The Book of Obeah: Crossroads, Book 1

I liked this book. The setting was one in which I was not familiar, and I enjoyed the immersion in cajun and voodoo culture. Given the author's background, I have to assume that what she wrote is accurate, so I learned quite a bit I hadn't known.Editing was overall good, but I had a problem with the formatting on my Kindle. Indentation was haphazard, and while not making the book impossible to read, it was annoying.I loved the plunge into voodoo. This was an entirely new light into the practice for me. But, and it almost pains me to write this as I loved learning about it, the plunge turned into something much more extensive. Basically, it went on too much. Once we, as readers, are introduced to the fact that there are similarities between voodoo and other religions, we don't need it repeated ad infinitum. The background on voodoo, which I welcomed, just got repetitive and took away from the flow of the story.I was also puzzled about the Book of Obeah itself. We essentially get to read the book with Melody, the protagonist, but I didn't see just how the book was special or powerful. Possibly in subsequent volumes, it will remain clear, but as it is, we are told the book is amazingly powerful, but I just didn't see it.I liked the author's tone and overall wordsmithing. The book was enjoyable, and that is the bottom line.

"There will come a time when powerful signs herald a crossroads for Humanity." (First part of a translation of the entire Choctaw tribal shaman proclamation; Bayou-Lacombe, LA; Circa 1878)So begins Sandra Carrington-Smith's page-turner, The Book of Obeah. And what a twisting, turning, sometimes creepy adventure it is as a young woman named Melody reluctantly discovers she is the next link in a prophetic chain of events that will drag her into the heart of the strange tales and chilling legends of the American deep South, the eerie, muggy environment of the Louisiana bayou, a cast of unusual characters, and a mysterious Voodoo priestess by the name of Marie Devereux.As I paged through this well-crafted, well-paced book, I was struck by the authority of the author's voice, not just in the passages describing the settings in which the story is placed, but also in the details and insights concerning the Voodoo craft. Clearly, I thought, this author must have some intimate knowledge of these things. As I discovered in an autobiographical section at the end of the story, "some intimate knowledge" was an understatement. But I'll let you discover that for yourself. For me it was a tasty little bit of desert following a delicious meal of a tale.The ending of the story is set up for a sequel but it doesn't just drive you to the edge of a cliff and leave you hanging without a satisfying resolve. You will, however, find yourself desperately wanting to find out the rest of the story in the sequel, The Rosaries. I can hardly wait to delve into it myself.

The Book of Obeah is representative of the author who wrote it. By that I mean the novel is gentle, informative and multi-layered, opening a world of spirituality that I had not before encountered. I was fortunate to meet Sandra Carrington-Smith through a professional group to which we both belong. I was immediately drawn to her easy, open personality. When I found out that she had authored two books, The Book of Obeah and a non-fiction book, Housekeeping for the Soul, I quickly ordered them from Amazon. It's important to me to support local authors; but in this case, I felt compelled to not only purchase the books, but to also actually read them. As soon as I started The Book of Obeah, I was hooked. As an editor, I noticed some technical issues and some copy-editing items the publisher had missed, but putting those minor points aside, I quickly became engrossed in the plot, the rich setting, the characters and the spiritual voice of the novel. Up until this read, my only knowledge of Voodoo was imparted through Hollywood thrillers and cable documentaries. The Book of Obeah quickly set some of my prior conceptions on their ears. Sandra Carrington-Smith brings a unique perspective and knowledge to her writing. She was raised in Italy in a spiritual cocktail of a family: her maternal grandmother was a Strega witch; her paternal grandmother, a Christian healer; her father, a devout Catholic; and her mother, a Voodoo priestess. By following the well-known writers' adage, "write what you know," Sandra invites the reader into a spiritual world marked by enlightenment. Do yourself a favor and not only buy this book but also move it to the top of your reading pile. Your soul will sing in appreciation.

I got this book for free after seeing it on the Kindle Buffett list thus I was unfamiliar with the author and had no expectations except that the premise of the book seemed interesting. This book was good, but could have been better in my opinion if the effort to rationalize Voo Doo or put Voo doo on the same footing as other religions was not overdone. Thus, I could have done without the actual parts where Melody was actually reading the book of Obeah trying to figure out what it meant. I did like the explanations about where or how Voo Doo originated and information about Orishas. The author should have just focused on Melody's journey and saga and perhaps stuck with letting people like Maman Marie or Isabel assist Melody with what it all means. This was not the typical thriller book but the fact that there was so many people with illicit motives made it thrilling cause you didn't know who to trust or who Melody should trust. If subjects like Voo Doo (the religion) or Hoo Doo (the spells & tricks) interest you then I would recommend this book; however if you are deeply religious and consider most things sacrilegious this is NOT the book for you!!

An interesting story line which I read appetizing my mind as I have never read anything around the subject matter It leaves me with questions and further investigation; maybe!

Wow what an eye opener. I really enjoyed reading about Voodoo, it always scared me but this book helps you understand that it isn't the evil religion we are lead to believe.