VOODOO, LTD. by Ross Thomas

Finished Th 8/14/14

I was looking through my collection for something by Ross MacDonald, and found this one that was written in 1992.

The characters names are probably the most striking thing in the novel, although the story was inventive, and kept me interested until the very end. These characters are used in several of his novels.

Ione Gamble- Hollywood actress and director. In this book she is framed for murder and blackmail. She was drunk and arrives at the home of billionaire, William A.C. Rice IV (Billy). "Was disliked or despised by everyone who knew him for more than three minutes". Ione is 'black-out' drunk and shoots a Chagall painting in the foyer, but only finds the body. She can't remember a thing, and the plot hinges on the location of a pair of questionable, brother and sister team of hypnotists who will help her recover the lost memories of that New Year's Eve night.

The title is a bastardization of the names of the two owners of the detective agency.
Artie Wu and Quincy Durant. 'WuDu'. Durant is also known as, 'that fucking Durant'.

Booth Stallings and Georgia Blue. They are a couple and he is a terrorism expert and significantly older than the rest of the characters. Georgia is an ex-CIA operative.

Otherguy Overby (Maurice Overby) Works with Artie and Quincy on firm business

The reveal is that one of Billy's neighbors shot him because the billionaire's house was blocking his view of the ocean. Eddie Cleveland was his name. And, Jim Broach was Ione's lawyer and manager. He was trying to blackmail her with the tapes of her hypnotized interview.

Hughes and Pauline Goodison are the brother and sister hypnotist team who falsely claim that they are husband and wife. They engage in incest and attempt sexual assignations with numerous people. Hughes and Pauline are murdered by Jack Broach.

Howard Mott, a Washington Lawyer takes Ione's case in criminal court. He's a recurring character in Thomas's works.  

Colleen Cullen is a black owner of a seedy bed and breakfast in Topanga Canyon and deals in almost anything illegal (guns, drugs, etc.). The climactic shootout occurs in her establishment.