Ms. LeBlanc does a wonderful job of capturing the look and feel of Louisiana in her writing. Being from Louisiana myself I could easily picture the shacks on the bayous, but no matter where your from I think you can imagine it. She just does THAT well with her writing.

I recognized a lot of folklore throughout the story that has been passed on from generation to generation and I'm glad to see someone who was able to capture that and make it into a book we can all enjoy.

The story was full of mystery! I was interested and excited! It didn't take me long to finish because I just didn't want to put it down; it's one of those stories that really pulls you in and keeps you reading. If your into a little bit of superstition, some paranormal, and some serious dark mystery then I recommend that you check out this book! ( )

I very much enjoyed Deborah LeBlanc's first novel. Family Inheritance takes that old Southern fiction standby - madness, and spins it into a tale of terror. Jessica LeJuene's mentally unstable drifter brother is hospitalized forcing her to return home to Louisiana. Meanwhile a mysterious swamp-dwelling healer is battling with a demon and is seeking Jessica out for reasons even he does not quite understand.

The book opens with an eerie scene of two girls who've managed to dare each other into paying a visit to a gris gris man to see if he can determine the sex of the pregnant friend's unborn child. The scene was very well written and evocative. Throughout the book Deborah LeBlanc managed very well to capture the atmosphere of Louisiana's bayous and small towns.

Her characters could use a little work though. Two of the main characters (Jessica LeJuene and her brother Todd) were handled pretty well, but the other characters were fairly sketchy. Not bad really and this is only a first novel, but I hope she improves.

Dialog also was sort of spotty at times, but she did a great job relaying the Cajun accents to an outsider like me without going so far over the top that it was laughable.

I do think she handled Todd's unstable mental state very well. Reading his chapters could be very nonsensical and frustrating, but in a good way (if you see what I mean). This could have easily been bungled and the fast that she did so well impressed me quite a bit.

The story flows along nicely, revealing bits and pieces here and there. Many twists I had already figured out ahead of time, but others were a surprise. It culminates in a well written and exciting ending, though I did have a gripe about a character having knowledge from out of nowhere simply because it was needed to bring the story to a close.

Overall, Family Inheritance was a fun, slightly shaky first novel. I enjoyed it and will continue to read her books. And can I add it is so nice to see a female horror writer from that part of the country that isn't dealing with endless series or erotic vampires? ( )