The Neon Rain

A Dave Robicheaux Novel

By: James Lee Burke

Narrated by: Will Patton

Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times best-selling author James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux novels began with this first hard-hitting entry in the series.

In The Neon Rain, Detective Robicheaux fishes a prostitute's corpse from a New Orleans bayou and finds that no one, not even the law, cares about a dead hooker.

More mayhem? Listen to more of James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux thrillers.

©1987 James Lee Burke (P)2009 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"With its fine local color and driving action, this novel is both chilling and first-rate entertainment." ( Publishers Weekly)
"One of Burke's best." ( New York Times Book Review)

Extremely good book, rare to find one like this

I must have thought of listening to this book 20 times before I finally downloaded it, what a great find! This is some of the best contemporary writing I have ever come across, the story moves fast, the dialog is magnificent, the characters are amazingly developed, the way this author can describe a scene is on an entirely new level, it is spectacular. The story moves in and around New Orleans and south Louisiana and everything is real and direct and at times brutally honest. There is a multilevel story going on here with the main character having to overcome some personal demons as well as those in real human form, the world is a tense one with a solid storyline that is filled with moments of real anxiety
for the reader. This is an adult read, it is wonderful literature, and it will bring you into a world filled with some very seedy and some very wonderful people. Highly recommended.

Gritty, Dark and Fantastic

In the vein of Mike Hammer, a real get down and dirty detective novel. A little humor, a bunch of action, good story line and I don't mind the flashbacks to 'Nam. Some are a little long but the story makes up for it in suspense. I will definitely read the next in the series. I am very pleased with Will Patton's narration. I don't know about Mark Hammer but I will be finding out. Glad to have a new series to listen to .... Just don't know how this is going to be a cop drama if he isn't going to be on the force.... or is he?

The Beginning of a Classic Series

James Lee Burke and Will Patton created an experiential masterpiece with this book that set the standard for their subsequent collaborations. The Dave Robicheaux novels, especially those narrated by Will Patton, form a classic literary series that will be hailed as true works of art by future generations

Good Book

This was one of James Lee Burkes earliest books and he gets better and better with each one.

These got better as the series progressed

Will Patton's narration of the Robicheaux series is brilliant. This first in the series was not. It was sometimes difficult to follow and many of the plot turns did not make a whole lot of sense. With that said, Burke is one of the best, if not the best, writers on the planet. His descriptions and use of metaphor paint descriptions that should illuminate the minds of those reading or listening. And as contradictory as it sounds, sometimes that makes it hard for us to see the forest (the plot) for the trees (the settings). It's a challenge I will willingly take on because Burke's writing is that good. I look forward to more selections in the Robicheaux series.

Great Performance

The plot was slightly above average, but the writer James Lee Burke, is simply excellent. The performance by Will Patton is simply outstanding. I loved this Audible selection.

Great listing Powerful store

I have fallen in love with this character, and the reader makes you fell as if your in the scene of a move.

Captures the Louisiana I grew up in

Dave Robicheaux is a New Orleans homicide cop so, yes, there is some pretty bad violence. There is also offensive language that reflects the way some people talked 30 years ago and, let us hope, to a lesser extent today. What you also get is the beautiful side of Cajun culture with its love of family and make-do approach to life’s difficulties. Without being at all “preachy” Burke also captures thve deeply ingrained faith that underlies the culture. Burke is a master of descriptions of New Orleans, and in later books, the Acadiana bayou country.

Now about the narration: there is no one Cajun accent. People from different parts of South Louisiana sound subtly different and New Orleans has at least a dozen accents all it’s own, mostly not Cajun. Will Patton doesn’t sound exactly like anybody I grew up around, and if he did people who “ain’t from around here” would probably have trouble following some of the dialogue. What Patton does is to capture the soft musicality of true Cajun voices. Speaking of which, why why why don’t we have the entire series narrated by Patton?

And why is the next book in the series available only in an abridged version? Read a full-length print or ebook edition if you can but if you only do audiobooks it’s worth it to listen to the abridged. Without it some things in later books won’t make sense. You really want to read the books in order.

Excellent

This is my first Dave Robicheaux book. My husband has been reading him for years and always comments about how the words just flow off the page and how well the characters and plots are developed. I'm sorry I waited so long! I, too, enjoyed the story and the character development. And, I have to agree with my husband the writing is incredible. The way Burke puts words together and the descriptions and scenes he paints with them is exceptional. Everything is enhanced by the narrator who does a wonderful job! You can visualize everything and everyone that is being described.This will not be my last Dave Robicheaux book!

James Lee Burke & Will Patton are a perfect match!

This is my first James Lee Burke / Dave Robicheaux novel, and I loved it. While the story was written in the '80s, it was not too dated and I just wanted to keep reading this series up to the present. I found the police characters fascinating and the New Orleans description of food, smells and places make me feel like I was actually there. I do have to admit though that the villains were more brutal than I normally prefer. At times, I got confused by all the many characters, but the story came together well in the end. This was also my first exposure to the narration of Will Patton. Wow, wow, wow! He did a great job. I am going to check on books Mr. Patton narrates in Audible, because he could definitely make an OK story sound great. Can you fall in love with a voice? I think I did.