Bitterroot

Rating:
Summary: Wordy
Review: If Mr. Burke left the long convoluted descriptions of every cloud, river, tree etc. out of the novel it would have been a good 175 page mystery, instead it is easy at times to forget the story line, while worrying about what kind of fish might be lurking in what pool and how our hero is casting for said fish. I assume some of the folks in Western Montana may not totally agree with the makeup of Burke's residents, but it is fiction. Certainly not a waste of time, but could have been much better.

Rating:
Summary: "Bitterroot" it Ain't !
Review: Having recently become a James Lee Burke fan and having read several of the Dave Robicheaux novels, I wanted to read "Bitterroot" because I happen to live in the center of the Bitterroot Valley and thought a Burke novel centered in my own "back yard" would be a fun read. However, I have to admit that my expectatations were not met, because easily 90% of the book takes place in locations outside the Bitterroot Valley. Missoula, Seeley Lake, Potomic, Jocko Valley, etc. are not within the Bitterroot, and most of the locations are a good half days drive. As far as the story goes, Burke has his usual bucket full of ner-do-wells and hero's with psychological problems themselves and everyone gets whats coming to them in the end, as it should be! A note of explanation to the reader is that they should remember that this is a fictional story. The human scum Burke writes about, outlaw bikers, white supremests, mafia bosses, and militia compounds are NOT found in the Bitterroot ! I wouldn't want to hear of anyone cancelling a planned vacation here out of fear of running into any of the lower life forms described in the book. All in all, I did like the story, but have to admit that the Robicheaux novels are Burkes best ! Keep them coming and send Billy Bob Holland back to Texas !

Rating:
Summary: Texas Ranger Suspense Novel
Review: At first when I picked this book up, I thought that it was going to be a Western, but this is far from it. It is about a modern day Texas Ranger that has retired and is now a lawyer on vacation in the Bitterroot Mountains with an old friend who finds himself in trouble because his daughter is gang raped and he has been accused of the murder. Billy Bob Holland is still dealing with deamons from killing his partner in a drug bust that went bad on the Mexican border. The dead partner still haunts Billy Bob and helps in his research of the facts. There is a lot going on in this book and it doesn't disappoint the reader at all. This was my first James Lee Burke book and I plan to read to more in the future.

Rating:
Summary: Boy Howdy Billy Bob!
Review: I listened to the unabridged audio version while traveling the highways and biways of the Upper Midwest. The reader, Tom Stechschulte, is a joy to hear. The voicing of the characters is fine! And what a cast of characters it is: Billy Bob Holland, an attorney/former Texas Ranger (the Law Enforcement kind - not G.W.'s former baseball team) and his friends and relatives along with foils including white supremicists, semi-unemployed mafioso, despoilers of the environment, "Tree-huggers," and a sociopathically sinister rodeo clown.

The problem with *listening* to James Lee Burke's writing while driving down the highway is that it would be detrimental to oneself and one's fellow travelers to attempt to contemporaneously write down some of the linguistic jewels one encounters. One zinger was a comment on a particularly syrupy Okie drawl of which, to the best of my recollection, Burke said, "If Shakespeare had heard such a permutation of the English language, Old Will would have written all his stuff in Mandarin Chinese!"

Another drawback of *listening* while driving is that one cannot pause, in the middle of the freeway, to draw charts with circles and arrows to keep clear on who is affilliated with whom, who offed whom, and why. But it was an excellent sojourn in Montana, and I encourage you to take the trip. As a special bonus extra tape, the Unabridged Audio version (I got this at my local library) has a very interesting and illuminating interview with the intelligent and hyper-articulate James Lee Burke. I will definitely be going back and listening to Stechschulte's racountment of this gang's first adventure: "Cimarron Rose." Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Strange Doings in Big Sky Country
Review: The Montana Chamber of Commerce would probably rather that this story had been put in another setting. We don't think of Montana as being a haven for mobsters, pedophiles, neo-Nazis and others given to abherrant behavior, but Bitterroot Valley seems to have them in fair abundance. Also there to stir up the pot are an undercover ATF operative named Sue Lynn Big Medicine, an alcoholic mystery writer, his cokehead actress wife, and in the center, stirring the pot for all that it is worth are Tobin "Doc" Voss a pacifist - turned Navy SEAL - turned poet - turned physician and his friend Billy Bob Holland who has had quite a career as well (Houston cop, Texas Ranger, Phoenix US Attorney and now a private attorney from Deaf Smith, Texas).

Doc's daughter is raped and eventually Doc is charged with murdering one of the suspects. Billy Bob agrees to represent him. However, don't get ready for any court room scenes, because this plays out in a convulted fashion in which scores are settled and people get what they deserve.

