This is one of my ancient trade paperbacks that I first read and finished Su 1/16/00. The flyleaf reads: "Read in one day. Off tomorrow. Feel like I'm coming down with cold/flu. Nice read. Bought yesterday- main branch, 50 cents".
However, I refinished the book on Su 10/29/17, and I really, really loved it! I guess the tip off should have been that the first time through, I read it in one day. This time it took two, but I finished in one three hour stretch on the living room couch yesterday.
"Jonathan Samuel Carroll (born January 26, 1949) is an American fiction writer primarily known for novels that may be labelled...
MAGIC REALISM...
SLIPSTREAM...
CONTEMPORARY FANTASY".
The Plot-
Max Fischer
Lily and Lincoln Aaron
The book is kind of a simple story that goes completely off the rails, not once- but twice.
Max is a successful cartoonist, single and OK with this, and one day at an art exhibition (some of his work is featured) he meets the woman, and her ten year old son, that fulfill all of his romantic dreams. The three of them are so perfectly matched that their worlds change from black and white to Technicolor the moment that they meet. Months later, Max learns a truth that brings it all down.
Lily is a monster. She had kidnapped Lincoln when he was just a small baby. And, this family never forgot and never gave up hope that someday their missing child would come back home.
SECOND IMPLOSION-
The novel skips to the future. Lincoln is now seventeen and he's turned into a surly punk (FUCK DANCE, LET'S FUCK; tee shirt) and it seems that all the excellent parenting of Max and Lily has been worthless.
Lincoln learns that he's not Lily's son and returns to his birth family to wreak havoc. Max follows, but is too late to stop the violence.
TWIST-
Lincoln's real birth parents are not the people that Lily claimed in the first place. The family that Lincoln visits has a son that was kidnapped, but this boy was reunited with his parents. Lincoln burns down their house and beats up the boy anyway.
TIME TWIST-
On the way from the fire and violence, Max meets Lincoln on the road and in a scene of road-rage madness, Lincoln shoots at Max. This same scene occurred many years before when Max first visited that family that he thought Lily had robbed of their child.
This is a link to Goodreads that has a list of quotes from the author. He has many books, and I plan to read more. I don't think that AFTER SILENCE is even his best work.
https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23704.Jonathan_Carroll
Monday, October 30, 2017
Friday, October 27, 2017
COUNTERPARTS by Gonzalo Lira
Finished Fr 10/27/17 (very early on the day of the microwave/oven installation from Dick Van Dyke)
This is one of my old paperbacks that I found downstairs when I was going through the collection to get rid of 'the unwanted', and I decided to re-read this one. I first read it Fr 5/14/99. And according to the flyleaf, "Before Brandenburgs to sign the Sun City deposit box stuff". I don't exactly remember this incident, but I get the picture.
While I was reading the book I searched the internet to find out more about this author. He did write another book that continues with the character of Nicholas Denton, but he's left the fiction genre, and now primarily writes 'financial news'. In fact, I noticed some of his work at ZERO HEDGE which a one of those 'Russian Fake News' outlets (an unsecured website). He's a graduate of Dartmouth and his family is from Chile and he's related to some of the founding fathers of that country. His politics are the the radical right.
CHARACTERS:
Margaret Chisholm- She's the slightly unhinged FBI agent. In the first scene of the novel she is called to a stadium to interrogate a suspect who has planted bombs around the venue. In order for him to reveal their location, she grabs a fire ax and chops off the man's fingers. Even she realized that she went to far, but not enough to stop. She begins to grasp that the ultra-violence is becoming far too attractive.
SEPSIS- An international hitman similar to Carlos the Jackal. He's more into 'metas-murder'; he leaves the victim alive, but so damages his life that he would be better off dead. Ex.- kills every member of the person's family, but lets the target live. "There are some fates worse than death".
Nicholas Denton- He plays the role of a career bureaucrat within the CIA, but really he has organized a clandestine group that is the true power within the agency. He's mild-mannered, yet secretly ruthless.
