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Swan Peak: A Dave Robicheaux Novel | 
| Author: James Lee Burke
Creator: Will Patton
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
Buy New: $19.77
You Save: $10.18 (34%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  13 reviews
Sales Rank: 37145
Format: Abridged, Audiobook
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Abridged
Number Of Items: 6
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 5.8 x 5.2 x 1
ISBN: 0743571851
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780743571852
ASIN: 0743571851
Publication Date: July 8, 2008 (New: Last 30 Days)
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Product Description
Trouble follows Dave Robicheaux.James Lee Burke's new novel finds Detective Robicheaux far from his New Iberia roots, attempting to relax in the untouched wilderness of rural Montana. He, his wife, and his buddy Clete Purcel have retreated to stay at an old friend's ranch, hoping to spend their days fishing and enjoying their distance from the harsh, gritty landscape of Louisiana post-Katrina. But the serenity is quickly shattered when two college students are found brutally murdered in the hills behind where the Robicheauxs and Purcel are staying. Drawn into a twisted and dangerous mystery involving a wealthy, vicious oil tycoon, his deformed brother and beautiful wife, a sexually deviant minister, an escaped con and former country music star, and a vigilante Texas gunbull out for blood. At the center of the storm is Clete, who cannot shake the feeling that he is being haunted by ghosts from his past -- namely Sally Dio, the mob boss he'd sabotaged and killed years before. In this expertly drawn, gripping story, Burke deftly weaves intricate, engaging plotlines and original, compelling characters with his uniquely graceful prose. He transcends genre yet again in the latest thrilling addition to his New York Times bestselling series.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 8 more reviews...
 Burke brings his characters to life. July 19, 2008
Dave Robicheaux and his long time partner and best friend, Clete Purcell are in need of a long, deserved rest. Upon invitation of a friend, they decide to emotionally recuperate in the beautiful, rugged mountains of western Montana. Soon after their arrival, Clete bumps into a couple of punks, one whom he recognizes as a scum ball that used to work for an underworld crime figure in Vegas. The two undesirables are security for the Wellstone family, another bunch with secret, lowlife agendas.
Soon victims of what appears to be a possible serial killer begin turning up and Dave and Clete find themselves in the midst of a new mystery. Is it the Wellstones, their henchmen, a diabolical emotionally disturbed bull (a prison guard) or any number of other characters that James Lee Burke so convincingly brings to life on the pages of this novel.
This is a another great read by the poetic Mr. Burke. I cannot give the book 5 stars however due to what I believe is an overly drawn out finale. Otherwise I do not believe you will be disappointed.
 The Bobbsey Twins From Homicide July 15, 2008
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
The Bobbsey Twins from Homicide, Clete and Dave, are back. In reviewing books by James Lee Burke I have consistently said that it is impossible to rank any one book since they are all so beautifully wrought. It is time to make an exception. Swan Peak is the best Dave Robicheaux yet and it is the best for several reasons.
The story is, on the surface, simple. Dave, Molly and Clete go to Montana to fish, to relax, to get away from the violence of New Orleans and New Iberia. Fat chance. People die; villains appear; justice is trampled by arrogance, cruelty and power. Dave and Clete stop fishing and go to work.
This is the most ambitious of any of Burke's books. With somewhere between eight and ten separate plots running in parallel (depending upon how you count them), the architectonics of the book are spectacular. Needless to say, the plot lines all converge in a magnificent climax involving equal parts justice and violence.
While every page is beautifully written and all of the signature Burke texture and description are there, Swan Peak manages to be the most philosophic, the most character-driven and, simultaneously, the most plot-driven of Burke's novels. The characters are as remarkable as their considered reflections and trenchant one-liners, but they play out their drama in a plot that pulses like a nail gun and has the urgency of an avalanche.
Most of all, Swan Peak features Clete and Dave in virtually every scene. Clete Purcel is one of Burke's most masterful creations and here we see and hear enough of him to fully satisfy us. And it is their story. God bless Molly, but there's little time for domesticity in Swan Peak. This is make-no-mistake-about-it crime fiction, but crime fiction with the distinctive Burke touch. We are enveloped by the smell of flowers, of earth and of water, but also with the smell of fear sweat and the coppery taste of blood. Every characteristic of every Burke novel is here, but amplified without being exaggerated. The total achievement, with its instruments, leitmotifs and final crescendo is very impressive. Some will like the political asides; some will find them distracting and, perhaps, annoying. Dave's world is beautiful in its way, but it is not always pretty, and this is Dave's view of it. The impact of Katrina will likely haunt him forever.
This is a long book, but it is not a long read. In many ways it is Burke's best. Drop whatever you're doing and read it. Now.
"He had already mortgaged too many tomorrows to get through the present day." July 15, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
James Lee Burke continues to be one of the treasures in current fiction. No one is better at evoking a sense of "being there" as JLB. Whether describing a bucolic scene in the Bitterroot Mountains or a depraved honky tonk in New Orleans, Burke has the reader feeling like he/she is really there. Burke paints word pictures that are so effective they can almost become "visually" stunning to the imaginative reader. Add that to his terrific ability to develop and flesh out characters and his intricately detailed plot lines and you have the makings of a literary lion.
