Dang, this series just gets darker and darker. Dr. Orient starts this one all alone. His crack team of telepathic students is long gone. No mention is made of his faithful manservant Sordi or his friend Sybelle. I guess Lady Sativa is out of his life for good now, too. The CIA starts leaning on him to teach them his telepathic secrets. When he refuses, they try to strongarm him. When that doesn't work, they torch his awesomely groovy house. He meanders up through Canada and back to try to lose them, and winds up down in Miami. He's at low enough ebb to succumb to a common mugging, and from there it's a short fall into the clutches of a crime-lord who sustains his empire at least in part through the voodoo-like cult of which he's a high-priest. The crime-lord's wife and high-priestess uses her sexuality to ensnare Orient body and soul, and by that point, he's in no shape to resist her.
That's only the beginning, though. Before it's over with, he'll have to pass through the Bermuda Triangle.
I swear, it's like Lauria built each story around several of my favorite In Search Of . . . episodes.
3 comments:
Darn. I thought I had and had read all the books in the series, but somehow I missed this one.
Wow, so many intersecting plotlines -- how does the reader keep up? lol I love the part about running away to Canada as like a "safe haven" but the title and cover seem to suggest a weird Bride of Frankenstein amalgamation lol
Darkeva
Have been enjoying the reviews of this series, and will definitely have to pick a few of these books up.
Did some digging on Lauria, and he seems to be an interesting character - hung out with the Beats in San Francisco in the late fifties. (Seems Burroughs was a fan of Doctor Orient!) More recently, he's worked on various movie novelizations, and has participated in events commemorating Kerouac. He's supposed to have a blog, but I've been unable to locate it.
Seems like Frank is still around, and must have some good stories to tell. I'd love to read an interview.
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