Clete is Dave Robicheaux's friend and detective partner. This book focuses on Clete as he becomes enmeshed with an extensive group of drug dealers after they tear up his car and his niece dies of an overdose.
In the meantime Clete is hired to investigate his slimy life and dark past.
It seems that this road leads him deeper into the drug dealer's lives than he would choose to go.

James Lee Burke is a great American novelist. His stories fly off of the page combining an exciting narrative with brilliant language skills. You cannot go wrong with this author, or this book.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

"Clete" by James Lee Burke is a riveting addition to the author's celebrated body of work, plunging readers into the murky depths of Louisiana's bayou country. In this latest installment, we follow private eye Clete Purcel as he navigates a labyrinth of present-day monsters and ghosts from his past, all set against the backdrop of New Iberia Parish in the late 1990s.

Burke's narrative is a masterclass in suspense and character development, with Clete's hard-edged perspective offering a raw and unfiltered view of the world. The novel's strength lies in its ability to intertwine the complexities of human nature with the haunting beauty of the Louisiana landscape. The story unfolds with a cadence that mirrors the ebb and flow of the bayou's waters, pulling the reader into a tale that is as much about the internal struggles of its protagonist as it is about the external conflicts he faces.

The supporting cast of characters is richly drawn, from the enigmatic Clara Bow, whose motives are as shadowy as the film she's producing, to the menacing Baylor Hemmings, whose presence looms large over Clete's investigation. Burke's skillful use of dialogue and regional dialect immerses the reader in the setting, making the environment an integral character in its own right.

At its core, "Clete" is a story of redemption and resilience, with the titular character's journey serving as a testament to the enduring human spirit. The novel's conclusion is both satisfying and thought-provoking, leaving readers to ponder the fine line between devils and saints.

James Lee Burke, with his signature gritty prose hits another home run with this captivating read.

If I had written this review at one point in the book I might have started it “Although it pains me to write this.” but, since then, I’ve had more time to ruminate over my opinion. To put in context my reading relationship with James Lee Burke’s novels is the fact that I have been reading them for over thirty years. Indeed, his character Dave Robicheaux has been my literary crush for all those years and I have also held an affection for Dave’s best friend Clete. My initial frustration in reading this latest book was the constant asides and meandering of the narrative. For example, near the end, a full six paragraphs were taken to describe a bowling alley. A characters name would come up and I would have to stop and think “who was that?” I have also noticed in the last few novels a prevalent supernatural theme that I don’t remember in early books unless I missed it in my impatient youth. I need to reread one. The turn around in my reading came sometime in the middle of the story. I looked up Mr. Burke’s Wikipedia and saw his birthdate. At that point I started seeing through the different eyes of individuals who, having lived long lives are mulling over what they have seen and what they have come to believe. Perhaps “Clete” was not the heart pounding story of early years but it is certainly something to think about.

You could change the names of these characters to Joe or Tom, not tell me who the author is and I would still be able to tell you who wrote it. Burke’s legendary style and prose is reliably distinctive and recognizable. There are only a select few authors I would say that about. He paints a scene with words in a way that renders you feeling deeply, breathless, sometimes overwrought. His characters are imperfect, they’ve seen and experienced atrocities, war, pain and suffering. The bayous, swamps and even the vernacular of Louisiana was dripping in authenticity. It’s a dark mystery where friends get hurt and lives are lost. I have not read all in this series but it didn’t deter my enjoyment.
An advance reader copy of “Clete” Dave Robicheaux #23, by James Lee Burke, Grove Atlantic, publication expected 06/11/2024, was provided by NetGalley. These are all my own honest personal thoughts and opinions given voluntarily without compensation.

"I believe he was evil by choice."

Now that's something observed in the bleachers by the regular guys. Focusing on acts of horrendous brutality committed by the hands of our fellow human beings. You don't have to go far nowadays. It's not just in the outfield anymore. It's touchable and breathable and painfully close.

James Lee Burke is my favorite author. He writes of the tender softness of the wind against your cheek at times. And then, he gets down in the grit and the grime of what human nature is capable of. His lead characters are often Dave Robicheaux and Clete Purcell. Burke's latest offering is in the voice of Clete Purcell. That voice is roughened by the life he's lead. Tragic at times. Heartfelt at other times.

Clete, with a shady past, has his own P.I. business that serves New Orleans, New Iberia, and the surrounding areas. Clete is a former officer of the New Orleans Police Department until a time when things went way south for him. He's a tightly wound bundle with unresolved PTSD from being in the military. Actual life cannot be unseen. The bottle has often ridden shotgun with him to deaden that pain. But Clete gets up each morning to right the wrongs........and there's plenty in that business.

