What a great book! This one keeps you interested. The atmosphere and the folklore are creepy and you feel like you are right there with with the characters. A definite read for ghost loves and people who like folklore.

I enjoyed this book. It’s funny how it was able to stick with me. I started reading this book Back in Oct, got away from reading for quite some time yet I still had this book with me when I picked it back up to finish it.

Following the death of their mother, siblings Rhiannon and Rhett return to ancestral home. Dark secrets lurk within the crumbling walls, and sinister forces are intent on making sure the siblings stay by any means necessary. What ensues is a story of grief, secrets, love, and legacy.

A Dark Roux is a deeply atmospheric read. Blaine Daigle truly pulls you into the story so you feel you are right there in the bayou with Rhiannon and Rhett. The sense of dread is ever resent, never truly letting up until the story's conclusion, and truthfully even lignering a bit after that. The characters come alive. As a big sister, it was easy to identify with Rhiannon and the lengths she was willing to go to in order to protect her little brother. This book definitely fixates on the broken, and this adds nuance to the characters. They are flawed, deeply at times, which just adds to their realisticness. This is my first book by Blaine Daigle but it definitely won't be my last!

Thank you to NetGalley and Wicked House Publishing for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily and all views expressed are my own.

A Dark Roux was so delicious. Mr. Daigle definitely has a gift for building tension and dread even in the tamest scenes. I loved how the chapters weren't numbered, but instead were labeled for the scene. The book ebbs and flows through different time periods and moments and it is easy to fall into the story. It felt like watching a movie really. That combined with the gorgeous imagery- I felt like I was there. It was so easy to feel the heart-pounding stillness and the hair raising on the back of my neck when the hints of strange began to happen. This book does scary really well! They were really physical, and the panic was palpable. Daigle describes what it feels like, sounds like, and moves like. My adrenaline would go from 0-60 and then hit a wall as he kept me in the suspense of a slow reveal.

Thank you to NetGalley, Wicked House Publishing, and the author for letting me read an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review. I apologize for not reviewing before the publication date! I encourage my horror friends to pick up this book and get cozy. It's the perfect winter read!

A huge thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Wicked House Publishing for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book incorporates all my favorite things from a Southern Gothic tale, and you can almost feel the heat and humidity as the story presses in on you from all sides. Once the story kicks off, there is almost no time to take a moment for a breath, and every new chapter leaves you wanting more. Just when you think you finally understand what is going on, something will happen that will change your entire perspective and understanding of the story.

We follow Rhiannon and her younger brother Rhett as they return to their old house next to the bayou after their mother’s death. Both siblings were forced from their home by their mother after their father’s suicide, and given no explanation on why she could not go with them. Due to this, Rhiannon holds hostility to her late mother and wants nothing more than to sell the house and be done with it completely. However, as they live in the house to get it ready to be sold, it slowly starts coming to life as something begins lurking in the shadows.

This story is told through both dual perspectives and timelines, flashing back to when Rhiannon and Rhett were children and the events that lead to them leaving the house and their mother behind. Confronted with their memories of their father’s suicide, and the hostility of the town they return to, both are left on their one to try to survive whatever is lurking in the bayou. They must rely on their own faulty memories, as well as the clues their mother left behind, to try to piece together how to stop the horror that haunts their old ancestral home.

This book never goes where you expect it to, and just when you think you understand what exactly is going on, it will surprise you with new information. If you were looking for a nice heavy and oppressive Southern Gothic tale where you can feel just as trapped as the characters, I would look no further than this book.

"There is a place deep in the heart of Louisiana where the darkness of the bayou echoes with songs of alligators and bullfrogs, their voices captured in the hanging moss, never to escape—never to be heard by the world beyond the wetlands. A place where black water boils within the thick open veins of nature under the heat of the Louisiana moon. Where water moccasins slide through the waveless pools of algae, eyes large and yellow in the blackness of night. This world buzzes with the beating of paper-thin wings and nighttime feedings.
This is a world that time did not forget, but purposely left alone."

