Customer Reviews

Jolie Blon's Bounce

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I would probably read anything written by James Lee Burke simply because I enjoy his style. The vivid details in his descriptions of the deep South, as well as his ability to capture the kind of racial dynamics that have somehow managed to make it into the 21st Century, are remarkable. The writing is often poetic and insightful, and Burke seems to recognize just what it is that separates the truly bad characters from the rest of us. That said, at some point the reader is forced to suspend reality within the pages of Jolie Blon's Bounce, which in my opinion, ultimately becomes more of an allegory about good versus evil than a murder mystery.

This is one of the best books I have ever read! It's a very well written mystery novel that intertwines characters and their stories. I just couldn't put it down. It would make a great movie!

I might have found James Lee Burke's writing interesting, his descriptions detailed, his characters well-rounded, etc. as I have read in all of the wonderful reviews about his books. However, I did not have the opportunity to do so, because Mark Hammer's completely uninspired monotone put me off the book and I was unable to force myself to listen to the novel after the first two tapes. His voice has no inflection whatsoever, and the grainy quality quickly gets on one's nerves. It sounds rather like nails scraping across a blackboard. I would recommend (and shall be trying to obtain) a version of this novel read by a different narrator, or perhaps the print version.

I found this book from Burke to be surprisingly contrived and ended up getting boring

...a sink-your-teeth-into-it mystery, a big tough thriller of a book that you can snuggle up with after pulling on a pair of soft cotton pants and a soft cotton T-shirt, sitting in your sunroom on a rainy day. ...I'd never read any of JLB's work because, being gay, I am almost allergic to the type of thrillers written by, say, Michael Connelly, John Sandford, or Elmore Leonard whose protagonists have so much testosterone in their blood that it comes through the pages like a vapor. Yeah, I usually stick to Carol Higgins Clark, Kathy Hogan Trocheck, Mary Higgins Clark, Susan Wittig Albert, Sue Grafton, Janis Harrison, and the like; mystery novels with female protagonists. But I had a romping good time with "Jolie Blon's Bounce". And you will too, if you pick it up.

With each successive novel, James Lee Burke delves deeper into the human psyche, and more deeply into his main protaganist, Dave Robicheaux.
Jolie Blon's Bounce centers around Robicheaux trying to connect two seemingly unconnected murders, one a teenager from a farming family, the other a strung-out prostitute. Around this plot swirl a typical rogues gallery of characters that enter Robicheaux's sphere: Tee Bobby Hulin, a blues guitarist and singer who pens the song that becomes the book's title. Jimmy Dean Styles, an ex-boxer and current bar owner and music producer, Marvin Oates, a seemingly innocent bible salesman, Sal Angelo, a Viet Nam vet who may have been with Dave's unit, and one of the nastiest characters Burke has brought to life, the former plantation overseer known simply as "Legion." There is also a duo of lawyers, Perry LaSalle, whose grandfather owned a pepper plantation, and Barbara Shanahan, a beautiful but angry woman who gets involved with Dave's pal Clete Purcel. Throw in some drug dealers, crooked cops, New Orleans mafia and a woman with secrets and you have a dark tale that will have you turning page after page.
Burke's strengths continue in this book: Beautiful prose depicting the Louisiana landscape or gritty descriptions of those who inhabit this otherworldly place. The dialogue smacks you in the face. The characters show multiple dimensions and always have a surprise in store for Dave or the reader. The story works on multiple levels, with the murder mystery nearly secondary to the inner story as Dave uncovers the connection between Legion, LaSalle and Tee Bobby Hulin, and other connections.
My knocks would be that old Streak is getting very close to the edge of not being likable. He's a very flawed character, self-righteous to a fault, fighting off the constant urge to drink, but what bothers me is that he can't seem to have a conversation with a single person without insulting them, no matter how polite they are to him. What is it with this guy? Still, I root for him and there are some things that happen in this story that no one should have to endure.
Bring on Last Car to Elysian Fields!

i wrote previously-that i was about to read the book-and knew it would be great-well i've read it and burke has refined clete and dave to a fare thee well--their dialogue is foxhole real and the first chapter may well be the best written in a novel in the last 30 years or so--and those whose reviews stated that burke had to put new life into his series wish they could write this well--!the man gets better and better--thanks!

