Official Review: VooDoo Souls by Ezekiel Azazel II

stoppoppingtheP · Post by **stoppoppingtheP** » 24 Nov 2015, 05:52

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "VooDoo Souls" by Ezekiel Azazel II.]

4 out of 4 stars

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This story is a fictional thriller written by Ezekiel Azazel II and begins in the 1800’s at a time when slave-masters ruled. This is when the curse is first cast, a curse that will travel through the years, causing harm and misery.

The Voodoo Souls is a biker gang which consists of a few guys living in the small town of Macon, Georgia. The gang is more like a friendship forged over many years. The members are older guys who are not as active as they had once been. They include Jim, Rick, Ray, Mike and Bobby.

Unfortunately, a rival gang likes to stir up trouble in the town. What is even more troublesome is the fact that Jim’s nephew Zeke has joined them. Known as the Confederate Buzzards, they are a sinister group of bikers who take part in a wide variety of underhand activities, one of them being dealing drugs. To prove his allegiance to the gang and to finally be a full member, Zeke needs to fetch a big parcel of drugs. Unfortunately, everything doesn’t go as planned and everybody is not as loyal as they claim to be.

A curse seems to have unraveled and begins to affect the members of the Voodoo Gang. Everything starts going wrong when an amulet is dug up, rekindling the evil curse towards those on that soil. Mike, who is half Cherokee knows that the only way to stop all the misery is to undo the magic.

It took me a while to get into this story, and for the first few chapters I was quite confused because it spoke of different characters and times. The first few chapters outlined the history of the person who first made the curse and the consequences thereafter. A few chapters later the Voodoo Souls are introduced to us and their story starts.

The story takes place in a time where racism is still very alive and the KKK are a prominent feature in society. There is also a lot of biblical influence in the story. We can see this by the frequent quotes of the Bible and the names of the chapters. Most of the characters are veterans of war, as is the author. And I think that the author uses his experience to write about this aspect of their characters, how war affected them, and how being in a gang helped in the sense of safety and loyalty.

I cannot claim much knowledge about biker gangs or anything in that realm, and I didn’t always understand the mechanical jargon, but I still enjoyed reading the story. The book was well set out and the storyline was interesting, which kept one reading. I am rating this book a four out of four stars. I would recommend this book to those readers who are interested in thrillers which also contain mystery and magic; and also those readers who have a love for motorcycles and all things mechanical.

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VooDoo Souls
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peprica21 · Post by **peprica21** » 03 Dec 2015, 11:40

Thank you for your review! Sounds like an interesting storyline.

Post by **bookowlie** » 03 Dec 2015, 11:53

I enjoyed your review. I am going to pass on this one since curses creep me out.

Ezekiel Azazel · Post by **Ezekiel Azazel** » 04 Dec 2015, 01:15

Thank you all so much...I can't say what this means to me, especially in the times and place I live. Bless you

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 05 Dec 2015, 07:13

Sounds like an interesting book. However, I'm not much into curses and such. They keep me awake at night

Congratulations to Ezekiel Azazel II for such a wonderful book!

Ezekiel Azazel · Post by **Ezekiel Azazel** » 05 Dec 2015, 14:53

Thanks again

With everyone's input, I will ensure my next book will please even more readers. It will be more about true crime during the roaring 20s, taking place in Art Deco Detroit, Windy Chicago, and Jazzy N'Orleans. It'll be based more on Egyptian/Sumerian mythologies, with a mafia theme...Think Indiana Jones meets Boardwalk Empire. It'll also be heavily influenced by Lovecraft, who at the time, was gaining popularity in Weird Tales pulp magazines, along with writing the Necronomicon (or did he?

The art (which I also do) will be influenced by Picasso (also popular at the time), along with the beautiful Art Deco, Egyptian designs, and movie posters that define that era. From my love and knowledge of the times I write stories about, I can promise, I'll knock the 20s out of the park. I'm having a blast researching, writing, and doing the art-I can't wait to get it perfect, then in your hands

gali · Post by **gali** » 05 Dec 2015, 23:28

Nice review! Sounds good and I like (reading about) curses!

Congratulations to the author for the positive review!

anonanemone · Post by **anonanemone** » 13 Dec 2015, 23:38

Congrats on a great review, Ezekiel! I love that your book is set in Macon, Georgia

And of course, thank you for your service!

Ezekiel Azazel · Post by **Ezekiel Azazel** » 13 Dec 2015, 23:57

Thank you

Georgia was an absolute pleasure to write about, especially Macon. The idea for the location came to me while listening to Dreams by Duane Allman...That song has such an eerie and mystical ring to it, but so phenomenal like all of his work. Macon was (and IS) also so beautiful-Musically, ethically, and the people I spoke with doing research were so kind-I'm in San Diego, but I can see that cities aura from here-Beautiful.
The myths, legends and landmarks are plentiful too-Rose Hill Cemetery, Leopold's Ice Cream (in Savannah), along with a handful that I tied to in New Orleans (where some of book 2 takes place). I did my best to change names/dates, but what's eerie about VooDoo Souls is, there's quite a bit of hidden truth just below the surface. Anyone or anything derogatory in the story is outside of Macon, in fictional towns like the Pits, Shady Acres etc.
Thank you again, and I hope to one day make it out to Georgia (again) for a visit, or maybe even settle there.

Levi · Post by **Levi** » 14 Dec 2015, 13:10

@stoppoppingtheP Absolutely fantastic review. I get enough of motorcycles and mechanical things at work, but this sounds interesting thanks to your review. Congrats to the author, and I like that idea for your next book. I will keep an eye out for it.

stoppoppingtheP · Post by **stoppoppingtheP** » 14 Dec 2015, 15:45

@Escapeartist thanks for the compliments

I must admit that I know very little about motorcycles and anything mechanical, although I've always admired them.

Levi · Post by **Levi** » 14 Dec 2015, 17:31

You are welcome, my friend. And that's okay, the further you are from something the more magical it remains. Sometimes I wish they were still new to me.

Ezekiel Azazel · Post by **Ezekiel Azazel** » 15 Dec 2015, 01:53

Thank you all for the kind compliments

VooDoo Souls was written a little different from the common biker club theme, all too popular from a certain TV show. I enjoyed SoA, but I was very careful not to emulate it in any way, especially living in the creators territory. It's closer to Easy Rider and Wild Ones (Marlon Brando 1954) than anything modern. I also took note, not many (IF any) books on motorcycles have mechanical situations mentioned in them. Owning a Harley myself, I can attest that maintenance is a big part of ownership. I'm thrilled with the formula of it in VS, where a simple tire change leads to what it does. I also included other motorcycles besides Harley that were wildly popular at the time, as I actually like (and have owned) other brands myself.

Levi · Post by **Levi** » 15 Dec 2015, 09:55

I like that idea, patterning it after the earlier stuff. SOA was A good show, but it was just that, a show. I miss those carburetor days (although when I started with Harley it was 2002, so carburetors were already on the way out) when things were much simpler. I like your take on things, I will add this to my list, but I really can't wait for the next book---sounds like a cool idea you have there!

gran1990 · Post by **gran1990** » 16 Dec 2015, 15:00

This was a great review. I am intrigued by the mystic of motorcycle gangs and believe VooDoo Souls by such an interprising writer will definitely be on my to read list as well as his future books. Congrats to stoppoppingthep for a greqt review and to Ezekiel Azazel II for his writing abilities.