Cicada Dreams

The cleverness of Cicada Dreams is matched by the detail and description on Roger Carrier’s latest book. Set in Arkansas in 1935 – and later in the “land of the dead” – the novel is an exploration of race relations in the South as they intersect with poverty and the deep spiritual roots of voodoo. References to famous literary works and characters and historical figures and events pepper this engaging and suspenseful book.

Lady Priscilla is not a woman to be trifled with, but as the black, female owner of a travelling carnival, she has to be careful. Folks who come to see the carnival believe she is an attraction within it, not the one holding power, because she understands what would happen to her if the truth was known. Her right-hand man, Wildcat, is the owner-for-show, the white man a more acceptable symbol of authority at the time. As the book opens, the scene of the carnival is set with the bribery of a local sheriff, the feminine wiles of a beautiful trapeze artist, and the orchestration of a wrestling match pitting good against evil that stirs up the audience to a frenzy.

Priscilla tells Wildcat that the loa–the spirits in Voodoo–have revealed to her that there is a dark-hearted man in the town who has murdered six blonde women. When Birdie, the carnival’s blonde trapeze artist disappears, she sets forth to find the man, with the help of her band of carnival misfits, and the quest leads her back and forth from the land of the living to the land of the dead.

At its heart, the book is about where goodness can be found – often where you least expect it – and who is responsible for protecting it. If you’re looking for a fun, mysterious adventure, Cicada Dreams is the book for you.