"That night I lay in the dark, sleepless, the trees outside swelling with the wind, the canopy in the swamp trembling with a ghostly white light from the lightening in the south. I had never felt more alone in my life. Once again, I burned, in almost a sexual fashion, to wrap my fingers around the grips and inside the steel guard of a heavy, high caliber pistol, to smell the acrid order of cordite, to tear loose from all the restraints that bound my life and squeezed the breath from my lungs.

And I knew what I had to do."

While I like James Lee Burke and admire his writing ability tremendously, his books usually bother me. His writings will never be confused with happy ever after endings and are full of characters that for the most part, are full of various stages of moral decay. He has an ability to gaze at the world and write about things that haunt us all. In his world, evil is a spectral presence and truly does lurk in the heart of most people. His latest book is even more in that vein with a strongly implied supernatural component to it.

Dave Robicheaux, a Police Detective in New Iberia, Louisiana has seen quite a lot of evil in the world. From the jungles of Vietnam, to the back alleys of New Orleans and now home in New Iberia, he has seen man and woman brutalize and kill total strangers as well as those they profess to love. One late spring day, he is called out to the scene of a brutal rape and murder. The initial suspect is Tee Bobby Hulin, a heavy drug user as well as an accomplished blues singer. While the evidence, what little there is, does point to him, Robicheaux does not believe he did it.

Robicheaux begins to investigate and begins to unravel a horrifying mess of interwoven racial ancestry by rape, murder, and greed. As he digs, he discovers a man known only as "Legion" to both the black and white population of New Iberia and who has haunted his nightmares since the age of twelve is deeply involved. Legion soon begins to haunt his waking hours as well and Deal begins to wonder is he is reachable and stoppable in a human way.

This is another complex and multi themed novel by James Lee Burke and features all the usual cast of characters familiar to readers of the series. Despite the fact that this is a long running series, the author manages to unveil new wrinkles not only in the Robicheaux character but as well in several of the other major characters. His long running characters are not the static unchanging cutouts seen in some nay other works, but instead constantly evolve and change based on experience just like real human beings.

At the same time, he is weaving various themes such as the nature of good and evil, are humans born evil, etc into the work. That ability along with his colorful prose and intense action make for interesting reading. This is another powerful book with a tremendous amount of sorrow and lament while at the same time a tremendous amount of inspiration concerning the ability of good people to endure the evil visited upon them through no fault of their own.

"Jolie Blon's Bounce" is so much more than a murder mystery. In this story, Lousiana police detective Dave Robicheaux is searching for clues to solve the murders of two women. Are the two murders related? One of the prime suspects is Legion Guidry. Legion is an evil demon through and through. He is a former overseer on a plantation in southern Louisiana and has a shameful history. Burke does a wonderful job developing the character of Legion and other interesting players in the story.

The other evil demon is Robicheaux's continuing struggle to beat alcholism. Robicheaux flirts briefly with addiction to ampehtamines in his own battle with the bottle.

James Lee Burke does a great job of sharing the thoughts of the police detective with us. As always in his books, his descriptions of the Lousiana bayous are fabulous. You can really feel the humidity and hear the haunting sounds of the bayou.

I think this book would make a great movie. It has it all--great setting, great plot, and memorable characters. A real five-star read.

"Jolie Blon's Bounce" is so much more than a murder mystery. In this story, Lousiana police detective Dave Robicheaux is searching for clues to solve the murders of two women. Are the two murders related? One of the prime suspects is Legion Guidry. Legion is an evil demon through and through. He is a former overseer on a plantation in southern Louisiana and has a shameful history. Burke does a wonderful job developing the character of Legion and other interesting players in the story.

The other evil demon is Robicheaux's continuing struggle to beat alcholism. Robicheaux flirts briefly with addiction to ampehtamines in his own battle with the bottle.

James Lee Burke does a great job of sharing the thoughts of the police detective with us. As always in his books, his descriptions of the Lousiana bayous are fabulous. You can really feel the humidity and hear the haunting sounds of the bayou.

I think this book would make a great movie. It has it all--great setting, great plot, and memorable characters. A real five-star read.