The Masks of Auntie Laveau: A Gil and Claire Hunt Mystery

By Robert J. Randisi and Christine Matthews

Book Overview

When Claire Hunt is sent to host her home shopping program on location in the Big Easy she and her husband, Gil, cannot resist having him come along. A book dealer back home in St. Louis, Gil is eager for the chance to poke around in the French Quarter's shops. The food, the history, the mystique--all of it delights the couple . . . until they're meeting with the Voodoo Queen, Auntie Laveau. The strange woman presents the duo with a collection of miniature Mardi Gras masks, hoping Claire will sell them on the air during her show. However, when the real Auntie Laveau is found murdered the police begin an official investigation. As the Hunts unwittingly become entangled with Louisiana's supernatural subculture Gil finds himself embroiled in the search for a missing girl who may or may not become the next victim. As he, himself, becomes endangered Claire and her son, Paul, frantically search the French Quarter for her husband before he can become a victim of the Voodoo Queen as well. But wait. Auntie Laveau is dead-or is she?

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 031226898X
• ISBN13: 9780312268985
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: Minotaur Books
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.8" x 1.0" x 5.5"

Customer Reviews

A romantic mystery that reads quite well

After her last involvement in a homicide case, Claire Hunt wants to avoid trouble at all costs. When she and her husband Gil visit "Auntie" Laveau in New Orleans about selling masques on her segment of a home shopping channel, Claire realizes "Auntie" is an imposter. Before returning to their home in St. Louis, the police question the Hunts. Someone killed Aunt Laveau and Claire's name was found in her apartment. Gil returns to New Orleans to identify a person in the hospital who the police believe posed as Auntie Laveau for the Hunts. Someone kidnaps Gil, leaving it up to his spouse, who refuses to wait for the police to act, to find him. Robert Randisi & Christine Matthews have written a fascinating mystery that provides readers with an insider's view of voodoo practitioners and their impact on believers. In THE MASKS OF AUNTIE LAVEAU, the voodoo subculture permeates the entire Big Easy, making the plot feel gothic-like. The two protagonists are endearing individuals whose love for one another has no bounds even conquering fear as proven by Claire's willingness to dive head first into trouble for her beloved.Harriet Klausner