Voodoo That You Do
A Pat Gallagher Mystery
By Richard Helms
Back Alley Books/Barbadoes Hall - November 2001
ISBN: 0-9710159-0-9 - Paperback
Mystery / Hardboiled / Amateur Sleuth
Violence, Language

Reviewed by Jo Rogers, MyShelf.Com
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VOODOO THAT YOU DO is the second Pat Gallagher following JOKER POKER. Gallagher now returns to find himself in trouble again, familiar territory since he arrived in New Orleans. It won't be the last time, either, especially now that he has found a reason for staying.

Her name is Merlie Cumineau, a beautiful social worker who runs a shelter for runaway children. Gallagher meets her when he finds a child, Louise, who needs a place to stay. The child has run away from a sexually abusive stepfather and Gallagher is determined to keep her safe.

But how can he do that and find the teenaged Haitian thug who iced his friend, Hotshot Spano, retired triggerman for Mob leader Lucho Braga? Braga had all but ordered him to find the thug, though Gallagher himself has no ties to the mob now. As if that wasn't bad enough, there is a gang war brewing between Phang Loc, the Vietnamese mob leader, and Braga. In the middle is little Louise, stepdaughter of Phang Loc's Lieutenant, Jimmy Binh, and he wants Louise back. Can Gallagher find Spano's killer, keep Louise and Merlie safe from the voodoo threats and stop a gang war without getting himself killed? Only if his Irish luck holds.

Though there are some passages that are wordy and could be tightened, VOODOO THAT YOU DO is a thoroughly entertaining mystery. Gallagher is a loveable scoundrel who is reforming himself into an honest man, and he is one you'll want to read more about. The plot, though busy, is a gripping one. By the time you reach the halfway point, you will not want to put it down.

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