Wizarding world – Johnson populates New Orleans with magical characters

“The scariest sound in New Orleans’ French Quarter is silence,” begins Elysian Fields, the third installment in Suzanne Johnson’s Sentinels series. It’s a haunting opening, especially for anyone who has had the rare experience of silence in the Quarter, and it kicks off a particularly dire series of events for Drusilla Jaco, the new wizard sentinel of New Orleans. In previous installments, DJ has dealt with the arcane while recovering post-Katrina and an unexplained pollution of the Mississippi River. Now, she is tasked with policing local preternaturals who are legally entitled to enter New Orleans, including vampires, elves and the historical undead.

Jake Warin, a loup-garou, accidentally infects DJ, placing her under the threat of turning at the next full moon, a virtual death sentence for a wizard sentinel. Suddenly, her best chance at survival might be the relative safety of Jean Lafitte’s domain in the Beyond.

If that weren’t enough, an unknown necromancer has taken control of infamous serial killer the Axeman of New Orleans and is using him to commit bloody modern-day murders. DJ faces a literal death sentence when she learns she’s the Axeman’s intended target and races to discover the identity of the necromancer controlling him.

Throughout the book, DJ’s just trying to do her job while also worrying about Jake, fending off her odd neighbor and dodging some creepy elves determined to discover what elven powers she wields.

What could be dizzying plot threads becomes, in Johnson’s deft hands, a rich, fast-paced story, full of outlandish twists and impossible-to-forget characters. She revives famous New Orleanians and uses real locations in a delightfully unique way, adding a filter of magic to the familiar. A former citizen of New Orleans, Johnson now lives in Auburn, and this perhaps allows her to depict a simultaneously realistic and magical city.

Adult fans of Harry Potter and the Sookie Stackhouse series will enjoy Johnson’s Sentinels books. Already established fans will appreciate that this third installment includes appearances from all of their favorite characters, including hefty doses of Jean Lafitte. Johnson has plans for more books and teases that Elysian Fields is the beginning of a big story arc for the rest of the series, which will include at least two more titles.

Elysian Fields is available in stores Aug. 13.