Rating: 
Summary: This is writing !
Review: I listened to the bookseller and was not deceived! I've just finished reading this book, and I find that we do have what they call a writer. At ease with both plot and surroundings,(cf the sceneries descriptions), J L Burke creates a daunting story, unconventional, and most of it, Robicheaux is quite in the domein of possible. I do not dismiss the nightmares parts, since we all experience fantasizing and daydreaming.As a teacher of English, I think lots of it -i.e. descriptions- would be allright to study.
Rating:
Summary: Burke Never Disappoints
Review: I read blurbs on books... They can be useful; some blurbs are from obscure publications; some are from authors who appear to be doing a favor to someone. But if I see a blurb from an author who rarely blurbs, and whom I respect, I will buy the book on that basis alone.
Walker Percy gave this book a strong favorable review. I bought the book, the 1st Burke book I read, and have bought everything by Burke since.
Burke's books address questions of morality, and how a moral person behaves in an immoral world. They are full of compassion and of passion. I cannot recommend him too highly.
Rating: 
Summary: Blues Clues
Review: I read this after reading 'Burning Angel' and thought I was reading the same book. I like how Burke takes the time to make the setting of the novel feel very real so it makes his books interesting however like I mentioned the 2 books I have read were VERY similar.
Rating:
Summary: Another winner!!!!
Review: I started reading James Lee Burke last year, and I have to say, so far this is the best series that I've come across. After reading The Neon Rain, Heaven's Prisoners, and this gem, Burke has captivated me from page one. If he wrote the directions for programming a VCR, I would be first in line to buy a copy. His characters are real, the writing witty and thought provoking, not to mention truly beautiful. James Lee Burke is in a class by himself. When Clete and Dave get together, the book comes to life like never before. If you haven't read it, read it. You will be thankful.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Disappointing
Review: I was excited when I picked up this book because I had heard good things about Burke and the Robicheaux novels. Plus, this novel had won the Edgar Award a few years back, so I figured it had to be good. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Reading this book was one of the more excruciating experiences in recent memory. There is very little action in this book and very little suspense. The main character has got to be one of the more dull leads in modern crime fiction that I've read. For a good quarter of the novel, I swear he's just sitting on his porch, drinking iced tea feeling sorry for himslef, and the rest of the book he's driving around threatening people, telling them to leave him alone. Boring, bad, waste of time. This is my first Burke and Robicheaux novel and certainly the last.
Rating:
Summary: Very Disappointing
Review: I was excited when I picked up this book because I had heard good things about Burke and the Robicheaux novels. Plus, this novel had won the Edgar Award a few years back, so I figured it had to be good. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Reading this book was one of the more excruciating experiences in recent memory. There is very little action in this book and very little suspense. The main character has got to be one of the more dull leads in modern crime fiction that I've read. For a good quarter of the novel, I swear he's just sitting on his porch, drinking iced tea feeling sorry for himslef, and the rest of the book he's driving around threatening people, telling them to leave him alone. Boring, bad, waste of time. This is my first Burke and Robicheaux novel and certainly the last.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: I went into a mystery bookstore ten years ago and asked them to order me a few of the most recent Edgar winners. This was one of them. I read it and I loved it. It used to have this awesome blue and hot pink cover. I like to look at it. JLB kicks ass. A great book.
Rating: 
Summary: Much more than just another hard boiled detective novel
Review: I've read about half of Burke's Robicheaux novels, in no particular order, and I consider it one of the better ones in the series. The simple, powerful eloquence of Burke's writing is a beautiful thing to behold. He truly posesses a gift for metaphorical description, the likes of which have not been seen since Raymond Chandler's Phillip Marlowe spun his morality plays of Los Angeles in the 1930's and 40's. The strength of the books in general are the emphasis on the thoughts and feelings of the main character, with the action of the story sometimes taking a back seat. I found myself looking forward to these brief respites throughout the novel. For example, I found the insight by Robicheaux that we all essentially become the reflection we see of our selves in other peoples eyes to be particularly touching and often quite true. The only criticism I really had was sometimes things got a little too metaphysicial and "otherworldly", case in point being how the dead woman told him in a dream about where to look for buried murder victims. There was in my mind a similar weakness in the "In the Electric Mist With Confederate Dead", but I'll save my thoughts on that for another review.
Rating:
Summary: and counting
Review: I've read Bitterroot, Heartwood, Neon Rain, Cadillac Jukebox, Purple Cane Road, and Sunset Limited. So far, Black Cherry Blues is my favorite, because it has more unexpected twists and surprises, better character development, interesting relationship dynamics, insightful comments - and more completely portrays Robicheaux as a complex person. Black Cherry Blues is a great ride with loose strings tied up nicely at the end.
Rating:
Summary: Still the best
Review: I've read them all and this one is still the best in the Robichaux series. Start with this one. Geaux Tigers!
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