angeles, CA

Obtained book through: Publisher in exchange for an honest review

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http://www.mysterysuspence.blogspot.com show less

“Who Do Voodoo?” is the first in a cozy series by Rochelle Staab. I don’t usually like books with a paranormal slant so I was a little bit leery of this cozy. But I loved the cover so I decided to plunge in. Clinical psychologist Liz Cooper gets together with her best friend, Robin Bloom. They have known each other since the 5th grade so when Robin gets an ominous tarot card attached to her front door, Liz Cooper thinks it must be a prank. But when Robin gets more of the tarot cards and gets hang up phone calls, Liz gets worried. Liz goes to her brother Dave for help and he refers her to Nick Garfield, an occult specialist and a professor in religious philosophy. Together they set out to determine where the cards are coming from show more because they are not the usual kind of Tarot cards sold by dealers. When one of the people who they interviewed about the cards gets murdered and Robin gets detained and later held as a suspect, the two have to find the real killer fast.

This book has been well researched on a type of Hoodoo that originates in New Orleans or black magic and Voudo, an Afro-Haitian religion that has its roots in West Africa. Neither one is related to tarot cards. I have previous done some reading on religions of West Africa so I was really pulled into the book when I got to that explanation.

The characters are realistically portrayed and the book keeps you reading to find out what was going to happen next. Nick Garfield becomes a romantic interest that both Liz’s mother and brother are cautious of and they warn Liz against him. I didn’t guess the killer until the news was broken at the end. I am eager to read the next in this series, Bruja Brouhaha. That book is already sitting on my shelf ready to read.

I highly recommend this cozy to cozy fans including readers who don’t care for books with an occult theme. show less

An entertaining first novel, Murder She Wrote with a light dose of magic. The magic is in the form of voodoo as Liz Cooper tries to help her best friend, Robin, who finds threatening tarot cards pinned to her door. Liz is a shrink who is a skeptic and author Rochelle Staab spends plenty of time bringing her lead character around to the reality of the voodoo curse she's dealing with so she can face it head-on. The story is an interesting puzzle, not particularly scary, and quite entertaining.