Sunset Limited (Dave Robicheaux)

Photojournalist Megan Flynn and her brother Cisco return to New Iberia after many years as part of a film crew. Their father, union activist Jack Flynn, had been crucified when they were children. Some folks in New Iberia know who did it, others had a part in it. Now a new series of violent murders are occurring and the key to solving them is the old crucifixion. Parrish Detective Dave Robicheaux becomes involved to right old wrongs, catch the bad guys and put a hurtin' on the mob, wrapping it up just in time to make it to his AA meeting and eat a bowl of cush-cush with Bootsie and Alafair.
Sound familiar? Yeah. Me, too.
Burke has been accused in the past of lifting descriptive passages whole and transplanting them to later books. Just lately he seems to be swiping his own plots and transplanting them to current books, but it isn't working anymore. Ideas that seemed bold and fresh earlier in the series are here worn and anemic. Why are all the criminals tied to the mob? Why are all the old Creole gentility tied to the mob? Why are all the film crews tied to the mob? I just don't buy it anymore.
I think Burke must still have some anger with Hollywood over "Heaven's Prisoners".
Burke's poetic writing is strong as always and his nostalgic evocation of the past makes for beautiful, melancholic reading. But he seems to have forgotten who Dave Robicheaux is and what Dave's doing in the middle of ! all this craziness. I have been frustrated over the last few books by Dave's brooding silence and refusal to discuss things with his wife, Bootsie. Instead, he alienates her and makes her feel bad with his inability to express himself. This is the woman who saved his life, for Heaven's sake! You'd think something like that would bring them closer.
Dave's daughter Alafair has also been pushed to the wayside. The interaction between these two characters used to be sparkling moments; Dave's love and pride in her was his weakness. in "Sunset Limited", Dave speaks to Alafair twice, both times to tell her to leave so he can carry on a conversation with someone else.
I like Burke. I like "Sunset Limited", but I miss Dave Robicheaux; I think much of my disappointment in this book is having spent eleven years with the character and watching him become a shell of his former self.

I've only been disappointed in Burke once...and that was because he didn't live up to himself! I know that my chances are excellent for a fine, entertaining, downright appealing read with believable characters, when James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux has the lead role.

I've read many Dave Robicheaux books and the characters are like old friends. Burke's words and descriptions of things and events are unique and immediately paint a picture in your mind. Good reading.

Dave Robicheaux and his father had been the ones who discovered the crucified body of union organizer Jack Flynn 20 years ago. Now Jack’s children Meghan and Cisco, each famous in their own right are back in New Iberia to film a movie. A sad list of characters populate this tenth episode in the Robicheaux series. Seems to Dave that a bunch of people are fixing to get their tickets punched – and he might be holding one himself.

This is not a typical Dave Robicheaux book. It doesn't have standard char- acters doing standard things leading to a denouement at the end of the book. The story which is really multiple episodes surrounded by almost a dozen players (and all involving Dave in some way) who all have something to do with a movie being made in New Iberia about the plight of Blacks in 1940s Louisiana.

Once again, many of the characters have been known to Dave for years, even though except for Clete, most he hasn't seen for years. Those that are new to Dave are involved with a murder that happened 40years ago and was never solved. The many who was killed was a union organizer whose son and daughter Dave knew as kids. Their father was beaten with chains and the nailed to a barn door (while still alive) in a mock crucifiction.

No one has ever been accused of the crime and not evidence has ever been found. Even though in the course of the book, Dave is able to figure out the three men who committed the crime, none is brought to justice in the end (though one is killed, one commits suicide, and the daughter of another is murdered). What makes this such a great book is JLB's description of how things 'were done' back in the old days of Huey Long and how little some things change. It's a great history lesson.

The only fly in the ointment, for me at least, is Dave's (read JLB) ongoing distrust and discussion of the incompetence and pettiness of the FBI and it's agents. This seems to be a theme in a lot of mystery books, especially the modern noir style. Maybe the Feebs (or Feebies) need to do some work on their public image.

I enjoyed that JLB is a strong enough writer (an has to power to dictate how his books read) to pull of a story without a true ending.