Sister Marianne- A Catholic nun who is an expert on Vatican architecture. She and Edmund Gettier, her mentor, are employed to strengthen Vatican buildings. However, forces within the CIA are going to destroy the Vatican to help draw the West into the middle East. Near the end of the novel it's revealed that Gettier is actually a villain who was also a terrorist and a lover of Sepsis.
Federico Lorca- When the action moves to the Vatican, this man is the police coordinator with the Italian authorities.
Keith Lehrer- This is Denton's putative boss at the CIA and the arch-villain of the story. He's running an illegal operation called Archangel that will reap millions of dollars for him and a couple of other high ranking officials in the agency. He asks Denton to join, but Denton kills him and makes it appear to be a self-inflicted bullet to the brain.
Storyline:
After the incident at the stadium, Margaret's boss assigns her to a case that might allow her to mentally regroup. A small religious order in New Hampshire has been attacked and all of the nuns, except one, have been killed in a bomb attack. And, while in custody someone takes a shot at this nun, so it appears that she is the real target.
The nun is invited back to Rome to make the structure of the Vatican buildings more strong and secure. She's an expert on ancient architecture. The CIA teams with the FBI to secure this operation and mayhem ensues.
Not a great book, but not bad. More 'plane' or 'beach' type of a novel. Lira's next novel was called ACROBAT and features more on the adventures of Nicholas Denton. It's out of print and fairly expensive. I'd read it if the library got it, but they don't.
This is one of my old paperbacks that I found downstairs when I was going through the collection to get rid of 'the unwanted', and I decided to re-read this one. I first read it Fr 5/14/99. And according to the flyleaf, "Before Brandenburgs to sign the Sun City deposit box stuff". I don't exactly remember this incident, but I get the picture.
While I was reading the book I searched the internet to find out more about this author. He did write another book that continues with the character of Nicholas Denton, but he's left the fiction genre, and now primarily writes 'financial news'. In fact, I noticed some of his work at ZERO HEDGE which a one of those 'Russian Fake News' outlets (an unsecured website). He's a graduate of Dartmouth and his family is from Chile and he's related to some of the founding fathers of that country. His politics are the the radical right.
CHARACTERS:
Margaret Chisholm- She's the slightly unhinged FBI agent. In the first scene of the novel she is called to a stadium to interrogate a suspect who has planted bombs around the venue. In order for him to reveal their location, she grabs a fire ax and chops off the man's fingers. Even she realized that she went to far, but not enough to stop. She begins to grasp that the ultra-violence is becoming far too attractive.
SEPSIS- An international hitman similar to Carlos the Jackal. He's more into 'metas-murder'; he leaves the victim alive, but so damages his life that he would be better off dead. Ex.- kills every member of the person's family, but lets the target live. "There are some fates worse than death".
Nicholas Denton- He plays the role of a career bureaucrat within the CIA, but really he has organized a clandestine group that is the true power within the agency. He's mild-mannered, yet secretly ruthless.
Sister Marianne- A Catholic nun who is an expert on Vatican architecture. She and Edmund Gettier, her mentor, are employed to strengthen Vatican buildings. However, forces within the CIA are going to destroy the Vatican to help draw the West into the middle East. Near the end of the novel it's revealed that Gettier is actually a villain who was also a terrorist and a lover of Sepsis.
Federico Lorca- When the action moves to the Vatican, this man is the police coordinator with the Italian authorities.
Keith Lehrer- This is Denton's putative boss at the CIA and the arch-villain of the story. He's running an illegal operation called Archangel that will reap millions of dollars for him and a couple of other high ranking officials in the agency. He asks Denton to join, but Denton kills him and makes it appear to be a self-inflicted bullet to the brain.
Storyline:
After the incident at the stadium, Margaret's boss assigns her to a case that might allow her to mentally regroup. A small religious order in New Hampshire has been attacked and all of the nuns, except one, have been killed in a bomb attack. And, while in custody someone takes a shot at this nun, so it appears that she is the real target.