He takes his swanky pink Cadillac convertible to the car wash owned by Eddy Durbin. He and Eddy have been friends since childhood. Clete returns to his apartment only to be wakened during the night by noise in his driveway. Three men are ripping the upholstery out of his Cadillac and tearing out the dashboard. Clete confronts them only to be knocked out and left on the ground.

Next stop: Dave Robicheaux' house in Iberia Parish. Dave still works for the NOPD. He and Clete have been joined at the hip for years and years. The duo follow leads that take them to a movie producer's stately home. Clete spotted one of the bad guys working for Lauren Bow and his wife, Clara Bow. If you know Burke, there will be plenty of rotten fish caught up in this net. Rumor has it that a group called the New Rising are stashing something called Leprechaun which can have catastrophic results on the population. Deadly is the name of the game.

Don't be frightened off by the #24. Clete tells his own story here. He's tightly stitched and complicated at times. But Clete will fight to the death in your favor. He's also beginning to see a highly unusual figure in the shadows. Robicheaux is beginning to believe it, too, It all adds another layer to an already action-packed storyline in the hands of this master. Experience it for yourself. There's nothing like a sit down with Clete in the telling. Nothing.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Atlantic Monthly Press and to the highly talented James Lee Burke for the opportunity.

Thanks to James Lee Burke, Grove Atlantic, and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is not a typical police procedural. There are deep waters centered around Clete’s troubled past, as well as Dave’s. Clete’s struggles with that past weave throughout the story as he deals with them and the bad guys.

James Lee Burke has created a strong mise en scene of Louisiana and the backwaters. It’s easy to get drawn into the place and the story.

Review posted to Goodreads manually due to linking problems.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6310299879

He’s a mess, but he’s Dave Robicheaux’s best friend.

They’ve been friends since their days as “The Bobbsey Twins” when as cops they patrolled the French Quarter. Clete is a mainstay in this venerable series, one of the overall best in mystery fiction. He’s Sancho Panza to Dave’s Don Quixote, Watson to Dave’s Holmes, Laurel to his Hardy, but he couldn’t be more different. Where Dave drinks Dr. Pepper, Clete loves watching a shot sink to the bottom of a beer mug then slugging it back. Dave still mourns his deceased wife, while Clete gets caught up in the swirl of many a skirt. Dave eats a small sandwich, Clete can demolish the morning menu of a diner in one sitting. They have always had one thing in common, however—they both despise evil, and fight it wherever they find it, be it in the in the swamps of New Iberia, or the swamp of the French Quarter.

Now, in this 24th book in the series, they have something else in common—Clete narrates the action. For the first time, we get to see inside Clete’s thoughts, while getting the first external perspective on Dave. Burke does a remarkable job in not making the shift jarring at all.

The story starts when thugs strip Clete’s Cadillac convertible, looking for what turns out to be a plague-like version of fentanyl, maybe transported in Clete’s car while it was at the detail shop . Clete immediately takes up the challenge when he figures it out—his grandniece was a victim of the drug. Soon he and Dave are chasing a pack of bad guys who include a dirty cop, a virulent anti-Semite, and the nation’s most famous Ponzi scheme promoter. Their confrontations pulse with the usual violence Burke brings to his prose.

Burke paints a nuanced portrait of Dave through Clete’s eyes. In many ways Dave seems quieter, but Clete contributes a perspective on the power of the violence contained (most of the time)by Dave. Burke also brings out the difference in the role of women in their lives. Clete gets involved with four women—a Bourbon Street pole dancer, a trafficked Chinese woman, the wife of the Ponzi promoter—and Joan of Arc. Yes, once again, the barriers between time periods break down in this series, and the French martyr shows up on Clete’s personal battlefield to guide him through many sticky situations. The numerous episodes include a marvelous moment when Clete chases a villain over a levee on the Mississippi into the plains of France in the fifteenth century.

Justice takes place, bad guys get taken down, and the good guys and girls win—but not in a courtroom. Burke has produced a refreshing change to a venerable series, with all the passion and skill he has maintained these many years.

