Dark Roux

by Toby LeBlanc

Dark Roux is the story of a family simmering on the verge of burning to ruin. The delicate nature of this sauce depicts how Cajun culture survives Americanization along parade routes and swamps in South Louisiana. The Mouton family approaches Mardi Gras 1999 expecting traditional joy and release. But teenage struggles with sexual orientation and independence, the ambiguity of young love complicated by the racism of the South, motherhood leaving little room to love one’s self (even when two non-family women are waiting to help), and blind ambition as a way to deal with the past, all plague the family. The lines tying them together become taut, threatening to fail and toss them into the hurricane of the future.

348 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 9, 2022

About the author

Toby LeBlanc has been working as a mental health therapist for the last twenty years, listening to the stories of others. His writing is most often based in Louisiana, where he was born and raised. In writing about this place, he seeks the mystique, the joie de vivre, and the struggles that define this corner of the world. Some of his short fiction can be found in Coffin Bell Journal, Barrelhouse Magazine, and Deep South Magazine. His novel, Dark Roux, was published by Unsolicited Press in 2022 and Soaked (short story collection) was published by Cornerstone Press in February 2025. He's been known to talk to trees and sneak extra seasoning into food.

Reviews

[Samanta Seah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simmering and evocative. It touches on key issues of race, culture, and generations. I enjoyed!

[Micah Jackman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Toby takes the reader into a world of Cajun culture with characters that develop (or don't) over a period of time. His descriptions of Cajun culture make me wish I was from Louisiana. I haven't read a page turner like this since pre-COVID. Even though the book is set in the late 1990's and early 2000's the themes of the book are right on par with what is happening in America today.

[Jim Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

The poet Billy Collins said family is the original insane asylum, where each inmate searches to find their own room. The disintegrating Mouton family constructed by author Toby LeBlanc and placed at the core of Dark Roux is custom made to prove Collins right. The novel is masterfully crafted in four parts, each part a first-person narrative from the members of the Mouton nuclear family: William (teenage son), Beatrice (distressed mother), Addie (rebellious twentyish daughter), and John (absentee father). Their individual struggles to “find their own rooms” is a clear reminder of why we read literary fiction; to see ourselves and our friends and family and enemies reflected back at us. Reflected unflinchingly with facades and masks removed. That’s how we get a glimpse at the scars and foibles that define us.
Toby LeBlanc sets trouble in motion for the Mouton family, to be sure, but also provides another great reason to read Dark Roux: the insight gained into the unique and rich Cajun culture, a culture replete with original and unique language, food, music, and customs to be found nowhere else in America. In Cajun cooking, dark roux is used as a base for many dishes. LeBlanc has used it here to cook up a delicious novel.

[Jordy Pujol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Those of us who grew up in Louisiana know the gravity of the culture. It’s a force that compels us to ride with our foot off both the brake and the gas pedal. It’s skeptical of everything, seeing virtually all societal progress as being only for progress’s sake. Dark Roux is a compelling story about that gravity and the constant conflict between the need to change and the sometimes-muddy business of actually changing.
I’m not one for detailed reviews. I always feel like they can’t do a good book justice. I will just say that Toby LeBlanc has written a thoughtful book, at times hilarious and heartbreaking, with beautiful and believable characters (Auguste Chenevert steals the show throughout) who bring to life that conflict I mentioned above. Every major character has enough depth that it’s easy to picture their spin-offs. I felt that there were no wasted pages and no lengthy or unnecessary monologues. This was an engaging read, and I look forward to LeBlanc’s future work!

[G.M. Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dark Roux is a character-centered drama set in the rich world of Southern Louisiana's Cajun culture. The narrative spans the time leading up to Mardi Gras and the weeks that follow, as seen through four different perspectives of the Mouton family members. Each of the family members wrestles with their own fears and secrets, but at the heart of all their tales is the grandfather, Auguste Chenevert, a man who seems to embody the family's sense of what "Cajun" means, both for good and for ill.

This novel is intensely character-driven, so don't read expecting all the plot threads to wrap up at the end, all questions to be answered, or comforting text that tells us "where are they now" in an epilogue. This story is about a singular moment of loss and growth (and sometimes the refusal to grow) for each of the characters, and through this moment, we get a glimpse of how each of the family members comes to terms (or doesn't!) with who they are, what they want and need, and how their culture and home fits into them as a full person.

All of these characters are treated with sympathy by the author, yet their flaws are central to the story and so human, it's often painful to read about. This book is also about a particular time and place, so as much as it is a love letter to Cajun culture, it does not gloss over issues such as racism and homophobia (these in fact being central to the struggles of the family). These subtleties and contradictions are particularly embodied in Auguste himself, and though we never hear the tale from his perspective, he is a delightfully nuanced character with down-to-earth charisma that shines off the page.

I am not particularly familiar with Cajun culture or life in Lafayette in the 90s, but LeBlanc's novel feels like a genuine taste of that reality, and the city and the culture are as central of characters to the story as Auguste. The book is well written (and if you know Louisiana French, you'll be able to read more than me, but it's clear from context even without knowing any), and it's a wonderful read for anyone interested in family dramas and character studies. Reading about so much drinking definitely hurt my liver though!

[Amys Bookshelf Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Toby LeBlanc writes a powerful Cajun-born tale

In Dark Roux, the reader is brought into the life of William, with his sister, Addie, his mother, and his Paw Paw. I read LeBlanc's stories in Soaked, and was very intrigued by this story as well. As a born and bred Louisianan, LeBlanc's writing comes from his culture, his heart, and something that he holds dear to him, hoping to never lose, the legacy of the Cajun and Creole culture that is so vibrant, but also parts seem to fade away. Once I read his work, I was hooked, and I couldn't wait to dig into this one. If you haven't read his work, you should, you must. I have become a huge fan of Toby LeBlanc and want to read whatever this author writes. This author has a grand imagination, and talent for showing the story. The character William is also the narrator, which gives the story an interesting perspective. What an engrossing story. This story is an attention grabber, so much I couldn't put it down. Such an unforgettable read. Dark Roux is a definite recommendation by Amy's Bookshelf Reviews. I read this book to give my unbiased and honest review. Amy's Bookshelf Reviews recommends that anyone who reads this book also write a review.

[Robert Craven · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Dark Roux' is a Cajun sauce - it needs constant attention otherwise it will burn, congeal or become inedible. Toby LeBlanc takes this idea to build the story of the Mouton family on the eve of Mardi Gras. Its beautifully written and steeped in atmosphere with a nod to the great Thornton Wilder as each family member has their story to tell in each chapter.

What makes this book hugely enjoyable is how LeBlanc weaves Cajun culture through the characters dialogue without resorting to cliche.

A slow read that reminded me of John Berendt's 'Midnight in the garden of good and evil'

a great, challenging, uncompromising read.

[Laurie Woodford · Rating 5 out of 5]

A vivid and compelling read, Dark Roux introduced me to evocative characters and a setting—Cajun country—that resonated deeply through artful description. LeBlanc really is a master of vivid description and detail. He makes the sounds, tastes, smells of place, and the complexity of characters and culture jump off the page. Wonderful book!