Photojournalist Megan Flynn and her brother Cisco return to New Iberia after many years as part of a film crew. Their father, union activist Jack Flynn, had been crucified when they were children. Some folks in New Iberia know who did it, others had a part in it. Now a new series of violent murders are occurring and the key to solving them is the old crucifixion. Parrish Detective Dave Robicheaux becomes involved to right old wrongs, catch the bad guys and put a hurtin' on the mob, wrapping it up just in time to make it to his AA meeting and eat a bowl of cush-cush with Bootsie and Alafair.
Sound familiar? Yeah. Me, too.
Burke has been accused in the past of lifting descriptive passages whole and transplanting them to later books. Just lately he seems to be swiping his own plots and transplanting them to current books, but it isn't working anymore. Ideas that seemed bold and fresh earlier in the series are here worn and anemic. Why are all the criminals tied to the mob? Why are all the old Creole gentility tied to the mob? Why are all the film crews tied to the mob? I just don't buy it anymore.
I think Burke must still have some anger with Hollywood over "Heaven's Prisoners".
Burke's poetic writing is strong as always and his nostalgic evocation of the past makes for beautiful, melancholic reading. But he seems to have forgotten who Dave Robicheaux is and what Dave's doing in the middle of ! all this craziness. I have been frustrated over the last few books by Dave's brooding silence and refusal to discuss things with his wife, Bootsie. Instead, he alienates her and makes her feel bad with his inability to express himself. This is the woman who saved his life, for Heaven's sake! You'd think something like that would bring them closer.
Dave's daughter Alafair has also been pushed to the wayside. The interaction between these two characters used to be sparkling moments; Dave's love and pride in her was his weakness. in "Sunset Limited", Dave speaks to Alafair twice, both times to tell her to leave so he can carry on a conversation with someone else.
I like Burke. I like "Sunset Limited", but I miss Dave Robicheaux; I think much of my disappointment in this book is having spent eleven years with the character and watching him become a shell of his former self.

When a writer becomes prolific with a mystery series, some books are bound to be better than others. Sunset Limited, the 10th in James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux series, is not nearly as strong as some of his previous efforts.

Robicheaux continues to be a detective in the Iberia Sheriff's Department, and this book has many similarities to previous books. James Flynn, a labor organizer, was crucified to the side of a barn forty years ago. Flynn's grown children, Megan (an award winning photographer) and Cisco (a movie director) are back in town. Their presence calls attention to the fact that their father's death remains unsolved. Robicheaux is always investigating at least two or three other crimes. In Sunset Limited, Robicheaux and his partner, Helen Soileau, stumble upon a conspiracy involving crooked cops, small time criminals, hit men, the son of a senator and the mob. Somehow, Robicheaux is able to tie together these seemingly unrelated cases, but doing so is often a stretch. Characters fade in and out and it's hard to keep track of them. It took a good 100 pages for Sunset Limited to peak my interest.

James Lee Burke is an incredibly talented writer, and some of the problem could be my own. This is the 11th Robicheaux mystery and the 12th Burke novel that I've read since August, so maybe I'm just ready for a break. Still, I'm determined to see the Robicheaux series through book 14. I've since started reading Purple Cane Road, and after 100 pages, it's already much more engaging.

This book was different than the other installments in the Dave Robicheaux series. I actually had some trouble getting into SUNSET LIMITED and that was immediately after finishing JLB's CIMARRON ROSE. When I first opened the book, I was glad to be back in New Iberia. It was reassuring to know that Dave was back and so were Clete, Helen, the Sheriff, Batist, and Alafair and Bootsie (although in much diminished supporting roles). JLB has a beautiful way of describing his characters, especially the ones who drag Dave into their sordid little lives. SUNSET LIMITED is no different in that regard and in this book, I really started to be worried (and frightened) for Clete. Clete's violence is relentless and frightening in its scope. JLB just doesn't let us off easily when Clete goes on the warpath. What I did like and what James Lee is also a master of is his description of the bond that binds Dave to Clete and vice versa. The loyalty, the affection and the caring are all well written. I've had a couple of friends like Clete (and a couple like Dave, too) and in these books, they're well constructed. My problem with "S-L" was that for some reason it didn't grab me from the get-go. Could it have been because I had just finished Cimarron Rose and there just wasn't enough difference between Dave and Billy Bob Holland? Could it be that I'm JLB'd out? Or, did I just not like Megan Flynn and her brother (who ended up with more character and integrity than I first thought)? That was a surprise.
The JLB mastery of place and description is still there and I think it might even be better developed than in some of the earlier installments. It's just that this book didn't get hold of me as early on as his others did. Toward the end, when things began to fall apart for Clete, it picked up again and I finished the book quickly.
There was a somewhat disturbing side note to all of this for me. While it wasn't one of JLB's best efforts, I didn't hate it, either. However, I am now caught up on all of his work (except for the just released BILLY BOB HOLLAND sequel and I think I'm going to put Mr. Burke on back-burner for a time while I read other authors.
There's an old saying in the military that goes, "familiarity breeds contempt..." Well, maybe I've just grown a little too familiar with Dave Robicheaux and James Lee Burke. I look forward to more of his books, it's just that I'll put off reading them for a while.

