Bodacious Blues by Whitney J. LeBlanc

Three generations of a Louisiana Creole family have struggled amidst blues music, religious conflict, lust, lynching, murder, voodoo and racism. Now, as they come of age, the grandchildren of Martha Broussard, find they must carve their own paths through a rapidly changing world.

Ann Martel becomes the doctor her grandfather hoped her brother would become. Disappointed in love, she finds contentment and happiness with an older woman-partner. Meanwhile, her brother, Les Martel, defies all who challenge the man he desires to be. He protests racial intimidation in Estilette, takes on an abusive lover in Chicago, fights a Paul Bunyan-sized giant in the backwoods of Bemidji, kicks the ass of a contemptible womanizer in Nashville, and gives comeuppance to a backstabber in Hollywood. He soon discovers that Hollywood is not the place he thought it would be--the values were not his values--the truth is not his truth--trust is deception--honesty is weakness and “loyalty” an unknown word.

Bodacious Blues, the remarkable finale to Whitney LeBlanc’s compelling, blues-filled trilogy, completes this proud family’s saga in the 1980s. Amidst a milieu of religious controversy, sexual cross-identification, changing values, and racial exploitation, the message is loud and clear—Coming of age as adults was not as easy as they thought.

Good Reads Summary

As indicated in the summary, this book has it all.  The reader will like following up on familiar characters and reading about their lives now.  The characters vary from interesting to humorous to somewhat scary.  Some of their lives are out of control while others keep too tight a hold.  The book manages to contain all of these differing personalities and create a good story from them.  The plot isn't so much one large one, but many smaller subplots.  The reader will continuously find at least one thing interesting about the novel as he/she reads.  There is something for everyone.  The novel is a tad sensationalist, but right when it seems like the novel may get too out of control, the author reigns it back in.  The dialogue is worth reading by itself; there are many life lessons, advice, and funny moments addressed. This book is recommended for adults who enjoy novels where he/she can connect with more than one character at a time. 

3 Stars