This is how this amazing book opens! I knew just from this paragraph this would be an awesome read and it was.

This is atmospheric creepy story set in the bayous of Louisiana. Rhiannon left her home in Louisiana years ago, but after her mother dies she returns home to be with her brother. But there the siblings are confronted by something dark waiting for them along the bayou.

So good!! Thank you Wicked House Publishing for giving me an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

4.5 stars rounded down :)

A Dark Roux by Blaine Daigle will be available on November 10th, 2023.

Thank you to Netgalley.com, Wicked House Publishing and the author of course for providing me with an eARC of this awesome book!

A Dark Roux was a scrumptiously dark and delicious southern gothic novel by Blaine Daigle, that asks the question, How far are you willing to go to save the ones you love? And boy did it take me on a journey! (much like a well crafted gumbo 😉

The story follows older sister and social worker Rhiannon and younger brother, and environmental conservationist Rhett, two siblings who are forced to return to the house they grew up in because their mother has died. Rhiannon would do anything for her younger brother, including returning to the place that has haunted her with the memories of their suffering since leaving 15 years ago. They arrive to find that some things are just the same as they left them; the townspeople still revile them, the house is decrepit and falling apart, and old ghosts and memories still haunt them. But now there's new trouble on the property and our heroes need to get to the bottom of their past to figure out what's going on! Who keeps breaking into the house at night (even though it's chained and locked!) Where did that coyote roaming the grounds come from? (though when did coyotes start walking on two legs?!) Do the siblings know more than they think? I'll leave that, dear reader, for you to find out!

Oh man, what can I say about this book? Daigle certainly has a way with words and the beautiful writing really lends itself to the gothic, historic and slightly mystical scene. I loved the characters in this book! Each one has their own personalities, motivations and drives that really made their choices make sense and feel natural to them. Also kudos to the author for writing a fully fleshed female MC with just the barest of details (we get that she has dark hair and green eyes). Also, I'm a sucker for learning about folklore and mythoses, and thoroughly enjoyed learning about bayou supernatural folklore. A final note, the reference to the title in the book was sweet and heartwarming and gave me good feels ☺️

When it comes to the negatives, I would say that this is more horror-lite, andmaybe a good introduction to horror for a newbie. I also found a few spelling/missing words, but won't hold that against the book since it's a pre-released copy. Other than those, I have no complaints!

If you are looking for a good introduction to horror, with a dark southern gothic feel, compelling characters, and just a bit of the supernatural, then A Dark Roux is the book for you!

I love Louisiana bayou settings and the author created the perfect eerie atmosphere. Blaine Daigle’s prose is enjoyable and descriptive without being overly so. I felt like I could see, smell, and feel everything described. The story flowed nicely; I liked that the impending sense of dread grew with each page. I was able to connect easily with the characters and appreciated how fleshed out they were. My connection to the characters added to the feeling of dread because I didn’t want anything to happen to them! All the plot twists were fun and kept me engaged, I kept turning the pages because I just had to know what was going to happen next. If you are looking for a southern supernatural horror story, I recommend giving A Dark Roux a try!

Thank you so much to Wicked House Publishing for providing this eARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

<i>A Dark Roux</i> is a creepy, atmospheric ghost story with a slow simmer. The action builds slowly but steadily as Rhiannon LeBeau and her brother Rhett revisit their family home in the Louisana bayou after the death of their mother. Plagued by chillingly realistic nightmares, Rhiannon can feel that things just aren't right back in the bayou, and as her memories of past horrors resurface and the ghosts and monsters come out to play, she realizes the sacrifices she must make to save her brother.

Setting a macabre tone that permeates throughout the story, the prose is dripping with ominous and eerie emotion. The author's language and word choice is perfect for setting the mood and scene of the bayou, and really triggers the imagination, allowing the reader to fully place themselves in the story. A slow burn but a real creeper... I loved it!