"Sunset Limited" is my first book by Burke. In many ways, it is excellent. Burke has the ability to make you feel like you're in the middle of the scenes he describes. He conjures up mist rising from a Louisiana bayou so that you not only see it, you smell it and feel it as well. His characters come alive in a very human way. There are manipulators and pawns, perpetrators and victims. Innocents sometimes pay a heavy price for the misdeeds of others, but even a killer like Swede Boxleiter has redeeming qualities. And Burke's story never has a dull moment. Tension is constant and there is plenty of action.
With all these strengths brought to bear,"Sunset Limited" has a lot going for it, but it also has some shortcomings. This is the 16th Dave Robicheaux novel. A consequence of this is that some things are taken for granted, like the nickname "Streak". Several characters use it on Robicheaux, but if you're unfamiliar with the series, its significance is lost on you. This isn't a big deal, but it is symptomatic of the fact that terms and local expressions abound in this book. To the extent that it can sometimes be difficult for the uninitiated to follow the meaning. Another thing that struck me was that there are a lot of characters in the story, and some just seem to fade in or out without adequate introduction or resolution. For example, "Cool Breeze" Broussard is a pivotal character early in the story, but he just seems to disappear about midway through and you never see any more of him. In the end, the story itself seems to fade away almost like "Cool Breeze". I felt that a lot was left unresolved when the book was done, and it left me with a vaguely unsatisfied feeling. Real life is often like this,a nd some readers may like it this way, but I don't read fiction to get reality. I like stories with all the loose ends tied up.
When I got "Sunset Limited", I was not aware that the Dave Robicheaux character had such a lengthy history. In retrospect, this book was probably not the best place to make his acquaintance. The story is fast-paced and I enjoyed it, but I felt that a lot of loose ends remained when I finished the book, and I probably would have gotten more from it if I had read other books in this series before this one. This is a good book, and I think fans of this series will certainly enjoy it. If you're a newcomer to the Robicheaux novels, however, I suggest that you start with an earlier one. For myself, some earlier Robicheaux books are definitely on the agenda.

'Sunset Limited' is pretty good - not great, but pretty good. Burke has moved even further than his previous novels into the realm of atmosphere and psychological context, sacrificing narrative coherence along the way (whether this is a worthwhile exchange depends on your point of view).
This is the sixteenth book centering on Burke's increasingly battered hero, Dave Robicheaux; he is still haunted by old demons, although generally he seems to have found a way to live with most of them. His sometime-friend, Clete Purcel, is still half-heroic, half-pathetic.
The plot centres around a series of decades-old crimes, particularly the grisly murder of a union activist. This leads the book into a series of narrative strands, but sometimes Burke seems to be straining to connect them: there are more than a few unlikely coincidences, and some incidents seem to go nowhere. It is characteristic of the book that the initial reason for Robicheaux's involvement - to locate and perhaps clear a petty crim called Cool Breeze Broussard (Burke has not lost his talent for wonderfully appropriate names) - fades away at the book's half-way point.
But there are villains aplenty: in fact, there are few sympathetic characters here. Some of the bad guys are rich and clever, some are poor and stupid, and some of the worst carry a badge. You can't trust anyone these days, and justice prevails only occasionally.
All this darkness of spirit would be somewhat suffocating, except that Burke has a knack of inserting passages of striking beauty. He has a remarkable feel for the social and physical texture of Louisiana, and a grasp of detail which is almost Chandleresque. Neither has he lost his ear for dialogue: each character has a noticeably different way of speaking, or even of being silent.
'Sunset Limited' - the title is symbolic of a journey into a painful past - is not as good as Burke's 'Black Cherry Blues', 'The Lost Get-Back Boogie' or even 'Heaven's Prisoners', but most readers will find the journey worth the pri! ce of the ticket.

First, I have to agree with the other reviewer in saying that this probably isn't the best book to start off reading that's a part of the Dave R. series by Burke! This was my first by him, and it did seem a bit hard to get a handle on some things.
I did enjoy this book, but in trying to sum it up...I'm at a loss. This book had SO much going on!! There's a murder of a black man 40 years ago that is still unsolved and now his children are back in town to possibly resolve it...there are numerous criminals in and about town of a big stature creating a fuss...there are several local's who have issues of their own that need resolving...there's just SO much! There are so many characters, that I had a very hard time keeping them and their pasts straight. While I enjoyed some of the individual stories, it did get to be too much. I felt this book could have used some heavy editing.
Over-all, I did enjoy this book. It kept me on the edge of my seat to see how it would end and what all of the big cover-ups were. One thing to note-pay close attention to everything, if you miss something, you'll miss a lot.