The nun is invited back to Rome to make the structure of the Vatican buildings more strong and secure. She's an expert on ancient architecture. The CIA teams with the FBI to secure this operation and mayhem ensues.
Not a great book, but not bad. More 'plane' or 'beach' type of a novel. Lira's next novel was called ACROBAT and features more on the adventures of Nicholas Denton. It's out of print and fairly expensive. I'd read it if the library got it, but they don't.
Wednesday, October 18, 2017
OUTLANDER by Diana Gabaldon
Finished Tu 10/17/17 The October, 2017 selection for the Contemporary Book Club.
This novel is the first in a series of eight books; all of them are over eight hundred pages. I liked the book, but 800 pages is quite enough, and I have zero interest in reading even one more in the series. However, tomorrow I will receive the first disc of the television series. The woman in the group that suggested that we read this book liked the series, and several group members agreed.
I was surprised to learn that the author was not even Scottish (she'd never even been to Scotland) and she lived in Scottsdale, AZ. At her website I learned that Gabaldon is a lover of reference books and she compiled a collection of over 1,500 books relevant to the novel.
Although the book does involve time travel, it doesn't feel like a science fiction novel. The beginning of the book is set in 1946, but nearly seven hundred pages are set in Scotland, 1743. This first book is a leadup to the Battle of Culloden which effectively destroyed the clan system of Scotland.
From the novel's page at wikipedia-
"Plot summary-
In 1946, after working apart during the Second World War, British Army nurse Claire Randall and her husband Frank, a history professor, go on a second honeymoon to Inverness, Scotland. Frank conducts research into his family history and Claire goes plant-gathering near standing stones on the hill of Craigh na Dun. She faints when investigating a buzzing noise near the stones; upon waking, she encounters Frank's ancestor, Captain Jack Randall. Before Captain Randall can take her into custody, he is knocked unconscious by a Scottish Gael who takes Claire to his clansmen. As the Gaels inexpertly attend their injured comrade Jamie, Claire uses her medical skill to set Jamie's dislocated shoulder. The men identify themselves as members of Clan MacKenzie, and Claire eventually concludes that she has traveled into the past. She represents herself as an English widow who is traveling to France to see her family. The Gaels do not believe her and take her to Castle Leoch, where Claire searches for a way to return to her own time.
The Gaels of 1743 see Claire as a "Gall" (foreigner), "Sassenach", or "Outlander", ignorant of Gaelic culture. Her medical skills earn their respect; but the clan chieftain, Colum MacKenzie, suspects her of being an English spy. Colum sends her with his brother, Dougal, to collect rents; on the way he also solicits donations for the Jacobites, overseen by Ned Gowan, a lawyer from Edinburgh who is working for the Clan.
When chance again brings her to his attention, Captain Randall tells Dougal to bring Claire to him for questioning. There is suspicion that she is perhaps an English spy. To keep Claire from Randall, Dougal has her wed Jamie, which makes her a Scottish citizen. Torn between her attachment to Jamie and the thought of Frank, Claire tries to return to Craigh na Dun. However, she is captured by Randall's men, requiring Jamie to rescue her. Upon returning to Castle Leoch, Claire continues acting as the official healer, and befriends Geillis Duncan, the wife of a local official, who shares a knowledge of medicine. Eventually Claire and Geillis are charged with witchcraft while Jamie is away, but Jamie returns in time to save Claire. While inprisoned with Geillis, Claire learns that Geillis is part of the plot to restore King James to the Scottish throne along with Dougal and that she is also pregnant with his child. Just before their escape, Claire realizes that Geillis is, like herself, from the future, when she sees a smallpox vaccine scar on her arm. Geillis also sees Claire's scar.