Burke allows Clete to tell and to drive the story in the newest entry in this series. Clete finds his caddy ruined at a car wash and finds that somewhere someone is dealing dangerous drugs. Clete is determined to put a stop to this no matter the cost. Clete has a myriad of problems but his good heart prevails amidst his ptsd, hallucinations and anger. Clete's voice drives this novel. He tells his own story with his best friend Dave in the supporting cast. Clete leaves the reader wanting to hear more from he journeys through life as a private investigator and concerned person. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

A good friend has been recommending James Lee Burke novels, but she was not pleased to hear that I have started with the 24th novel in his Dave Robicheaux series, Clete. I reassured her that I would go back and read novels 1-23, as soon as possible. Clete is a novel narrated by Dave's best friend and former partner, Clete Purcell. As a narrator, Clete does not provide a straight-forward narration. There are digressions and hallucinations, which Clete believes are real, and perhaps they are. Clete has a conscious and cares deeply about people, whom he wants to save, even if they do sometimes include visions of the past.

Burke's novel is rich is characterization and in complexity. Many of the characters are compelling, while others range from heartbreaking to irrevocably damaged. The plot is filled with digressions of all kind, some of which are background, while other suggest a complexity of plot that is sometimes not deserving of so much detail. Clete begins with a small thing--the vandalization of Clete's recently detailed car, which eventually seems to have developed into its own character in this novel. Burke takes that vandalized car and turns it into a wildly crazy multilayered plot.

I did enjoy this novel, which can certainly function as a stand alone novel. I did think that Joan of Arc had made perhaps too many appearances. The plot sometimes seemed to reply too heavily on these apparitions as a way to move the plot forward. Thank you to Grove Atlantic and NetGalley for providing this ARC. My review reflects my own ideas and response to Clete.. I will begin tackling the first of the Robicheaux novels next.

I’m a big James Lee Burke fan and have thoroughly enjoyed his novels, especially those starring police detective Dave Robicheaux. They’re beautifully written, feature compelling characters, and excel at imparting to readers the sights, sounds, aromas, and auras of New Orleans and Louisiana’s bayou country.

His latest offering, “Clete,” is probably my least favorite of the “Robicheaux” series. While it has many of the strengths of its preceding volumes, the actual story seemed rushed, disjointed, and altogether confusing. Additionally, it has a speculative element to it that left me wondering what was real, what was not, and what actually happened.

The story is told by Robicheaux’s best friend and former NOPD partner, Clete, a troubled soul who has always wanted to do good but has often been compelled to commit bad, even heinous acts. Indeed, he’s so distressed that he believes that he’s in communion with 15th-century heroine and patron saint of France, Joan of Arc, who has a part in the novel and guides some of Clete’s decisions.

Clete and Dave find themselves pitted against a variety of villains: a Ponzi scheme runner and the filmmaking wife he’s tortured, drug traffickers, antisemitic white supremacists, and purveyors of a substance so dangerous it threatens to cause a worldwide disaster. All these characters and plot lines make for a mystery, or mysteries, I found very confusing; and none of which struck me as ever being truly solved. I also thought some of the characters, especially the people Clete and Dave seek to protect were not as fully or deeply drawn as they could have been.

Nevertheless, Mr. Burke’s prose and his depictions of Louisiana life remain stellar.

My thanks to NetGalley, author James Lee Burke, and publisher Grove Atlantic, Atlantic Monthly Press for providing me with a complimentary ARC. The foregoing is my independent opinion.

Clete Purcell and Dave Robicheaux go back a long way together. They're the Bobbsey Twins from Homicide, working the mean streets of New Orleans. Clete grew up in the Irish Channel and Dave grew up in New Iberia Parish, but their worldview is the same, honed by their experiences in Vietnam and on the streets. Dave, however, stayed in the police, moving back to New Iberia from New Orleans, but Clete went on the do some bad things, including killing a federal witness and gun running with the guerrillas in Central America. Now, Clete works as a PI and when his brand new, restored pink Caddy is vandalized, he is livid and vows to discover what is going on. Turns out, the brother of the guy who runs the car wash where Clete gets his car detailed is running drugs and some of the Aryan Nation think his car has been used for trafficking. Then, Clete is hired to deal with the husband of a beautiful woman seeking a divorce. Clete has a very soft spot for women in distress. And then, Clete starts experiencing hallucinations of Joan of Arc, who he swears is trying to protect him. James Lee Burke is a great American author who can write a description so well the reader can feel the swamp and humidity of southern Louisiana. Recommended, as always.

