The Neon Rain

From New York Times bestselling author James Lee Burke comes his definitive, must-read first title in his famous Dectective David Robicheaux series. New Orleans Detective Dave Robicheaux has fought too many battles: in Vietnam, with police brass, with killers and hustlers, and the bottle. Lost without his wife's love, Robicheaux haunts the intense and heady French Quarter—the place he calls home, and the place that nearly destroys him when he beomes involved in the case of a young prostitute whose body is found in a bayou. Thrust into the seedy world of drug lords and arms smugglers, Robicheaux must face down the criminal underworld and come to terms with his own bruised heart and demons to survive.

Dave Robicheaux, a New Orleans detective, discovers that someone wants him dead and becomes involved with drug dealers, Mafia chieftains, an ex-general with shady dealings in Central America, and a beautiful woman

Introducing the New Orleans detective Dave Robicheaux, this novel begins with the murder of a prostitute, which no one wants him to investigate. Persistence results in his involvement with a drug dealing Mafia, and he uncovers a web of corruption that some would kill to protect.

Meet Dave Robicheaux again for the first time! This boxed set includes the first two novels featuring fan favorite Detective Dave Robicheaux, The Neon Rain and Heaven’s Prisoners, plus an excerpt from the most recent Robicheaux novel, The Glass Rainbow. Robicheaux’s creator, New York Times bestselling author James Lee Burke, is a rare winner of two Edgar Awards and in 2009 was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America. The Neon Rain Detective Dave Robicheaux has fought too many battles: in Vietnam, with killers and hustlers, with police brass, and with the bottle. Robicheaux's haunted soul mirrors the intensity and dusky mystery of New Orleans' French Quarter—the place he calls home, and the place that nearly destroys him when he becomes involved in the case of a young prostitute whose body is found in a bayou. In order to survive, Robicheaux must face down a subterranean criminal world of drug lords and arms smugglers—and come to terms with his own bruised heart. Heaven’s Prisoners Vietnam vet Dave Robicheaux has turned in his detective's badge, is winning his battle against booze, and has left New Orleans with his new wife, Annie, for the tranquil beauty of Louisiana's bayous. But a plane crash on the Gulf brings a young girl into his life—and with her comes a netherworld of murder, deception, and homegrown crime. Suddenly Robicheaux is confronting Bubba Rocque, a brutal thug he's known since childhood; Rocque's hungry Cajun wife; and a federal agent with more guts than sense. In a backwater world where a swagger and a gun go further than the law, Robicheaux and those he loves are caught on a tide of violence far bigger than them all . . . The Glass Rainbow (excerpt) Detective Dave Robicheaux and his partner, Clete Purcel, are on the trail of a killer responsible for the deaths of seven young women—a trail that always seems to lead back to the notorious pimp Herman Stanga, whom they both despise. But the case takes a nasty turn when Stanga turns up dead after a fierce beating by Purcel in front of numerous witnesses. Adding to Robicheaux’s troubles is his daughter Alafair’s romantic involvement with the scion of a once-prominent Louisiana family whom Robicheaux suspects is involved in some very shady business. To protect his daughter and clear his best friend’s name, Robicheaux will need every ounce of guts, wit, and investigative chops he can muster.

Kriminalroman. Under efterforskningen af mordet på en sort pige kommer kriminalkommissær Dave Robicheaux tæt på både våbensmuglere og narkoimportører med kontakter til CIA, og snart er han omgivet af fjender på alle sider.

THE NEON RAIN: When Johnny Massina, a convicted murderer bound for the electric chair, warns Dave Robicheaux he's on somebody's hit list, the Cajun detective is rocketed into a situation with chilling consequences. THE NEON RAIN is the first highly acclaimed novel in the Dave Robicheaux series. HEAVEN'S PRISONERS: Dave Robicheaux is trying to put a life of violence and crime behind him, leaving homicide to run a boat-rental business in Louisiana's bayou country. But one day a small two-engine plane suddenly crashes into the sea and Robicheaux dives down to the wreckage to find four bodies and one survivor: a little girl miraculously trapped in a pocket of air. When the authorities insist only three bodies were recovered from the plane, Robicheaux decides to investigate the mystery of the missing man. BLACK CHERRY BLUES: Personal tragedy has left Dave Robicheaux close to the edge. Battling against his old addiction to alcohol, Dave finds his only tranquillity at home with his young ward Alafair. But even this fragile peace is shattered by the arrival of Dixie Lee Pugh who brings with him a brutal trail of murder and violence.

100 American Crime Writers features discussion and analysis of the lives of crime writers and their key works, examining the developments in American crime writing from the Golden Age to hardboiled detective fiction. This study is essential to scholars and an ideal introduction to crime fiction for anyone who enjoys this fascinating genre.

Mysteries and detective stories are among the most popular of books but the writers of such genre fiction suffer from a perception that their work is to be taken less seriously than so-called literary fiction. The novels of James Lee Burke, one of the most distinguished writers of crime novels, challenge that notion, as do the 12 essays in this collection. This work examines Burke as a writer who has expanded the mystery-detective genre with an astonishing diversity of themes, imaginative language and descriptions, and unforgettable characters. He seems unbounded by limitations of genre. An interview with Burke is included.