James Lee Burkes David Robicheaux novels are some of the best suspense/mystery novels out there. Great dialogue, characters you care about, great descriptions of New Orleans, and intelligent story lines are just some of what sets these novels apart.
I feel as a fan of the series, Sunset Limited continues that trend.
What I found a little different about this particular novel was the lack of background information on some of the series secondary characters. I have found that any of the other novels in the series give enough information that someone new could start with any of them. However, this is not the case with Sunset Limited. Therefore, I do not recommend this particular David Robicheaux novel for newcomers. I was surprized at just how little his wife, Batist, his daughter had to do with this story. But again, other than that this was a great book.

I made the same mistake as another reviewer, who said, "Don't start here." This was my first Dave Robicheaux book. I should have hunted down Burke's first one and read them chronologically, which I am in the process of doing. David Lee Burke is an extremely talented writer. He creates beautiful prose and surrounds it with obscene violence,which I just keep reading. His portrayal of Louisiana makes me want to drive down country roads lined with cypress trees, but I'm afraid that I might come across some of his Robicheaux characters. His plots have sub-plots and more twists that a candy cane. Not for the faint of heart, his stories are page turners; and every one of his six or seven books I've read have kept me up until I turn the last one. I give this book a four star rating, simply because the violence in it is extreme....but I read all of it.

James Lee Burke can paint a picture with his prose like very few others are capable of. It really doesn't matter what the story is because no matter what, it is told so well. The pace is like a hot Louisiana day, paced and unhurried. This was not one of his greatest stories but it is very enjoyable none the less.

First, I have to agree with the other reviewer in saying that this probably isn't the best book to start off reading that's a part of the Dave R. series by Burke! This was my first by him, and it did seem a bit hard to get a handle on some things.
I did enjoy this book, but in trying to sum it up...I'm at a loss. This book had SO much going on!! There's a murder of a black man 40 years ago that is still unsolved and now his children are back in town to possibly resolve it...there are numerous criminals in and about town of a big stature creating a fuss...there are several local's who have issues of their own that need resolving...there's just SO much! There are so many characters, that I had a very hard time keeping them and their pasts straight. While I enjoyed some of the individual stories, it did get to be too much. I felt this book could have used some heavy editing.
Over-all, I did enjoy this book. It kept me on the edge of my seat to see how it would end and what all of the big cover-ups were. One thing to note-pay close attention to everything, if you miss something, you'll miss a lot.

Unless the reader likes to memorize names or enjoys being blindsided by characters introduced after the scene is set, this book is more labor than enjoyment. The use of Acadian vernacular and colloquial phraseology is also tedious and laborious. I think this is an acquired taste.

A fine book that I enjoyed vertical. Well written an easy to follow .

A fine book but I have come to expect excellence from Mr. Burke. Clearly one of my favorite authors, and I expect you will maintain that ability to transform me to whatever venue needed
To define your story.
Warmest regards Rick McAntosh

'Sunset Limited' is pretty good - not great, but pretty good. Burke has moved even further than his previous novels into the realm of atmosphere and psychological context, sacrificing narrative coherence along the way (whether this is a worthwhile exchange depends on your point of view).
This is the sixteenth book centering on Burke's increasingly battered hero, Dave Robicheaux; he is still haunted by old demons, although generally he seems to have found a way to live with most of them. His sometime-friend, Clete Purcel, is still half-heroic, half-pathetic.
The plot centres around a series of decades-old crimes, particularly the grisly murder of a union activist. This leads the book into a series of narrative strands, but sometimes Burke seems to be straining to connect them: there are more than a few unlikely coincidences, and some incidents seem to go nowhere. It is characteristic of the book that the initial reason for Robicheaux's involvement - to locate and perhaps clear a petty crim called Cool Breeze Broussard (Burke has not lost his talent for wonderfully appropriate names) - fades away at the book's half-way point.
But there are villains aplenty: in fact, there are few sympathetic characters here. Some of the bad guys are rich and clever, some are poor and stupid, and some of the worst carry a badge. You can't trust anyone these days, and justice prevails only occasionally.
All this darkness of spirit would be somewhat suffocating, except that Burke has a knack of inserting passages of striking beauty. He has a remarkable feel for the social and physical texture of Louisiana, and a grasp of detail which is almost Chandleresque. Neither has he lost his ear for dialogue: each character has a noticeably different way of speaking, or even of being silent.
'Sunset Limited' - the title is symbolic of a journey into a painful past - is not as good as Burke's 'Black Cherry Blues', 'The Lost Get-Back Boogie' or even 'Heaven's Prisoners', but most readers will find the journey worth the pri! ce of the ticket.

This book started out well but rambled on for about 100 pages too many. The plot got thinner and thinner as each of the suspects were killed off.

I have read many of the books by Burke and Enjoyed them, but this has to be my least favourite.

Liked the story line and the descriptions of the Louisiana area. It was a little hard to follow sometimes because of the flowery descriptions of everything with the plot. I like a little more direct writing in descriptions of plot and dialog. I will read more of James Lee Burke's books.