<i>Thank you to NetGalley and the Wicked House Publishing for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.</i>
#ADarkRouxANovel #NetGalley

I love everything about this. The setting, the writing, the character development. It is unique and keeps your interest.

Thank you to Wicked House Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I also was able to receive an ARC of Blaine’s last book so I was really excited to read this one.

A large home stands at the edge of the bayou full of secrets and witchcraft. Rhiannon and Rhett suffer at the hands of an abusive father. He commits suicide, years pass by and their mother, Miranda, has passed and they are tasked with coordinating her funeral and selling the house and land.

Full of mystery, voodoo, and lots of icky gothic goodness.

A Dark Roux is a fun and terrifying romp through the bayou!

A Dark Roux follows Rhiannon LeBeau and her brother Rhett as they piece together their life in face of sudden and desperate tragedy. Forced to come together on their family's ancestral land, they find themselves beset on all sides. Something is coming after them and unless they can discover why and who it is, they just very well may be doomed.

This story took a little bit to hook me, but once things that go bump in the night started making themselves known, I realized I couldn't put this down. The mystery that is center stage was truly second to none. I had to figure out what was going on. Throw in all the spices that exist in the bayou and this made for a fun story that played out like a movie in my mind. The writing style and glimpses into the past is also another fun feature of this story. You'll be guessing time and time again and I promise you won't know exactly what's happening until it finally is revealed.

THE TWIST!! Loved every second of it.

Seriously though, readers will enjoy this story. I definitely enjoyed it and recommend it to readers looking for a bayou mystery like no other.

A Dark Roux by Blaine Daigle is a horror novel about a family living on the Bayou in Louisiana.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Wicked House Publishing and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Rhiannon LeBeau left her ancestral home in the Louisiana bayou 15 years ago, hoping to never return.  But when her mother passes away, she returns to help her younger brother Rhett deal with the aftermath.

Rhiannon finds that things have not changed in the the area.  The house is crumbling, and the town-folk still hate them.  Unfortunately, so much superstition and mysticism surrounded the family, that the hatred continues today.

Family secrets and ghosts of the past come rushing back to Rhiannon and Rhett, and although they both want to finish this and be gone, something else has other plans for them.  They have different memories, but they will have to remember, re-unite, and reconcile their past....if they want to survive.


My Opinions:
I felt that this started very slowly.  I think part of the problem was that it was so descriptive.  On the other hand, I wasn't skimming, because I didn't want to miss anything important...and I wasn't sure what was important.  Overall, it was well-written, but I felt it was a little repetitive, and just a little longer than it needed to be.

The story is told in two main time-lines, and this works well.  We, as readers, are fed back-ground slowly, but surely.

This is a rather dark, deep, and ultimately sad story.   Yes, it is a ghost story, but it is much more than that.  It is about an abusive father,  about a mother who abandons her children, about a daughter that fights to save her brother, and about a brother who knows more than he tells.  Most is done out of love, although it is not until the end that each understands the actions of others.  The characters were deep, and I felt for them all.

Overall, I was very happy with the book.  On another note,  I am left with the urge to re-read Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar.

Thank you NetGalley and Wicked House Publishing for the ARC!

'A Dark Roux' was an exciting premise diving into the dark and mysterious bayou waters. The descriptions of deep Louisiana were beautiful and really helped to set the emotion of the novel. From the very beginning, the reader has a sense of trepidation knowing that the LeBeau family is primed to experience life differently than the townsfolk of Cypress Landing.

In truth, I'm not a huge fan of the genre. Suspense novels have an amazing ability to really put the reader in the atmosphere; however, I need a few more breadcrumbs in order to maintain my interest in the story while we wait to understand the actual conflict. What I will say is that once the reader uncovered the details of the story and not just the outline, it was well worth it! The imagery really was unbeatable.

Overall, I'm excited at the premise of having a new voice to bring color and life to a part of America few people know outside of colloquialisms and movies. I also loved that we got to experience floating on the bayou from child and adult, Rhiannon, and Miranda for comparison. Sometimes the fears we internalize as children are harder to battle as an adult. I wish there was more detail to Miranda's experience on the bayou outside of her pursuit just to continue the thread of landscape descriptions.

