Reviewer: Lori Graham
Title: Bayou Paradox
Author: Robin Carroll
Publisher: Steeple Hill, Love Inspired Suspense
ISBN-13: 978-0-373-44293-5
Release Date: June 2008
Genre/Sub-genre: Inspirational Romantic Suspense
Year/Setting: Present Day, Louisiana
Overall Rating: 4.0
Sexual Content Rating: Very Subtle
Language (Profanity/Slang) Rating: None
Violent Content Rating: Very Minimal
Robin's Website:
www.robincaroll.com
Tara LeBlanc sees things in the bayou that folks normally don’t. Because she is training in voodoo, she sees healing and peace. She feels at home walking through an area of the country were most people would feel lost. Going through this training gives Tara some comfort especially when the two women closest to her become very ill. Her sisters try to explain that the potions won’t help these two women but Tara is determined – not only to help them come out of their coma but also to find out what put them in one.
Tara receives help she isn’t completely sure she wants form Sheriff Bubba Theriot. Bubba also has a vested interest in finding out what has happened because one of the two women stricken is his aunt. Bubba is attracted to Tara but struggles with her voodoo practice due to his own Christianity. He struggles to understand what the Lord is asking of him.
Tara’s determination to figure out what is going on escalates the sicker the two women become. As she investigates, though, she is questioning her own beliefs in the process. On belief she is sure of is that these illnesses are not from natural causes. No matter what Tara says, it takes some time for the Sheriff to come around to her way of thinking and when he does, it is almost too late.
Robin Caroll does a good job of creating a suspenseful situation very quickly as you enter into the manuscript. In Tara, she has created a character with a lot of questions and then also creates the mechanisms for her to work through them and find the true answers she is looking for. The best part of this struggle is that Robin doesn’t come across as "preachy" at any time.
Bayou Paradox offers the reader a chance to look at the strength of their own beliefs as they are struggling with Tara’s investigations. In Bubba, she also gave us the other side of the coin to wrestle with. For Christians of today, there is a high chance of becoming emotionally involved with a non-believer. Bubba handles it with a lot of prayer and faith. Don’t get me wrong, he wrestles with God just a bit which is part of what makes this book real.
Lori
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