# Recommend Novels Set in New Orleans **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 7, 2008, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487 "2008-03-07T19:18:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SaharaTea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SaharaTea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SaharaTea)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/1 "2008-03-07T19:18:24Z")
Besides Anne Rice’s books, what are some good mysteries, thrillers, or historical novels set in The Big Easy? I’d love to read more books featuring the unique history and culture of the city. I’ve heard good things about Julie Smith’s Skip Langdon series. Should I start with any particular one? ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/2 "2008-03-07T19:31:46Z")
nevermind ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/3 "2008-03-07T19:34:02Z")
_A Confederacy of Dunces_ is the essential New Orleans novel. It wasn’t written to be a historic setting, but it takes place when it was written (early 1960s) and captures that time as well as the Quarter and the non-Quarter feel of the city. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/4 "2008-03-07T19:40:44Z")
Barbara Hambly has a whole series of historical mysteries set in New Orleans, 1830-ish? The first one is called _A Free Man of Color_. Most are set within the community of free people of color (hence the name and all) and I find them fascinating. ---
**Author:** ![Barry\_From\_Eastenders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c57346/32.png) [@Barry\_From\_Eastenders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barry_From_Eastenders)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/5 "2008-03-07T19:59:06Z")
I second _A Confederacy of Dunces_. It’s absolutely one of the funniest books I’ve ever read. And since I don’t know you from Adam, I’m sure you’ll like it. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/6 "2008-03-07T20:02:04Z")
I have two recommendations: [Green Eyes](http://www.amazon.com/Green-Eyes-Lucius-Shepard/dp/0441302742/) (by Lucius Shepard) and [Fevre Dream](http://www.amazon.com/Fevre-Dream-George-R-R-Martin/dp/0553383051) (by George R.R. Martin). In each of these books, only part of the story is set in New Orleans, but the Louisiana flavor is strong throughout. Both would probably be categorized as fantasy/horror books, but they are ever so much more. No hack writing here. These beat the hell outta Anne Rice, in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/7 "2008-03-07T20:32:44Z")
Okay, don’t shoot me. I’m going to recommend [Alexandra Ripley](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandra_Ripley). Ducks behind the sofa to avoid **Sampiro** ’s withering glare. Yes, she of _Scarlett_ infamy. She’s written other books set in the South, including one called _[New Orleans Legacy](http://www.amazon.com/New-Orleans-Legacy-Alexandra-Ripley/dp/0446342106/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204921828&sr=8-1)_. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/8 "2008-03-07T20:36:51Z")
[Poppy Z. Brite](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppy_Z._Brite) (the **other** Anne Rice) has written lots of stuff set in NOLA, her home town. ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/9 "2008-03-07T22:23:59Z")
The late George MacDonald Fraser’s Flashman series has two books partially set in 1849 New Orleans, _Flash For Freedom!_ and _Flashman And The Redskins_: both offer a mesmerising, indelible portait of a vibrant, decadent, brutal and cruel New Orleans at the height of slavery. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/10 "2008-03-07T22:27:17Z")
[QUOTE=ivylass] Okay, don’t shoot me. I’m going to recommend [Alexandra Ripley](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandra_Ripley). Ducks behind the sofa to avoid **Sampiro** ’s withering glare. Yes, she of _Scarlett_ infamy. She’s written other books set in the South, including one called _[New Orleans Legacy](http://www.amazon.com/New-Orleans-Legacy-Alexandra-Ripley/dp/0446342106/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204921828&sr=8-1)_. [/QUOTE] Well, then I will recommend [Rhett Butler’s People](http://www.rhettbutlerspeople.com/). But not very highly. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/11 "2008-03-07T22:34:43Z")
Part of Tom Robbins’ “Jitterbug Perfume” is set in New Orleans. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/12 "2008-03-07T22:59:01Z")
Try the novels by [James Lee Burke](http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/103-0551241-2085458?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=burke), particularly his “David Robicheaux” books. The character is fairly dark, as he is a cop with a past, working in one of the seediest cities in America. _Jolie Blon’s Bounce_ was very good, with menacing characters, murder, music, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2008, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/13 "2008-03-07T23:12:23Z")
**A Confederacy of Dunces**. Not only is it hilarious, it reflects real New Orleans culture much more than books relying on voodoo and Creole stereotypes. Plus, it’s one of the best places to “hear” [yats](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yat_(New_Orleans)) outside the actual city. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2008, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/14 "2008-03-08T00:05:13Z")
I know he’s pretty loathed around here, but John Grisham wrote a nice little book called _The Pelican Brief_ that’s good for half a night of light reading. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2008, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/15 "2008-03-08T00:18:22Z")
Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein novels are set in New Orleans. I don’t know if the third one will ever get written now, because of Katrina. ---
**Author:** ![Harry1945](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e47c2d/32.png) [@Harry1945](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harry1945)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2008, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/16 "2008-03-08T05:05:16Z")
In that series, James Lee Burke came up with one of my all-time favorite book titles: In The Electric Mist With The Confederate Dead. ---
**Author:** ![audit1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@audit1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audit1)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2008, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/17 "2008-03-08T05:36:24Z")
Mystery writer John Dickson Carr set some of his later novels in New Orleans. Deadly Hall is set in 1927 and Papa La Bas is set in 1858. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2008, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/18 "2008-03-08T16:17:19Z")
Another vote for Martin’s _Fevre Dream_. The New Orleans passages are quite memorable and evocative. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2008, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/19 "2008-03-08T16:19:14Z")
[QUOTE=Harry1945] In that series, James Lee Burke came up with one of my all-time favorite book titles: In The Electric Mist With The Confederate Dead. [/QUOTE] One of my favorite quotes: “He…was convinced that inside every reformer there was a glandular, lascivious, and sweaty creature aching for release.” ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2008, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487/20 "2008-03-08T16:25:56Z")
[QUOTE=Chefguy] Try the novels by [James Lee Burke](http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/103-0551241-2085458?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=burke), particularly his “David Robicheaux” books. The character is fairly dark, as he is a cop with a past, working in one of the seediest cities in America. _Jolie Blon’s Bounce_ was very good, with menacing characters, murder, music, etc. [/QUOTE] Make sure to read them in order because Robicheaux’s life develops along the way from book to book. The first in the series _Neon Rain_ has Dave working in New Orleans. In later books he is upstate but often has to visit the Big Easy. The books are tremendously evocative of life down there and he is one of my alltime favourites. I started with \*In The Electric Mist With Confederate Dead \* (what a title eh) but then spent about a year finding all the previous DR books in order. Glad I did. edit - Repetitive me in the end - edit [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-novels-set-in-new-orleans/440487.md?page=2)