Jolie Blon's Bounce: A Dave Robicheaux Novel - Softcover

Burke, James Lee

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1982100249 ISBN 13: 9781982100247

Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2018

Synopsis

Dave Robicheaux is back in this powerful New York Times bestseller that takes him into the underbelly of New Iberia's mafia to solve the brutal murder of two teenage girls.

When a beautiful teenage girl is killed, New Iberia police detective Dave Robicheaux senses that the most likely suspect, Tee Bobby Hulin, is not the actual killer. Though a drug addict and general neer-do-well, Hulin just doesn't fit the profile for this kind of crime. He's a Cajun blues singer (one of his songs is titled "Jolie Blon's Bounce"), and he's been raised by his grandmother Ladice Hulin, a proud and strong-willed black woman.

But when there's another, similar murder--this victim a drugged-out prostitute who happens to be the daughter of one of the local mafia bigwigs--the cries for an arrest become too loud to ignore. The mafia figure, however, prefers to take matters in his own hand and sets out to find--and punish--the killer himself. Once again, Tee Bobby Hulin seems the most likely suspect.

Added to the mix of characters on the good guy side of the balance sheet is Clete Purcel, a long-time buddy of Robicheaux's and a confirmed boozer and womanizer. Coming to New Iberia for a visit, Clete is quickly drawn into the struggle between the various forces of evil in the town: Jimmy Dean Styles, a black man intent on maintaining his empire of corruption; Joe Zeroski, a trailer-park mafioso with palatial aspirations--and of course Legion Guidrey, the devil incarnate.

About this title

Review

"One of the best writers of our time" (The Denver Post), James Lee Burke returns with his popular character, Dave Robicheaux, in a novel rich with atmosphere, ripe with menace, and filled with crackling dialogue. First a beautiful teenage girl is brutally murdered. Then a prostitute--who happens to be the daughter of a local mobster--is similarly slain. This time the victim's father is prepared to mete out his own justice. All clues point to a local Cajun singer, drug addict and ne'er-do-well Tee Bobby Hulin. But police detective David Robicheaux--last seen in Purple Cane Road--doesn't think this is an open-and-shut case. Robicheaux looks to the past for clues and uncovers a history of secrets and long-seated enmity that goes to the core of this Louisiana community, reaching back to the days of slavery. At the center of this dark episode, he finds Legion, a man defined by evil and seemingly possessed with almost supernatural skills of survival. When Robicheaux challenges him, the resulting defeat forces him to face the demons he buried long ago. Gothic, complex, intense, touching, and always compelling, Jolie Blon's Bounce is classic storytelling from a writer dubbed "the Faulkner of crime fiction."

"Burke spins beautifully crafted prose. He pens the best dialogue this side of Elmore Leonard."

About the Author

James Lee Burke is a New York Times bestselling author, two-time winner of the Edgar Award, and the recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts in Fiction. He's authored thirty-seven novels and two short story collections. He lives in Missoula, Montana.

About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1982100249
• ISBN 13: 9781982100247
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 464