Claire tells Jamie her real story, and he takes her to Craigh na Dun. When he offers her the chance to stay or go, she decides to stay. Jamie takes her to his home of Lallybroch, where they meet Jamie's sister Jenny and her husband, Ian. Though Jamie is still a fugitive from the British, he reclaims his position as Laird of Lallybroch, until one of his tenants betrays him and he is taken to Wentworth Prison. Claire and the MacKenzie clansmen attempt to rescue him, but they fail, and Claire is captured by Randall, who threatens to have her raped. Jamie offers himself in Claire's place, and Randall frees Claire into the woods. Claire tells Randall that she is a witch and tells him the exact day of his death, which she knows from Frank's family history. Thereafter Claire is befriended by Sir Marcus MacRannoch, a former suitor of Jamie's mother. While MacRannoch's men distract Wentworth's guards, the clansmen drive a herd of cattle through the underground halls, trampling a man. They rescue Jamie, who has been assaulted physically and sexually by Randall, and take him to MacRannoch's stronghold, where Claire tends Jamie's wounds. As soon as Jamie is able, they and Jamie's godfather, Murtagh, escape to Saint Anne de Beaupre's monastery in France, where another of Jamie's uncles is abbot. As she and Jamie emerge from a sacred hot spring under the Abbey, Claire reveals that she is pregnant."
This novel is the first in a series of eight books; all of them are over eight hundred pages. I liked the book, but 800 pages is quite enough, and I have zero interest in reading even one more in the series. However, tomorrow I will receive the first disc of the television series. The woman in the group that suggested that we read this book liked the series, and several group members agreed.
I was surprised to learn that the author was not even Scottish (she'd never even been to Scotland) and she lived in Scottsdale, AZ. At her website I learned that Gabaldon is a lover of reference books and she compiled a collection of over 1,500 books relevant to the novel.
Although the book does involve time travel, it doesn't feel like a science fiction novel. The beginning of the book is set in 1946, but nearly seven hundred pages are set in Scotland, 1743. This first book is a leadup to the Battle of Culloden which effectively destroyed the clan system of Scotland.
From the novel's page at wikipedia-
"Plot summary-
In 1946, after working apart during the Second World War, British Army nurse Claire Randall and her husband Frank, a history professor, go on a second honeymoon to Inverness, Scotland. Frank conducts research into his family history and Claire goes plant-gathering near standing stones on the hill of Craigh na Dun. She faints when investigating a buzzing noise near the stones; upon waking, she encounters Frank's ancestor, Captain Jack Randall. Before Captain Randall can take her into custody, he is knocked unconscious by a Scottish Gael who takes Claire to his clansmen. As the Gaels inexpertly attend their injured comrade Jamie, Claire uses her medical skill to set Jamie's dislocated shoulder. The men identify themselves as members of Clan MacKenzie, and Claire eventually concludes that she has traveled into the past. She represents herself as an English widow who is traveling to France to see her family. The Gaels do not believe her and take her to Castle Leoch, where Claire searches for a way to return to her own time.
The Gaels of 1743 see Claire as a "Gall" (foreigner), "Sassenach", or "Outlander", ignorant of Gaelic culture. Her medical skills earn their respect; but the clan chieftain, Colum MacKenzie, suspects her of being an English spy. Colum sends her with his brother, Dougal, to collect rents; on the way he also solicits donations for the Jacobites, overseen by Ned Gowan, a lawyer from Edinburgh who is working for the Clan.
When chance again brings her to his attention, Captain Randall tells Dougal to bring Claire to him for questioning. There is suspicion that she is perhaps an English spy. To keep Claire from Randall, Dougal has her wed Jamie, which makes her a Scottish citizen. Torn between her attachment to Jamie and the thought of Frank, Claire tries to return to Craigh na Dun. However, she is captured by Randall's men, requiring Jamie to rescue her. Upon returning to Castle Leoch, Claire continues acting as the official healer, and befriends Geillis Duncan, the wife of a local official, who shares a knowledge of medicine. Eventually Claire and Geillis are charged with witchcraft while Jamie is away, but Jamie returns in time to save Claire. While inprisoned with Geillis, Claire learns that Geillis is part of the plot to restore King James to the Scottish throne along with Dougal and that she is also pregnant with his child. Just before their escape, Claire realizes that Geillis is, like herself, from the future, when she sees a smallpox vaccine scar on her arm. Geillis also sees Claire's scar.