Clete is a first person look at Dave Robicheaux’s best friend and ride to die former homicide cop partner. To this point, (this is the 24th book in the series dating back to the late 80’s. Clete has always been the secondary character to Dave and somewhat of a lost soul. Like many of my generation, haunted by scenes of Vietnam and all of it’s horrors. Like snakes that only come out at night all of a sudden pop up whenever they feel like it.
Clete leaves his Caddy at a local car wash and when he returns some goons are ripping it apart. Apparently looking for some hidden drugs. Clete takes this personal and the fight is on.
The next thing you know a lovely divorcee, Clara Bow hires him to look into her gnarly ex’s activities and before he knows it, Clete is drawn into a very ugly story that cannot end well for anyone involved.

Clete is usually a supporting character in the Robicheaux series by James Lee Burke. This time he's in the driving seat with the first book with him as a main character. Don't worry, all the usual and unusual people in and around Iberia parish and New Orleans are there as well. Mr. Burke is probably one of the top American writers of all time. At least in my mind. I have never come across an author that can tell a tale as well as him. This book is no exception. It's southern noir at it's finest and it is a pure joy reading the books by this author. I have never been let down and I hope we all get many more like this. I can really recommend that you try something from James Lee Burke. I must thank Grove Atlantic and Netgalley for letting me read this advance copy.

Clete (available June 2024) is the latest in a long string of Dave Robicheaux novels by Burke. Told in Clete Purcell's narrative voice, it is a dark tale. Indeed, as it begins, Clete tells us that "Southern Louisiana is heaven, as long as you keep one eye closed and don't dwell on the corruption that's a way of life here." Clete is a former Vietnam Vet, suffering from PTSD, which now seems to manifest itself in a real-life Joan of Arc sitting there with him in her armor and medieval world. Purcell is a private eye since being forced out of the New Orleans Police Department. He has few allies, but Dave is his best friend.

The story starts small with Purcell waking up to find three low lifes tearing apart his 1959 lavender-pink Eldorado, looking for something, which turns out to be a new drug that will destroy the world. As if we needed more of those. He spends his time thereafter trying to figure out what the lowlifes wanted and pursuing them across the bayou. He rescues Chen from another lowlife and tries to wean her off heroin with the help of a stripper friend. He agrees to take on a case from a neighbor with an abusive husband, one who seems to be the front money behind a new hate movement in the area.

What makes this novel sing out loud is the depth of emotional turmoil Clete is put through. Wondering throughout if he is losing his mind or someone has drugged him, he is often barely in touch with reality, but still stands up against the evil that is lurking in the bayou.

Starts out a great pulpy page flipper, written by a total pro with glistening prose and giving voice to a fun character. Then, about a third of the way through, it starts getting weird, the plotting looser. The fan service references to early books about a different lead character come fast and furious, slowing the already directionless (but eventful) narrative and taking me out of Clete's voice and into Burke's.

And then it gets weirder and looser. The Mcguffin so vague and broad as to be preposterous, the villains' actions less and less coherent. The heroes' investigation is mainly a leisurely reaction to dead bodies and assaults, with the occasional trip to a new character -- not inferred by the plot so much as the need to get things going -- who conveniently turns out to be a part of the conspiracy.

Burke is such a good writer, and Clete's drift between reality and hallucination and maybe the supernatural kind of fun, that I almost forgive the slapdash nature of the actual crime plot. Big almost though, for me.

The language in this book is special, but I like it, and it fits the setting and the excellent characters. The story is a little long for the plot, but the descriptions are very interesting. The thing I really don't like, is the touch of paranormal.

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

Clete is the best , and this was the best of Clete AND JLB. Thanks so much for the opportunity to read this one.

I am a new James Lee Burke fan. I love the Dave Rocicheaux books. Clete Purcel is a private investigator and ex-member of the New Orleans Police Department, and is Dave Robicheaux’s longtime friend and partner in detective work. When Clete leaves his car at the local car wash, only to find it destroyed by a group of thugs tied to the drug trade from Mexican cartels to Louisiana. This is a trigger for Clete because his grandniece died of a fentanyl overdose.

Clara Bow, a woman with a dark past hires Clete as a detective to investigate her scheming, slippery ex-husband, and a string of brutal deaths. Clete is having shockingly lifelike hallucinations involving Joan of Arc and questioning Clara’s motives when he and Dave start to hear rumors of a dangerous substance with potentially catastrophic effects.

Clete brings a fresh perspective to a truly iconic series. This book helps to personalize Clete even more. Great book.

Burke finally did it. We get a story straight from long time friend of Dave's, aptly named Clete. Don't worry Burke doesn't lose a step and the flame throwers are all there . Great novel. And finally Clete!! Highly Recommended.