Robicheaux returns in James Lee Burke's latest

Detective Dave Robicheaux, the ongoing character in James Lee Burke’s novels set mostly in Louisiana, remains a man no one can kill, not even from his own hand when his dormant alcoholism rears its ugly head. I’ve been reading Burke’s novels for years now and am always wondering if Robicheaux has met his fate and will be gone to us forever.

To our relief, he always returns.

Burke’s latest in the series, aptly titled “Robicheaux,” has our New Iberia native struggling after the death of his beloved wife, Molly, in a car accident. He confronts the man who slammed into her and, after a blackout following a drunken relapse, that man is found murdered. While Robicheaux wonders if he committed the act and works to clear his name, there are other pressing matters, including a psychopath named Tony Squid who wants to get into the business of making movies; a novelist whose wife cheats on him and accuses the other man of rape; and an abusive father who's horribly killed. Add to the mix Robicheaux’s best friend Clete, who’s got troubles of his own, and his daughter Alafair, who wants to adapt one of the novelist’s books and you’ve got prime Burke storytelling.

Read the Dave Robicheaux novels for the dark and intriguing plotlines but savor the incredible descriptions that pour from Burke’s pen. For instance:

“I love the rain, whether it’s a tropical one or one that falls on you in the dead of winter. For me, rain is the natural world’s absolution, like the story of the Flood and new beginnings and loading the animals two by two onto the Ark. I love the mist hanging in the trees, a hint of wraiths that would not let heavy stones weigh them down in their graves, the raindrops clicking on the lily pads, the fish rising as though in celebration.”

I don’t know how many more Robicheaux stories are in my future, but let’s hope the detective who has danger constantly nipping at his heels stays alive for a few more years.

Louisiana Book News is written by award-winning author Chere Dastugue Coen, who writes romances and mysteries under the pen name of Cherie Claire. Her first book in each series is FREE to download as an ebook, including "A Ghost of a Chance," the first Viola Valentine mystery.