What do You think about Heartwood (2000)?
I sometimes feel like my 'Great American Detective' shelf should be called 'Great American Vigilantes', considering that Spenser and Jack Reacher share space on it with Harry Bosch and Elvis Cole. (It's a very chauvinistic category I've created for myself, here. Have to see about fixing that.) Billy Bob Holland is a lawyer, and justice is more important to him than fitting nicely into the system.Burke is amazing storyteller, and I don't mean just that he has a knack hand with plot. He uses language in a way that makes me linger over these books, often reading passages aloud to myself. His descriptions of Texas - both scenery and society - are fascinating. He's the kind of writer who makes me want to be not only a good writer, myself, but a great writer.
—Suzy
I love any book by James Lee Burke and am determined to read them all. I especially enjoy his descriptions of the Louisiana landscape. This book is different: it takes place in Texas and stars Billy Bob Holland, a lawyer. I am so enamored of Burke's other hero, Dave Robicheaux, that I couldn't help but wish he was in this book too. I think I'm getting a little crazy when I'm starting to think of a book character like Dave as real but that gives you an idea of how good James Lee Burke's writing can be. For lovers of this author, I heartily recommend this book.
—Clare
James Lee Burke does not disappoint in Heartwood. It's not my favorite of his, but it's solid. Burke continues to paint a perfect portrait of the landscape and of the times of which he writes. He captures social classes and the regional identities of his subjects wonderfully. He continues his theme of good versus evil, battle of the sexes, and battles of the haves versus the have-nots. He tells the story of how Heartwood trees grow in layers from the inside out; this was told to the main character, Billy Bob Holland, by his grandfather when he was river-baptized as a teen. The story is passed down and the symbolism has significance in this novel.
—James Seawel