Claire tells Jamie her real story, and he takes her to Craigh na Dun. When he offers her the chance to stay or go, she decides to stay. Jamie takes her to his home of Lallybroch, where they meet Jamie's sister Jenny and her husband, Ian. Though Jamie is still a fugitive from the British, he reclaims his position as Laird of Lallybroch, until one of his tenants betrays him and he is taken to Wentworth Prison. Claire and the MacKenzie clansmen attempt to rescue him, but they fail, and Claire is captured by Randall, who threatens to have her raped. Jamie offers himself in Claire's place, and Randall frees Claire into the woods. Claire tells Randall that she is a witch and tells him the exact day of his death, which she knows from Frank's family history. Thereafter Claire is befriended by Sir Marcus MacRannoch, a former suitor of Jamie's mother. While MacRannoch's men distract Wentworth's guards, the clansmen drive a herd of cattle through the underground halls, trampling a man. They rescue Jamie, who has been assaulted physically and sexually by Randall, and take him to MacRannoch's stronghold, where Claire tends Jamie's wounds. As soon as Jamie is able, they and Jamie's godfather, Murtagh, escape to Saint Anne de Beaupre's monastery in France, where another of Jamie's uncles is abbot. As she and Jamie emerge from a sacred hot spring under the Abbey, Claire reveals that she is pregnant."
Monday, October 16, 2017
BOTTOM LINER BLUES by K. C. Constantine
Finished early Mo 10/16/17
This is an old paperback that I had never read. I almost threw it away, but glad that I didn't.
From the journal entry of Mo 10/16/17
"Read 330am- 430am BOTTOM LINER BLUES, K. C. Constantine and finished the book. A very strange police novel, and I don't think I've read anything quite like it. Although Mario Balzic, police chief of Rocksburg, Pennsylvania, is the protagonist of the novel, the book is far from a police procedural. It's really about the drastic change in economy of the area and how this grim and uncertain future affects the people who live there."
This is an old paperback that I had never read. I almost threw it away, but glad that I didn't.
From the journal entry of Mo 10/16/17
"Read 330am- 430am BOTTOM LINER BLUES, K. C. Constantine and finished the book. A very strange police novel, and I don't think I've read anything quite like it. Although Mario Balzic, police chief of Rocksburg, Pennsylvania, is the protagonist of the novel, the book is far from a police procedural. It's really about the drastic change in economy of the area and how this grim and uncertain future affects the people who live there."
Mario is obsessed with his experience at Iwo Jima in WWII. He can't remember any of the guys that he fought with- especially the men who died on that beach.
His wife, Ruth, feels that their marriage has hit a dead end. She wants things to be different, but she can't get Mario to understand.
Much of the novel takes place at Dom Muscotti's saloon. Unemployed and broke Russian writer, Nicholas Myushkin argues with bartender, Vinnie Valcanas, about the state of the world and other pseudo-philosophical subjects. Mario vacillates between 'voice of reason' and 'befuddled bystander'.
Crime at the center of the tale-
Crazy lady with child firebombs a tractor trailer at a truck stop. She gets blown out of the rig while trying to keep her toddler from getting too close to the explosion. The woman is blasted out of the cab, lands on the young girl, and crashes her head into a lug nut on the wheel. The child dies. When the driver comes out of the truck stop, he has a heart attack.
The driver is probably the father of the child and the woman might be an ex-wife.
I'm going to skim through the book a second time, and then write some more. This book is not quite like anything in this particular genre. I'll consider buying some more by Constantine.
