I may just be getting tired of the series. Did not like too well the hint of supernatural evil in Legion. Burke is at his best when as bad as evil gets, it is still human. And to some degree this holds true, but not consistently enough. ( )

So I got through this, but it took forever. There is not one likeable or good person in this book. The language in which it was written is so harsh. The life in this area is brutal and awful things happen all the time. It was really a grinding and extremely violent story. Legion was just awful, but in a visceral way. He brutalized and humiliated everyone around him. Not just the black women that worked under his authority on a plantation, but everyone around him. He was in his 70s but he trounced everyone who tried to cross him. Guns under restaurant tables, truncheons and saps – he was prepared. It was awful.

And even the ‘good guys’ were kind of awful. Dave is an alcoholic who resorts to violence whenever policy couldn’t work. His buddy, and ex cop, Clete is equally awful. Then there were a bunch of other people who were just brutal and had no class and lived hand to mouth. I can’t explain it. It was depressing.

Turned out that while Tee Bobby didn’t do the actual deed, he stood by while someone else killed one woman. The other was killed by a traveling bible salesman, but he wasn’t convicted. I was expecting Legion to have a huge revenge scheme do away with his ass, but no. Dave and the mysterious drifter who claims he was the medic that saved Dave’s life in Vietnam, chase Legion into a swamp and he is struck by lightning. Damn – ripped off! I wanted greater satisfaction. I wanted him to pay. He was a gross, degenerate and cruel man. He should have paid more than just getting struck by lightning. ( )

One of Burke's best. Fantastic and chilling portrayal of evil in Burke's rich literary style. ( )

Two women are raped and murdered; a singer is accused and was present but didn't do it; another character, Legion, is so evil he could be Satan. ( )

A horrendous murder shocks even the depths of the bayou country as Dave Robicheaux fights his own demons while trying to find the killer of teen Amanda Boudreau. Other killings come into murky view, complicating the search. Quirky, dark characters abound -- somehow they're as scary as Carl Hiassen's Florida denizens are bizaare. ( )