[.ca] The Neon Rain: A Dave Robicheaux Novel (ISBN 0743449207)

Mystery 101 (One Man's Continuning Education):
Except for a few Christies in my teens, I never read mysteries at all (except for one or two that somehow made it into my college curriculum). It had less to do with a lack of interest than a lack of time. I was a struggling academic a long time (too long) and, although I enjoyed mystery films and TV shows, almost everything I read had to do with what I thought would be my life's vocation. But the genre always intrigued me. International literary figures from Borges to Duerrenmatt have championed the genre and have often used it to their own ends. I was aware that many mystery writers were quite serious about their writing and that much of it rivaled the best in contemporary serious literature. So in recent years, I've been playing catch up. I've joined with others in forming a Mystery Discussion Group in my public library...and most of these folks are much more knowledgeable than I am. In the past year, we have been doing a lot of sampling of various series, usually a very early work. I will say that of all the authors we've discussed thus far, James Lee Burke was the least well received--by OTHERS! I found this hard hitting, hard bitten writer to be compelling. But most of the other members of the group seem to prefer more of a "drawing room" type mystery. I don't think I had ever really realized how great a gulf there was between the various sub-genres (I guess it's the Hammett vs. Christie school of thought). If you've ever railed against the "bloodless" old-school, high tea kind of mysteries, you may want to check Burke out. People really die brutal, ugly deaths here. Murder is not seen as an intellectual puzzle, but as a horrible, de-humanizing reality. For that alone, I give Burke high marks. His complex, not very likeable (anti-)hero, Dave Robicheaux is another. This scarred Viet Nam vet is cynical, bitter and almost unapproachable. Yet he retains a core of decency that, I think, will redeem him in most readers' eyes. But like his extraordinarily understanding and patient love interest in the novel, the reader will have to cut through an almost impenetrable wall of defenses before discovering that moral core. Some of the readers below have commented that this is not the strongest effort in the Dave Robicheaux series. That seems likely: first efforts usually aren't. I will certainly encourage my fellow discussion group members to sample other Burke novels before they pass final judgment. But I don't expect that Robicheaux, or Burke himself, to develop a rosier take on life and of human nature. Dave Robicheaux seems to belong to the subset of detective that we call "hard-boiled." I'm interested in reading other entries in the series, and know that if NEON RAIN is any indication, they'll be chock-full of surprises. But one thing I know not to expect is for Dave Robicheaux to turn into Mr.Warmth at any point. Now THAT would be a real disappointment!

On The Way To Burnout:
New Orleans Detective Dave Robicheau finds the body of a black prostitute named Lovelace Deshotels while fly-fishing in Bayou Lafourche. Robichaux believes Lovelace is a murder victim although the Cataouatche Parish sheriff is treating the case as an accident. He begins to get interested in the case even though it is out of his jurisdiction and with the help of his partner, Cletus Purcel, is led to drug boss Julio Segura from Nicaragua and Didoni Giacomi of New Orleans organized crime. Robicheaux's task is complicated by the fact that his half-brother Jimmy is a friend of Giacomi. This book is the first in the Dave Robicheaux series and the finale for Dave on the New Orleans police force. He retires due to burnout. THE NEON RAIN is one of the better entries in the Dave Robicheaux series.

Neon Rain: Burke true heir to Hammett:
There is only one other mystery writer alive today who can approach the genius of Burke and that is Dennis Lehane. If you have not had the pleasure of discovering Burke, do so with this, the first of his 11, soon to be 12, novels starring the alchoholic, Cajun detective from New Iberia and The Big Easy, David Robicheaux. Dark and edgy and existential, Robicheaux inhabits a world of demons both internal and external. With the brutality of a Peckipah film and the honesty of Sartre essay, this detective puts the formulaic best sellers to shame. If you want to remember why you read Ross McDonald (Lou Archer) and John D (Travis Magee) then do what I'm doing: start with Neon Rain and work your way through in order. The rewards are like a Saturday at the movies when it was a dime and the serials were as good as the main feature and the Duncan Yo Yo expert could walk the dog and rock the cradle. Drop the best sellers, unless you're reading The Last Empire or The Corrections and pick up James Lee Burke. You won't regret it.

Neon Rain: Burke true heir to Hammett:
There is only one other mystery writer alive today who can approach the genius of Burke and that is Dennis Lehane. If you have not had the pleasure of discovering Burke, do so with this, the first of his 11, soon to be 12, novels starring the alchoholic, Cajun detective from New Iberia and The Big Easy, David Robicheaux. Dark and edgy and existential, Robicheaux inhabits a world of demons both internal and external. With the brutality of a Peckenpah film and the honesty of Sartre essay, this detective puts the formulaic best sellers to shame. If you want to remember why you read Ross McDonald (Lou Archer) and John D (Travis Magee) then do what I'm doing: start with Neon Rain and work your way through in order. The rewards are like a Saturday at the movies when it was a dime and the serials were as good as the main feature and the Duncan Yo Yo expert could walk the dog and rock the cradle. Drop the best sellers, unless you're reading The Last Empire or The Corrections and pick up James Lee Burke. You won't regret it.

More graphic than I expected:
I've been holding onto this book for awhile, having bought it on the recommendation of Doug and Tomi Lewis at the Little Bookshop of Horrors in Denver. I'd been interested in Burke's novels based on his critical reputation and evocative titles, but had hesitated to start another mystery series when I was having so much trouble getting throught the ones I had started years ago. But then Burke visited the Bookshop on a signing tour, and Doug and Tomi convinced me to give him a try. Dave Robicheaux is a New Orlean's detective who's got two problems. One, a man on death row tells him that he's marked for death, and, two, he's worried about what this floater he found in an east side bayou might mean. Along the way, he discovers that the time problems are not as separate as they might seem. The writing is good, but the plot is steamier and more graphic than I had expected. The brutality in the book matches Burke's style, but was surprising coming from what I had thought the book would be based on the critical comments that I had read. The most intriguing aspect of this book was the handling of Robicheaux's alcoholism. This is a modern detective novel, tough but not in the unrealistic hard-boiled style. Robicheaux's drinking problem is a living thing--not a static bit used to "develop" the character and only ends up being paint on the cardboard cut out. Robicheaux's problem is as much of a dynamic as himself, or, to put it better, is a reflection of his own dynamic personality.