Friday, October 6, 2017
TAXI DRIVER by Richard Elman; screenplay written by Paul Schrader
Refinished Th 10/5/17. This is one of my ancient paperbacks and recently was a 'bathroom read' for several weeks. According to the flyleaf I first completed the book in two afternoons- We 4/22/98. And, there's a note that I had to spend $40 to pay Alpha Electric 'to flip the breaker that shorted out from the battery charger'. I have no recollection of this incident, but it might have been a battery charger for my motorcycle? I checked, and Alpha is still around and it's a business out of Riverton. Why would I get an outfit out of town? Who knows....
This is a slim novel, yet remarkably well written. The dialog really crackles and the characters just jump off the page. I wonder how much of this is Schrader and how much is Elman.
I noticed the Richard Elman wrote a kind of memoir about a 1972 Rolling Stones tour that he took in 1972. It's still available at Amazon, but a bit too expensive.
Travis Bickle is a film icon, thanks to Robert De Niro, but this book provides a different dimension to the character.
The author's page at wikipedia-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Elman
Characters-
Travis Bickle- Nightshift taxi driver, Vietnam vet, ISOLATION.
Iris- Young prostitude that Travis feels drawn to- almost like a sister. He wants her 'out of the life', yet she can't imagine that she has a choice.
Sport- Iris's pimp
Betsy- Travis's idolized love interest. She's almost an ethereal character (metaphor for 'feminine beauty'). Betsy works for the politian, Senator Charles Palantine.
Senator Charles Palantine- The rich successful white dude- the polar opposite of Travis and people like him.
The best way to approach this book would be to read it straight through in a couple of sittings- just let the dour, violent, and gloomy atmosphere sweep you away.
This is a slim novel, yet remarkably well written. The dialog really crackles and the characters just jump off the page. I wonder how much of this is Schrader and how much is Elman.
I noticed the Richard Elman wrote a kind of memoir about a 1972 Rolling Stones tour that he took in 1972. It's still available at Amazon, but a bit too expensive.
Travis Bickle is a film icon, thanks to Robert De Niro, but this book provides a different dimension to the character.
The author's page at wikipedia-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Elman
Characters-
Travis Bickle- Nightshift taxi driver, Vietnam vet, ISOLATION.
Iris- Young prostitude that Travis feels drawn to- almost like a sister. He wants her 'out of the life', yet she can't imagine that she has a choice.
Sport- Iris's pimp
Betsy- Travis's idolized love interest. She's almost an ethereal character (metaphor for 'feminine beauty'). Betsy works for the politian, Senator Charles Palantine.
Senator Charles Palantine- The rich successful white dude- the polar opposite of Travis and people like him.
The best way to approach this book would be to read it straight through in a couple of sittings- just let the dour, violent, and gloomy atmosphere sweep you away.
Tuesday, October 3, 2017
IN THE ELECTRIC MIST WITH CONFEDERATE DEAD by James Lee Burke
Refinished Mo 10/2/17 I originally read this in two days and finished on Xmas Eve, We 12/24/03. The note on the flyleaf says that I had a bad chest cold.
QUIRKY CAST OF CHARACTERS-
Batiste- Dave's helper/partner at the fishing shop
Alafair- Dave and Bootsie's adopted daughter, Tripod is her pet.
Elrod T. Sykes- Drunken actor that's starring in the Civil War picture that's being shot in New Iberia.
Rosa (Rosie) Gomez- FBI (Fart- Barf- and Itch) agent and Dave's partner in the investigation.
Julie 'Baby Feet' Balboni- This man grew up in New Iberia and played baseball with Dave in high school. He's a prominent mob figure in New Orleans. A huge man, shaped like a tapered banana- small head and tiny feet.
Kelly Drummond- Actress/girlfriend of Sykes. This woman is shot and killed. The killer thought she was Dave- she was wearing one of his t shirts.
Dewitt Prejean- Old black Zydeco guitarist. He fills in the details of the murder of a black man, Hogman Pucet, that Dave witnessed in 1957. This man was having an affair with a white man- Twinky Herbert Lemoyne.
