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The Neon Rain

By: James Lee Burke
Narrated by: Will Patton
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Summary

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
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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)

What listeners say about The Neon Rain

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Monumental revisit

Will Patton. Maybe you’ll read this. Your performance of one of my favourite novels brings me back so authentically to the experience of reading it originally. Your voice is the voice of the novel perfectly. Thank you so much.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyed this book.

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

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Evocative wonderful professional production

You can tell that a great deal of effort has gone into this production. The writing and characterisation are excellent. Perfect Retro-American Deep-South Cop Novel with flushed out characters and plot. The whole story and tone reminds me a great deal of the original true detective series.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Gritty and beautifully written

A Dave Robichaux novel was namechecked in an MW Craven book I was reading. The opening passage, so terrible yet beautiful, had me hooked. There are some salty bits of language that hits a few -isms hard, but come for the gritty action and stay for Burke's artistic dreamy description.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Good characters a little confusing at times

I liked the characters. Found I was getting a little confused at times following the storyline. Not sure it would have all been swept under the carpet so easily but I may listen to book two and see where he goes.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

An unusual hybrid

I wasn’t taken with the somewhat dated 1980s grizzled machismo that sits on the surface of this novel, but I enjoyed it more as it went on. The thriller/mystery elements don’t hang together all that well, but the as the novel progresses, the always sumptuous, bordering on purple, prose begins to meander across the big questions of good and evil, love and death. I was looking for a more literary example of the detective novel and this is what The Neon Rain is. It is excellent in parts, generic in others. Apparently the Robicheaux novels become more confident and accomplished over time; I’d be interested to see if Burke manages to more smoothly integrate the literary and pulpy components.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Grand Slam

What a ride! I binged this book over 2 days. The authors style and descriptions are impeccable. You can almost taste the Bayou.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Narrator sounds like Donald Trump

Can’t listen to it, the voice of the main character is so over the top that it makes it sound like a parody. It’s distracting from the story and sometimes the drawl is so slurred it’s hard to hear and understand the dialogue.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Transports you there, lock, stock and both barrels

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A thoroughly enjoyable story. Will Patton presents it superbly. I suspect a few people spend more time in their car than is really required due to this audio book.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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Outstanding

This was my first experience of JLB and I loved it. Sometimes very violent. Always very tense and brought together by a fantastic narrator.

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2 people found this helpful