Jury out on this one

I love the way James Lee Burke writes, and I love the characters in his stories, Cletus Purcell has to be one of the great literary personalities of all time. The setting it enthralling as ever, but the foe in this story is just a little to much of a ghost and Dave R. is just walking into too many traps set for him in this one without seeing the writing on the wall. All of that said, I still liked the book, enjoyed Cletus having a prominent role and enjoyed the various characters and how they were developed. I really love the narration in this series and really do not understand the controversy, it is first rate as far as I am concerned. All things considered I am looking forward to the next in the series as even a flat spot in this collection is better than the best works by most authors.
Recommended.

8 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Eloquent√ Lyrical√ Sloooooooooow √√√

Maybe I overdosed on James Lee Burke. This is my sixth Dave Roubicheaux novel and the last three I listened to back to back to back. Mark Hammer's tongue is wrapped around bayous, filagreed iron window screens and Spanish moss. He speaks through a veil of humidity and swampy muscle. He somehow makes the rich vocabulary and elegant metaphoric Roubicheaux musings seem plausible from the mind of this hard-scrabble back gator country lawman.

This time it took just a tad too much to do it. Burke is a poet first, a sociologist second, a dramatist third, a gently liberal social commentator, and ... oh yeah... a detective mystery procedural writer. Here it is the last that seems to be stretched a lot too thin. The characters were either too complex for the plot, or too comic-book skinny to hold up its pants.

I'm going to take a break from Dave, Bootsey, Alafair, and Cleetus. If you've not listened to a Roubicheaux novel... start from the beginning. You'll think, feel, and even tear up. But maybe you'd do well after the first five to pause before beginning this one. Just like I'll take a break before downloading the seventh....

6 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

The dangers of doing the right thing

What did you love best about Dixie City Jam?

James Lee Burke's writing is like poetry. Amidst the ugliness of hate and crime, he describes the surroundings so beautifully. Dave's thoughts about his past, his culture, his family, and his struggles are blended so seamlessly. I, also, really enjoy the relationship between Dave and Clete. Every interaction between them is entertaining.
I hope Brother Oswald makes future appearances in the Robicheaux series-loved his commentary on Dave's intellect, lending subtle humor to a dark story.

What other book might you compare Dixie City Jam to and why?

Any of John Sandford's "Prey" books. The writing style is very different but a lot of similar themes and has the common thread of a character study of the protagonist throughout the series.

What does Mark Hammer bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I have come to appreciate Mark Hammer's narration more than I have in the past, having preferred Will Patton. But, Hammer's performance blended with James Lee Burke's poetic prose resulted in a great listening experience. You really feel inside the story and where it's happening, and you feel that you are experiencing Dave's life and thoughts along with him.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Tommy talking about the part he played in Hippo's brother's death and his regret.

Any additional comments?

I liked how the author makes the characters multidimensional. The criminals sometimes show grace and humanity, and the "good" guys sometimes are self-serving and flawed.

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Audio, audio...it's the voice

Where is Will Patton when there is a Dave Roubiceaux book, I listened all the way to the end, but for me it was not an enjoyable experience. I though the story was a little disjointed, and with a different voice than how I perceive the main character should sound...No, in the future it will be Burke and Patton or no purchase

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this one is scary

Would you consider the audio edition of Dixie City Jam to be better than the print version?

un known

What three words best describe Mark Hammer’s performance?

flat-nasal-ugggggg

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

whole book is very scary and all I can think of is if Will Patten had read this with a actors flare.. holy cow it would have blown me away.

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Dave against the Neo-Nazis

When Dave Robicheaux made the mistake of letting people know he had an idea as to where a World War Two U-boat sunk in the Caribbean might be found, suddenly he has too many people wanting him to lead them to it, including a man calling himself Will Buchalter. With informants dying on him left and right and apparently Bootsie intending to enter the alcoholic state he's fought so hard to put behind him, Dave doesn't know quite whom to trust--and with reason.

Action packed as usual. Although I realized in this one I was perhaps quicker on the uptake and even less trusting than Dave himself, as I had the accomplice pegged pretty quickly on while Dave was still trying to sort out his feelings toward the individual.

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Great

I love the stories Burke write and the authenticity of the characters, the voices and the locations.

Will Patton IS Dave Robicheaux!

Nobody does Dave Robicheaux better than Will Patton. In fact, no one else should ever attempt to replace Will Pattonbecause it can’t be done.

Narration

I love these books as I’ve stated before , I listened to the last half of this series prior to going back and starting from book one. I just don’t like the narration by Mr Hammer. I often get confused with who is saying what because the voices sound so similar to each other. The mispronunciation of local street names and locales is also very off putting to a New Orleans local like myself. Clete Purcel grew up as a tough kid in the Irish Channel. Mr Hammers version of Cletes voice is more redneck and nothing like an Irish Channel guy. I just don’t buy it.
However, as always JLB takes this genre to a new level through his vivid and descriptive prose.

Robicheaux back at it again

I enjoy the Robicheaux novels. At times predictable but I enjoy the stories. The mispronunciation of many last names and places are kind of a sticking point but I muddle through.