'The Ghost of' John Bell Hood- A Confederate general who appears (with his soldiers) to Dave throughout the book. He offers offbeat and eery advice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bell_Hood
Cherry Le Blanc- A prostitute who is murdered and mutilated by Murphy Ducet.
Mike Goldman- The loud and obnoxious director of the movie. He knows that he's tied to the mob, but he thinks he can keep things under control- he can't.
SUB-PLOT;
Murphy Doucet and Twinky Herbert Lemoyne killed Hogman Pucet for having an affair with Mrs. Lemoyne. Doucet was a state cop and arrested Hogman, then brought him out to the swamp and shot him dead- no belt and no shoe laces. Dave was a sophomore in college and working for an oil company on summer break. He was across the bayou and witnessed the killing- the two killers couldn't care less. I guess they thought it was only a black man and no one would give a damn.
In the end of the book, Doucet kidnaps Alafair and takes her to a deserted fishing cabin. Dave and Rosie track them down and Rosie empties her 357 into him. But, Julie Balboni ends up in prison. He runs the show on the inside and has many male lovers. One of these men throws gasoline on him while Baby Feet is asleep. Covered in flames, he jumps to his death on the jail room floor.
James Lee Burke is a brilliant writer and I'd read anything by him, although my favorites are the Dave Robicheaux series.
QUOTES-
"What we do not do is let the other side make us be like them"
"Maybe we have so much collective guilt as a society that we fear to punish our individual members"
QUIRKY CAST OF CHARACTERS-
Batiste- Dave's helper/partner at the fishing shop
Alafair- Dave and Bootsie's adopted daughter, Tripod is her pet.
Elrod T. Sykes- Drunken actor that's starring in the Civil War picture that's being shot in New Iberia.
Rosa (Rosie) Gomez- FBI (Fart- Barf- and Itch) agent and Dave's partner in the investigation.
Julie 'Baby Feet' Balboni- This man grew up in New Iberia and played baseball with Dave in high school. He's a prominent mob figure in New Orleans. A huge man, shaped like a tapered banana- small head and tiny feet.
Kelly Drummond- Actress/girlfriend of Sykes. This woman is shot and killed. The killer thought she was Dave- she was wearing one of his t shirts.
Dewitt Prejean- Old black Zydeco guitarist. He fills in the details of the murder of a black man, Hogman Pucet, that Dave witnessed in 1957. This man was having an affair with a white man- Twinky Herbert Lemoyne.
'The Ghost of' John Bell Hood- A Confederate general who appears (with his soldiers) to Dave throughout the book. He offers offbeat and eery advice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bell_Hood
Cherry Le Blanc- A prostitute who is murdered and mutilated by Murphy Ducet.
Mike Goldman- The loud and obnoxious director of the movie. He knows that he's tied to the mob, but he thinks he can keep things under control- he can't.
SUB-PLOT;
Murphy Doucet and Twinky Herbert Lemoyne killed Hogman Pucet for having an affair with Mrs. Lemoyne. Doucet was a state cop and arrested Hogman, then brought him out to the swamp and shot him dead- no belt and no shoe laces. Dave was a sophomore in college and working for an oil company on summer break. He was across the bayou and witnessed the killing- the two killers couldn't care less. I guess they thought it was only a black man and no one would give a damn.
In the end of the book, Doucet kidnaps Alafair and takes her to a deserted fishing cabin. Dave and Rosie track them down and Rosie empties her 357 into him. But, Julie Balboni ends up in prison. He runs the show on the inside and has many male lovers. One of these men throws gasoline on him while Baby Feet is asleep. Covered in flames, he jumps to his death on the jail room floor.
James Lee Burke is a brilliant writer and I'd read anything by him, although my favorites are the Dave Robicheaux series.
QUOTES-
"What we do not do is let the other side make us be like them"
"Maybe we have so much collective guilt as a society that we fear to punish our individual members"
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