Creole Belle

A Dave Robicheaux Novel

By: James Lee Burke

Narrated by: Will Patton

Dave Robicheaux investigates the disappearance of a young Creole woman, while an oil well blowout in the Gulf of Mexico threatens to destroy the cherished beauty of the Louisiana bayous in this gripping thriller.

Set against the events of the Gulf Coast oil spill, rife with “the menaces of greed and violence and man-made horror” (The Christian Science Monitor), Creole Belle finds Dave Robicheaux languishing in a New Orleans recovery unit since surviving a bayou shoot-out. The detective’s body is healing; it’s his morphine-addled mind that conjures spectral visions of Tee Jolie Melton, a young woman who in reality has gone missing. An iPod with an old blues song left by his bedside turns Robicheaux into a man obsessed… And as oil companies assign blame after an epic disaster threatens the Gulf’s very existence, Robicheaux unearths connections between tragedies both global and personal—and faces down forces that can corrupt and destroy the best of men.

“A work of dark and radiant brilliance” (Richmond Times-Dispatch), Creole Belle is “a novel that shows how the sins of the fathers poison the ground their children walk on” (The New York Times Book Review).

Flowed like honey, Carrying me off to New Orleans

WI/NWI--5 WI means worth it! This book, as a wine taster would say, has a full body. It melts off the reader’s tongue like syrup and the images are so well portrayed that I recognized a song by its description. History rich, full of friends and foes. Great book all around.

Plot--5 The plot stems from deep New Orleans history and the characters themselves. It flows and tumbles and ends naturally.

Characterization --5 The deeply drawn, real, lovable, questionable people stumble through the story like we all do through life. If you know the series, you’ll be glad to spend time with these folks again, and meeting them for the 1st time is completely possible without the rest of the series.

Violence--5 Lots of violence, but it emerges naturally from the story, and fits.

Grossness --2 Not too bad. A dog dies, which is always bad, but its used to set scene and mood. The violence isn't described in a yucky kind of way.

Sex--0 No sex, but a lot of passion.

Supernatural Elements--4 Though not a main part of the story, the ghost paddle boat and the New Orleans dead shadow and affect the entire story. Treated as a fact of life. Really well done.

Crossing the Line--2 (Lower number is better.) To me, crossing the line is the brutal murdering animals (especially dogs), or children. Stephen King is the worst offender. A dog dies here rather horribly, but serves to set the tone and mood. But I could do without the picture I now carry in my head.

Setting--5 The setting flowed from the speakers and carried me back to New Orleans, deep in the south, and made me a native, not a tourist. For these precious hours, I lived among bayous and plantations, Zydeco and alligators. Wouldn’t have missed this vacation for the world.

Prose--5 Like one long poem. Beautifully written, words create a place I call home, because the characters call it home. True literature.

Deeper Message--5 The story is set in the greater set of the BP oil spill, and how it affects all life, and New Orleans.

Performance--5 James Lee Burke is Dave Robicheaux, and reads the other characters well, too. His accent and his tone of voice makes every word important. Wonderful, poignant performance.

another winner

Listening to a James Lee Burke novel with Will Patton narrating and Dave Robicheaux as the lead character is like visiting an old friend. You know you are going to have a great time and Creole Belle didn't disappoint. Patton's narration is great and he really brings the characters to life. The story gives you a good feel of what life in southern Louisiana must be like, although without all the crime and seedy characters maybe, but who knows? Burke is great at character development and I love his insights into human beings and life in general. And, Dave Robicheaux and Clete Purcell are two characters unlike any others. I'll look forward to the next Burke novel, be it set in Louisiana or Texas. And, when the author decides to hang it up, it'll be a sad day.

Dave Robicheau is as good as ever.

First, to repeat myself for the thousandth time, I’d read almost anything Will Patton recorded, including the telephone book. James Lee Burke’s writing and Will Patton’s narration do not disappoint in this latest Dave Robicheaux book. Dave is in a recovery unit in New Orleans after his injuries from the last book, The Glass Rainbow. He’s been getting morphine and having weird dreams, so when a creole girl he knows shows up in his room and leaves him an Ipod with a blues song, “Creole Belle” recorded on it, no one believes him. Especially since the girl and her sister have both disappeared. But the girl, Tee Jollie Melton, keeps calling him even when he’s at home, still unbelieved, and keeps telling him about a horrible place where she is being held, but not able to tell him where that place is. Then her sister, Blue, turns up dead in the river in a block of ice. This book finds Dave and Clete involved with a group of mercenaries connected to a big oil spill. Clete’s daughter, Gretchen, shows up although she doesn’t know for a while that she’s Clete’s daughter. She and Allafair become friends. Dave is unhappy about the friendship as Gretchen seems to have connections to the mob, while Clete is very protective of his daughter. Again, this is a wonderful book which builds to a teeth-grinding climax. Very good as usual.

James rides again

If you could sum up Creole Belle in three words, what would they be?

Don't miss it

What other book might you compare Creole Belle to and why?

Rain Gods The scene where the bad guys get it are both unique, but similar.

Which scene was your favorite?

Where Clete creates a diversion.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Where Gretchen discovers her relationship to Clete.

Any additional comments?

Can't wait for another Dave Robicheux.

Never fails to deliver

Calling this another murder mystery is like calling the Mona Lisa another painting. Burke immerses you into his narrative and engages all your senses. He shows that good people often are very wounded and tortured souls but still have a very clear knowledge of the right thing to do, legally or not.
This is the first time I haven't rated Burke 5 stars and I think it's because the series may be getting a little long in the tooth, but I still look forward to the next one.
It's a little tough for me to tell just how good this novel is because Patton is truly amazing. He could read the dictionary and I would listen entranced for hours.
All in all, well worth your money.