Side note, there were several instances where the wrong word was used, especially in the title names. This doesn't read as intentional.

“There are two seasons in the bayou: death and rebirth.” These words could never been more true. This book was so well written. The words to describe the bayou were written by someone who knows the area well. I have always been fascinated by voodoo and how the belief works. Every choice made comes with a price and Rhiannon and Bryce were part of a choice they did not make wholly by themself. Folklore was abundant within these pages and I, for one, was so impressed by this book. I could feel and imagine so many scenes from this book. Unless you are a parent, one cannot understand what sacrifices a parent will make if their love is strong. I could imagine the moss brushing my arm as the boat glided across the quiet waters. The bayou sounds so beautiful and yet so dangerous that I am not sure if I could live there. 5⭐️for sure!
- [x] Where he can’t find you

A Dark Roux by Blaine Daigle

I’m a sucker for books set in Louisiana, with its bayous, culture, and folklore. This Gothic horror has all of that and did not disappoint.

Siblings Rhiannon and Rhett LeBeau have been through a lot. Abandonment of their mother, suicide of their father…after which Rhiannon left for 15yrs. When Rhett contacts her to let her know their mother died, she returns to the family home that holds so much traumatic memories for them both. The house is located in the bayou on an old sugarcane farm. The atmosphere that the author builds is palpable. You can feel the tension and nervousness within the characters, the animosity toward them from other residents of Terrebonne Parish, the evil that is always lurking nearby.

This was one hell of a great book, in my opinion. An absolute must read. Very well done, Mr. Daigle!!

My thanks to Wicked House Publishing, Blaine Daigle, and NetGalley for the advanced copy to read and review. The thoughts herein are my own and voluntary.

Dark southern Gothic, one of my favorite tropes..I enjoyed this story very much. Just wish it had been longer.

A very atmospheric Gothic horror set in the Louisiana bayou. A creepy tale about a haunted house and a family curse with some genuinely chilling moments.

This was a really good gothic horror ghost story. I devoured this book. It’s frightening, thrilling, eerie, and bittersweet. There’s a lot of heart in this book and it is so well written. I think it’s easy to say that Blaine Daigle is at the top of my list of horror authors to watch! I can't wait to read his next book. I would highly recommend this book.


Thank you NetGalley and Wicked House Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC in advance for my honest opinion.

“Dark Roux” by Blaine Daigle is a dual-timeline fantasy haunted house novel set in the ominous, atmospheric bayou of Louisiana, which is always restless, forever changing, and never without its blood-curdling sounds and lurking creatures.

Several generations of the LeBeau family have lived in their bayou home and grown sugar cane in the surrounding fields, as have most other farmers in the area. But something is wrong with the LeBeaus and their house. As children, Rhiannon and Rhett are booed and bullied at school. Classmates even call their mother a witch. This is even more common when a local man disappears and his mother is blamed.

Years later, after the siblings are adults and living on their own, they receive word that their mother is dead and must return to their dreaded childhood home to make arrangements for her funeral. Both have been tortured by physically overwhelming dreams since the news of the death. The fear of returning home is almost paralyzing – especially for Rhiannon – who feels as if she is drowning and suffocated by mold and moss.

But they must return, the compulsion is stronger than fear. Something old, evil and deadly has its fangs in Rhett and Rhiannon, and it has waited long enough to collect its money.

As an aside for more depth and insight, “Roux” could be improved by more thoroughly exploring and developing the shape-shifting aspects of witchcraft, voodoo, and rougarou. These were simply reviewed and readers were asked to take them as fact. Was their mother a generational witch in a coven? Did their father know he was marrying a witch? Did any of her children genetically inherit her abilities? Explain more about the voodoo church and the voodoo priestess. It's the origin story. There are so many more interesting aspects to this story that I would like to know.