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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
This is probably more than a three really, but I read some other reviews that noted Burke wasn't a reader of mysteries at the time hence that the mystery in this novel tends to get kicked to the side a lot for the main character's ruminations. I'll stick with it to see what the third brings especially given the fact it won an Edgar award.
JLB lives up to the high standards he set for himself. A huge winner.
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
2.5 stars. Not as good as the first book, but I'm going to read the next. Narrator wasn't great, too many characters sounded the same and it kind of blended together at times.
Burke’s Robicheaux series is so highly regarded and recommended in the detective genre that I am compelled to start from the beginning of this long series a see what the fuss is about. Heaven’s Prisoners is #2, and I found it hard to put down. Robicheaux is a complex character, wracked with guilt, remorse and depression, stemming from his Vietnam experiences, tough childhood and ongoing battle with alcoholism. Try as he might, he can’t find tranquility, even after retiring from the NOLA force, taking a wife and moving into the bayou to run a bait shop. When a small plane crashes in his swamp, Robicheaux dives to the wreck and saves a young girl, but also finds trouble; loads of trouble that gets him knee deep in quicksand with the DEA, INS, and a host of really bad local people. The thing to do is keep his nose out of it, but he can’t, and that becomes a central point in this story. Burke injects heavy doses of philosophy and introspection on the nature of good and evil, good guys and bad guys and the struggles of the victims in this tough world.
I would say that Burke totters on the edge of overdoing it in this regard, but manages to balance the whole story with enough action, atmosphere and poetic descriptions of the bayou country to keep things interesting. If I can read literally non-stop on a 2-1/2 hour flight, the writing must be good, and Burke is a great writer.
I recently read a book review of A Confederacy of Dunces (a book I just read and found underwhelming) that said it was the quintessential New Orleans book. Hogwash. Although he may dwell on the seedy underbelly of the bayou, I can’t imagine anyone painting a better picture in words of NOLA than Burke. He gets a little repetitive in his descriptions (lavender skies streaked with orange, smells of shrimp and boudin, bream popping on the surface…etc.) but that’s a minor gripe. I wish Burke would pay a little more attention to some of the plot details and less on the poetic descriptions. In this book, the plot threads involving the government agencies are pretty thin.
I'm curious to see if Burke can hold my interest over such a long series. On to Black Cherry Blues!
I would say that Burke totters on the edge of overdoing it in this regard, but manages to balance the whole story with enough action, atmosphere and poetic descriptions of the bayou country to keep things interesting. If I can read literally non-stop on a 2-1/2 hour flight, the writing must be good, and Burke is a great writer.
I recently read a book review of A Confederacy of Dunces (a book I just read and found underwhelming) that said it was the quintessential New Orleans book. Hogwash. Although he may dwell on the seedy underbelly of the bayou, I can’t imagine anyone painting a better picture in words of NOLA than Burke. He gets a little repetitive in his descriptions (lavender skies streaked with orange, smells of shrimp and boudin, bream popping on the surface…etc.) but that’s a minor gripe. I wish Burke would pay a little more attention to some of the plot details and less on the poetic descriptions. In this book, the plot threads involving the government agencies are pretty thin.
I'm curious to see if Burke can hold my interest over such a long series. On to Black Cherry Blues!