Burke writes most often of the battle between good and evil...and often finds many of his characters are somewhere between the two extremes. Redemption is a common factor in his work as some characters do find redemption while others, notably Dave and Clete, are in constant search of it. Most of his "bad" characters have some goodness lurking in thier souls and many of his "good" characters fight internal battles against their own darkness. Certinly a common theme is the constant battle Dave and Clete fight against their own personal demons...Clete most often with self medication and booze and Dave with his often unsuccessful repression of his violent urges and continuing battle as a reformed alcoholic.
In "Swan Peak", Dave and Clete have gone to rural Montana for some well deserved R&R in hopes of rekindling their inner spirits after the devastation wrought by Katrina and Rita and the events in "The Big Tin Blowdown". But evil knows no geographical boundaries and our protagonists are soon deep in a number of seemingly muddling plot threads including a wealthy and arrogant family who are up to no good, a former country singer who has married one of the weatlhy Wellstone brothers but pines for her lost love and father of her child, a passle of mountain country thugs, a former prison guard hunting an escaped prisoner who almost killed him, a charlatan preacher, murdered college coeds, an inquisitive FBI operative, and perhaps a ghost out of Clete's past who may or may not have been killed in a plane crash Clete orchestrated. Whew!! Believe it or not, all these threads do ultimately intersect and unwind satisfactorily and all, in one way or another, serve as testimony to the goodness and evil in most of us.
While I missed the New Orleans and southern Lousiana settings for the Robicheaux novels, "Swan Peak" proves that the characters can fight their battles for good vs. evil in any local while battling their own inner demons that they can never escape. This novel gives more emphasis than normal to Clete and his personal battles yet, the constant, as always, is the way the "Bobbsey Twins Forever" are always there for each other physically as well as psychologically and emotionally. I know of no more complex friendship in crime fiction than that of Dave Robicheaux and Clete Purcel. This is a book and a series I continue to recommend unequivocally.
Dave and Clete's Excellent Adventure July 14, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I have read several of James Lee Burke's books. They feature Dave Robicheaux and Clete Purcel, bosom buddies who are aging badly and trying to deal with demons from rough childhoods, Vietnam, and their work in law enforcement/private investigation. Dave is an alcoholic struggling to maintain sobriety and Clete is a hedonist with a heart of gold. Both characters slam bad guys around.
I don't rate this book as highly as the other Robicheaux novels I have read because Burke introduces brutal themes scarcely mentioned in his earlier works. Also, Swan Peak has a tangled web of characters and plots. You really need a scorecard to keep track. There's Troyce Nix, the lowest of the low, who has an implausible change of heart. There are the weird Wellstone brothers, and Jimmy Dale Greenwood, vagabond musician/victim. Another key player is Jamie Sue Wellstone, a greedy opportunist with a bubbly side. She can really sing, too. The central mystery is the murder of two college students.
You can turn this book to just about any page, pick a paragraph, and find a powerful statement about human nature. But there's something of the pompous air of a Professor Life about it.
Strongly recommended for Burke fans, and it seems that the author had his fans in mind because there are references to earlier adventures (the Sally Dio affair) that might be confusing to newcomers.
 Too heavy on the Southern Gothic musings this time around July 14, 2008
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
I've been a fan of Burke and Robicheaux from the jump, and part of the the draw is the stylistic approach Burke uses to flesh out his characters and settings.
In this novel, the setting is changed to Montana, where Robicheaux and his wife, accompanied by long-time buddy Clete Purcell, find themselves once again embroiled in murder, mayhem, and twisted familial psychopathy, this time revolving around the Wellstone family, a duo of physically and emotionally crippled brothers who are power brokers in the small area around Swan Peak; as well as the wife of one of the brothers, who brings her own checkered past into the equation.
There are other players in the story, leading to a complex brew: the former prison guard with a background of sexual perversity pursuing the escapee who shanked him and left him for dead; the aimlessly wandering woman who captures his heart; various thugs who work for the Wellstones; a religious charlatan; innocent kids trying to follow their faith who end up as victims.
These characters are all on courses that lead to intersection in the rugged Montana scenery, and Burke plots it very well.
Unfortunately, this time around the story bogs down in the endless and repetitive musings about each of the characters' pasts, as well as Robicheaux's history and demons.
In previous books, we've always had this aspect to the stories, and it's been handled deftly and creatively, adding to the depth of the characterizations and atmospheres of the tales. This time, I think Burke's gone overboard, and it really needlessly slows things down. Some of the charcters have overlapping or similar backgrounds, so the musings in these cases become repetitive. Others deal with similar demons -- most obviously Clete and Robicheaux -- so again there's a great deal of repetition.
There's one other aspect that's starting to become very obvious and problematic for the Robicheaux character: his age. In his musings, we read about his background in the Vietnam War, and times he spent with his Dad "in the 1940s" when he was growing up.
Well... I spent those kinds of times with MY Dad in the 1950s, and am also a Vietnam veteran, and my next birthday is my 60th. Which means Robicheaux has to be nearing 70. It's getting pretty hard to believe a character that old can be carrying on the way Robicheax and Purcell do.
Anyway, it was still an enjoyable read, if not quite up to Burke's earlier works, so I give it 3.5 stars.
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