Well crafted dialogue is a strength of the author, James Lee Burke, and he outdoes himself in this book. The discussions between Billy Bob and the local sherrif, J.T. Cain are something to look forward to.

This book will hook you as you try to figure out what is going to happen next and with all of the characters twisting through the book there is a lot happening. James Lee Burke has been awarded two Edgars in the past for hit literary efforts. I'm not sure this one will rise to that level, but is definitly worth your time.

Rating:
Summary: Worth the read, not my favorite Burke novel...
Review: I admit I'm a stronger fan of the Dave Robicheaux novels. But I can't pass up an opportunity to jump into the world created by James Lee Burke. In *Bitterroot*, Burke pits good vs. evil against a striking backdrop sure to please fans of the genre.

Billy Bob Holland is a former Texas Ranger, father of a musician Texas A&M student and carrying around the baggage (and ghost apparently) of accidentally murdering his partner. An old friend, Doc Voss, invites Holland up to Montana for some fishing and companionship, but Holland gets more than he bargained for.

Within hours, Holland is thrown in the middle of a regional dispute over mining and cyanide use, which then evolves into a crowd of baddies no lawman would want to get involved in.
Chapter after chapter, injustice after injustice, Holland reaches his limit, especially when Holland's assistant come girlfriend is attacked. With the assistance or possibly the interference of the ATF, the local sheriff and Voss, Holland works to find closure with the villains around him.

Overall, it was a decent read. I think I'm still a Robicheax fan, but I won't hesitate to read more about Billy Bob.

Rating:
Summary: A Landscape Devoid of Purpose
Review: As a novelist myself (The Legacy, Savage Press Oct. 2000), I began reading James Burke's latest tome with an eye towards learning something about the Great American West and the interplay between the land and Burke's fictional charactors. While the desciptions of Montana soared and provided a stunning background to "Bitterroot", the lack of any meaningful plot and the use of cardboard people to populate the landscape was disappointing. I had never read any of Burke's stuff. I was anticipating a northern version of Tony Hillerman. I was sorely disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: Billy Bob Holland goes fishing in Montana...
Review: And the line is cast and we are hooked quickly in another finely written mystery filled with dreams and haunted days. Like all of Burke's work there is depth, introspection and some self criticism. " I knew his words could not lessen his anger or ease his sense of betrayal. Eventually he would forgive (her), not at once, not by a conscious choice or arriving at a philosophical moment, but instead one day he would look back through the inverted telescope of time and see her as being possessed of the same moral frailties as himself and hence, in memory, an acceptable part of his life again. But that day would be a long time coming and these are notions you cannot impart to someone younger than yourself, particularly when the individual is your son." Bikers, murderous rodeo clowns, mobsters, and child molesters are the villains and contrasted with beautiful Montana scenery to make this a great read.

Rating:
Summary: magic with words
Review: Author Burke can paint a picture with words that has few equals. A reader paying attention will easily visualize the beautiful streams and the high peaks of Montana, as well as the plentiful wildlife, and the dark blue endless skies. Burke uses words like every politician wishes he could, creating feelings and emotions at will, and that is quite a talent. Some of Burke's hero's actions seem more complex than is necessary, but that doesn't detract from a very readable, moving story. The author's use of a strongly anti-Custer dream sequence was too distracting to be useful, and the feeling persists that Burke used his popular novel to verbalize some personal feelings that have no place in this particular story. He departs in this sequence from known history, so the distraction also becomes disturbing. But the multitude of characters is interesting, even when some of their actions are a bit muddled together. Burke creates a mood that is very engaging, and the story moves along in a very entertaining manner. In addition to a good story, reading this book will also educate the reader about many aspects of Montana, and that is a genuine plus. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Not this time
Review: When he's on target, Burke is a peerless writer. When he's off-center, the work is tiresome. Sadly, Bitterroot is off-center. There are several wonderful secondary characters: Sherriff Cain is a fine blend of wearied intelligence and sorely tried patience; Wyatt Dixon is a most interesting bad guy, particularly in his florid use of language and his penchant for peculiar clothing; and Terry Witherspoon comes across as a well-rounded, sometimes even sympathetically bewildered young villain.

However, this book has violence to spare. As well, Billy Bob, the hero, seems congenitally unable to keep his fly zipped, which gets truly tedious. And absolutely everyone is at risk from an endless roster of crazies, skinheads, just plain criminal types, and even FBI agents. By the end, the characters seem to have learned little, if anything. Billy Bob's hearing/seeing his dead former partner started as an interesting, even viable device. In Bitterroot the visions and words of this dead man serve no purpose.

Burke always writes well; his descriptions of Montana are beautiful. But he's populated the place with such a cast of no-goods that I doubt I'd want to go there.

For a prime example of Burke at his best, I'd suggest reading Purple Cane Road. This book is disappointing.