Voodoo Dreams, A Novel of Marie Laveau: #Spooktober Book Review

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Most of the Voodoo Dreams: A Novel of Marie Laveau by Jewell Parker Rhodes is set in New Orleans. Some of the book is set in what is known as the Bayou Teche are of Louisiana, which is mostly a rural waterway.

Marie Laveau was a real person. In fact, Marie Laveau had two daughters named Marie Laveau, which has made it confusing to know who the real Marie Laveau was. In the book, there are four Maries — the famous Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau plus the grandmother, mother and daughter.

In the beginning of the book, Marie doesn’t know anything about Voodoo. She’s just an innocent girl from the country near Bayou Teche. Marie travels to New Orleans with her grandmother. Her grandmother and mother were Voodoo priestesses; however, her grandmother converted to Christianity and never taught Marie about Voodoo.

Marie marries Jacque but then almost immediately leaves him for John, a Voodoo doctor. I imagine him to be like R. Kelly but with less talent. He’s a jealous, controlling, abusive person. I don’t see what attracts the women in Marie’s family to John. He doesn’t have any actual power as far as Voodoo. He makes a potion to remain ageless but he doesn’t have visions. John is insanely jealous of Marie because she is so connected to the spirit of Damballah.