Jon Nixon reviewed Axeman's Jazz by Ray Celestin
Review of "Axeman's Jazz" on 'Storygraph'
3 stars
New Orleans 1919: an axe weilding serial killer is murdering seemingly unrelated victims (in rooms locked from the inside) and leaving tarot cards behind (implying a voodoo connection). The story plays out against a background of mafia violence, police corruption, racial tensions and the dawn of jazz (young Louis Armstrong is a character).
The summary sounds great, and the writing flows quite well, but somehow the author manages to make this book rather dull. I didn't care about any of the characters, there is very little interaction between them, they have hardly any agency, none of them seemed to be in any jeopardy until about page 200, and some of their storylines don't go anywhere. Even the killings they are investigating happen offstage.
I nearly gave up half way through. The second half is better but not enough to make me read another.
The summary sounds great, and the writing flows quite well, but somehow the author manages to make this book rather dull. I didn't care about any of the characters, there is very little interaction between them, they have hardly any agency, none of them seemed to be in any jeopardy until about page 200, and some of their storylines don't go anywhere. Even the killings they are investigating happen offstage.
I nearly gave up half way through. The second half is better but not enough to make me read another.
