Sunset Limited

Heres what to expect from a novel in the Dave Robicheaux series byJames Lee Burke: Dave will get himself into trouble by ignoring orders from the Sheriff, his boss, and by disregarding threats from supremely dangerous people. Daves former partner in the New Orleans Police Department, Clete Purcell, will make even more trouble for himself.Daves partner in his bait shop, Batist, his adopted teenage daughter, Alafair, and his wife, Bootsie, will all make cameo appearances. The New Orleans mob or the Dixie Mafia, and possibly both, will prove to be involved in some nefarious and deadly goings-on in New Iberia Parish, where Dave lives and works. At least one hitman will make multiple attempts to kill Dave or someone close to him. A diverse array of characters will wander in and out of the tale, including ex-convicts, both Black and white, New Orleans mobsters with colorful names, a wealthy and powerful white family, a lesbian deputy sheriff, and perhaps an FBI or DEA agent. And a tragic event many years in the past will be revealed to lie at the heart of a tangle of mysteries now bedeviling Dave.

Now, you might think a formulaic approach like this would quickly grow stale. But the Dave Robicheaux series is anything but stale and predictable. In fact, theres little thats predictable in these eminently readable thrillers. The mystery at the core of the plot is so complex that no reader is likely to untangle it before the storys end. The books setting in rural southern Louisiana is lush and steamy, painted in Burkes evocative, poetic language, and he portrays every character in three dimensions. The dialogue is lively and inventive. In short, James Lee Burke is one of the most accomplished English stylists Ive encountered anywhere.

In Sunset Limited, the tenth novel in the Dave Robicheaux series, the long-ago event that centers the story is the crucifixion of Jack Flynn, a radical labor organizer, forty years in the past. Flynns son and daughter, Cisco and Megan, have just returned to New Iberia in the midst of successful careers elsewhereCisco as a film producer, Megan as an award-winning photographer sought all over the world. Cisco has come to produce a film on site in New Iberia with a famous director and a high-priced cast. Unfortunately, the director is nasty and thoroughly unscrupulous, and the Hong Kong Triads are financing the film. Meanwhile, an African-American ex-con named Cool Breeze Broussard has managed to bring in the FBI to investigate his charge of brutality in the local lockup and succeeds in gaining release into the agencys custody. And there is a connection between Broussard and the film that will not be revealed until much later.

For Dave, the mystery that is causing him to lose sleep involves that forty-year-old crucifixion. Three men were responsible, and he wants to know who they are. As he pursues his investigation, he finds himself deeply ensnared in Cool Breezes life and fate, in the questionable activities of the Flynn siblings, and in confrontations with the New Orleans mob, the film director, a wealthy local landowner, and a pair of hitmen who show up in the parish. If you like untangling puzzles, youll love Sunset Limited.

James Lee Burke is one of my favorite writersin any genre. I’ve reviewed many of his books, most recentlyThe master of Louisiana noir andNeo-Nazis, the Jewish Defense League, and a sunken Nazi submarine.

For at least the second time in the Dave Robicheaux series, the story revolves around a body Dave found as a youth, which is two more than the rest of us. Years ago, he found a radical union organizer named Flynn crucified with wooden pegs. Now his daughter Megan, a photojournalist has returned, supposedly to do a story on a black man and minor convict, Cool Breeze Broussard, who cost a jailer, Alex Guidry, his job. Also on the scene is her shady brother Cisco, filming a movie on plantation owners, and tied into Guidry, a character named Harpo Scruggs, and a sociopath named Boxleitner. Somewhere in this morass is the influence of a family named Terrabone, whose daughter Lila is an alcoholic whom Dave has tried to help.

As has become usual in Jamie Lee Burke’s depictions of the detective for New Iberia Parish, there is much to uncover about the past, as well as the solving of a series of current murders and several lesser crimes. There is the mysterious case of Broussard’s wife, who left him and theoretically, committed suicide. Dave’s former partner and friend from the New Orleans Police Department, Clete Purcel, gets involved with Megan, an odd combination, given her worldliness and his penchant for violence and his overwhelming personality. Dave, knowing Megan plots every move she has ever made, worries that his friend might get hurt.

And here, Robicheaux carries more than his usual baggage. The memories of Vietnam, his own alcoholism, although he is now sober, the memory of his murdered second wife despite being happily married to Bootsie, his pain over his mother and her neglect and lusty sexuality that gave her identity, and especially, a deep guilt over the injustice done to blacks and the poor in the south over the years. There is a lot to absorb in Sunset Limited, helped mightily by the generally great writing which flows easily from page to page. There are very few decent people in the book outside the usual cast, Bootsie, Batist, Dave’s daughter Alafair, and his fellow law enforcement professionals. Everyone else it seems has revenge, a scheme or murder on their minds. But unlike the preceding book in the series, Cadillac Jukebox, which I found somewhat implausible and overreaching, Burke pulls this book together well, although the ending does not accomplish real justice. Revenge, much to Robicheax’s chagrin, triumphs.

I have read many books by this author through the years. However, I believe this will be the last one I read due to the cruelty & horror of the life he depicts in Louisiana. His writing is beautifully descriptive. He can make you feel the humidity, hear the night insect sounds, & get your heart racing in fear. But I did not enjoy this one. I was tempted to stop reading on several occasions. For me, the time to have these word pictures in my subconscious has passed.

James Burk has another winner with Sunset Limited. His Dave Robicheaux books are are always full for action, suspense and local color, which is for the most part quite accurate. ( Yes it does rain almost every afternoon during the summer in New Iberia)

Dave Robicheaux is a small town cop with a special talent for getting into deep do-do with some very bad people. He constantly digs himself in deeper and sucks in a large web of friends and enemies – mostly enemies.

How he gets out and keeps himself and most of his friends alive is always provides plenty of action and suspense.

This book did seem to have a rather odd ending. I found myself reading along, thinking there were several chapters left, then suddenly it just kind of stopped. No winding down in the action. He just chased all the bad guys out of town, went home, had a good dinner, then that was it.

As always, I’ll be looking to see what kind of trouble Dave gets into in the next episode!

Sunset Limited

This a long rambling story in the true JLB format with the two heroes, Clete and Jack fighting crime, booze and misfortune. It is well written and keeps up the interest with sharp turns and sudden surprises to give a long enjoyable read. Like all JLB novels the outcome is not always predictable. Not the very best but up there near the top.

Galaxyaudiobook Member Benefit

- Able to comment

- List watched audiobooks

- List favorite audiobooks

- Bookmark will only available for Galaxyaudiobook member