Pegasus Descending

By: James Lee Burke

Narrated by: Will Patton

Length: 11 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

A troubled young woman breezes into Detective Robicheaux's hometown of New Iberia, Louisiana. She happens to be the daughter of his friend: a friend he witnessed gunned down in a bank robbery, a tragedy that forever changed Robicheaux's life.

The twists begin when Trish Klein, the only offspring of Robicheaux's Vietnam-era buddy, starts passing marked hundred-dollar bills in local casinos. Is she a good kid gone bad? A victim's child seeking revenge? A promiscuous beauty seducing everyone good within her grasp? And can Robicheaux make peace with his friend's murder in time to figure out how a local mobster fits into all the schemes and death? Will his life be whole again when it has been shattered by so much tragedy?

In Pegasus Descending, James Lee Burke explores psyches as much as evidence, and tries to make sense of human behavior as well as his characters' crimes. Richly atmospheric, frightening in its sudden violence, and replete with the sort of puzzles only the best crime fiction creates, Burke's latest novel is an unforgettable roller coaster of passion, surprise, and regret.

©2006 James Lee Burke. All rights reserved (P)2006 Simon & Schuster. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"The novel is steeped in complex personality studies, lyrical prose, and richly drawn depictions of Mr. Burke's beloved bayou country." (The New York Times)
"With peerless naturalistic descriptions and lush, metaphysical imagery, Burke creates another challenging morality play for his flawed, everyman hero." (Publishers Weekly)
"Everything that makes this series so compelling - the elegiac, seductively lyrical prose; the complex character of Robicheaux; the lovingly evoked bayou setting - is here in abundance....The fact remains that no serious reader of hard-boiled fiction should ever miss a moment of Dave Robicheaux in action." (Booklist)

Pegasus Descending

James Lee Burke can't go wrong with his Dave Robicheaux series! Alwasys a great read. Once I get started on one of these books I can't stop listening...

One of Burke's best.

Burke is always good, but this one may be his best. All elements of his writing and storytelling are at their peak here, from his vivid imagery and apt metaphors to his dark insights into human nature, and he tells one of the most riveting stories Robicheaux has yet wandered through, all with an attention to language most writers these days don't even understand. This is a great novel for Robicheaux fans, and a great place to dive into the series if you've never read him before.

Will Patton is a very good reader, even though he sounds more Dixie than Cajun and screws up Clete Purcell something awful, not to mention a few local names. He's smart and has an appreciation for Burke's language, and you feel that in this narration. Overall, this is a book to make you fall in love with James Lee Burke, and I can't recommend it enough.

If images had calories....

If images had calories, this book would bust the most generous diet. It is as rich and complex as a thick steamy gumbo and just as satisfying. Both story and narration are totally entertaining. This book is very well suited for audio. I'd consider listening to this one more than once.

Will Patton carries the day

The excellent narration almost makes up for the flaws in the narrative. I missed the bits of humor in JLB's previous book "Crusader's Crossing" and got tired of Dave's self-rightousness.
However, I look forward to what JLB will do in Iberia Parish in the wake of Katrina.

Burke is the best and just keeps getting better!

What a ride - I couldn’t put this one down. This story will come for a visit and you’ll want it to stay awhile.

Always a Pleasure

I've come to really enjoy and to savor the tales of James Lee Burke. While this one is a little more graphic than some of his other books I've read, I truly enjoyed this none the less.

Burke

This man is amazing
. His story stoare always assume and yet totally different. I’d love to thi

Another great story

James Lee Burke and Will Patton….what a great team to tell the stories of New Iberia Parrish and Louisiana. Without giving away the ending, it is exciting until the end.

JL Burke does it again.

Burke must be the best American author of our day! His novels continue to amaze me and keep me engrossed. I particularly enjoy the Dave Robicheaux novels but almost anything he pens is good to me.

Imperfectly perfectly good ROBICHEAUX STORY.

Narration is excellent. Patton throws his voice in myriad directions, at varying intensities, and loopy trajectories, each perfectly suited for the distinctly different characters.

This plot is more complicated than most in the Robicheaux series, and is a little tricky to follow, but is nonetheless highly satisfying.