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The Neon Rain

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About this listen

Dave Robicheaux has been warned that he's on somebody's hit list, and now the homicide detective is trying to discover just who that is before he ends up dead.

Meanwhile he has taken on the murder investigation of a young black girl found dead in the Bayou swamp. Robicheaux uncovers a web of corruption that leads him to a terrifying confrontation with the one horror he fears most of all.

©1987 James Lee Burke (P)2009 Recorded Books LLC Crime Crime Fiction Detective Modern Detectives Mystery Suspense Thriller & Suspense Traditional Detectives Fiction Exciting Emotionally Gripping Scary

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Critic reviews

"Fine writing that is far above the crime-fiction norm and manages to stand comparison with the very best contemporary novels" ( Sunday Express)
"A fine American writer who deserves to be far better known on this side of the Atlantic…poetic and passionate" ( Sunday Telegraph)
Most relevant
This was my first experience of JLB and I loved it. Sometimes very violent. Always very tense and brought together by a fantastic narrator.

Outstanding

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narrator was amazing, best voice for this book possible, really brought the book to life

amazing story

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Excellent first novel in the series with the best narrator. Great introduction to a series that spans over 30 years. You won’t regret this and it’ll make you want to go immediately to Louisiana.

Welcome to Dave Robicheaux

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My first James Lee Burke and certainly won't be my last. Beautifully written and very evocative of New Orleans and the Bayou. Will Patton is a brilliant narrator 👍👍

odern southern gothic at its best

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It’s a good story well worth a listen BUT the world created by the help voice and narration of Will Paton is immense. He takes you there, you can feel that humid heat and taste the shrimp. It’s a great combination that provides an experience that is so much more than the story. Will Paton take a bow, and thankyou.

Take a bow Will Patton

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Good story line. Characters well formed. The love story on the side felt out of place. Overall enjoyed it a lot.

Enjoyed this book.

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First of all, Will Patton does a brilliant job of narrating this book. Robichaeux as a character is fascinating, infuriating and boneheaded all at once, but he ticked so many boxes for me. Recommended.

Loved it and I can’t wait to hear the others

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I was slightly disappointed in this early (1987) work after thoroughly enjoying Burke's "Wandering Stranger" (2014). All the same themes are there, personal honour, Southern manners, police corruption, human frailty and deep seated evil - but it was done so much better in his later work. It's not that Neon Rain is a bad book but I have no desire to read the rest of this 24 book series.

One other positive is the brilliant narration by Will Patton.

Not His Best

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The narration was great, but it couldn't make up for a very dated, at-times overwritten story of tough but sensitive cop--a Vietnam War vet who can quote Robert Frost while shaking down and/or smoking smut sellers, drug dealers, and killers. It's right out of the Reagan era of gun snuggling and Sandinistas.

A bit overwritten--an exercise in how many times you can use the words purple and orange.

Biggest faux pas was when Fitzpatrick became Fitzgerald and then back to Fitzpatrick. Surely an editor would have corrected this a long time ago???

Dated story of '80s sensitive macho cop

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Brilliant books brilliantly narrated hurry up with the others in the series please. I have been an avid reader of these books since they were released so I'm overjoyed that they are now being released in audible as I prefer to listen to books rather than music when working. These books are so well written and Will Patton does such a wonderful job of the narration, you can actually visualise the scenes, it's like you are there. I thoroughly enjoyed this and am really looking forward to the next one and all the other Dave Robicheax books despite reading them many times over the years. Please hurry up with them.

High time Dave Robicheaux books were on Audible

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