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James Lee Burke: Heartwood (USA 2011) From the Publisher: Few writers in America today combine James Lee Burke's lush prose, crackling story lines, and tremendous sense of history and landscape. In Cimmaron Rose, longtime fans of the Dave Robicheaux series found that the struggles of Texas defense attorney Billy Bob Holland show Burke at his best in exploring classic American themes -- the sometimes subtle, often violent strains between the haves and the have-nots; the collision of past and present; the inequities in the criminal justice system. Heartwood is a kind of tree that grows in layers. And as Billy Bob's grandfather once told him, you do well in life by keeping the roots in a clear stream and not letting anyone taint the water for you. But in Holland's dusty little hometown of Deaf Smith, in the hill country north of Austin, local kingpin Earl Deitrich has made a fortune running roughshod and tainting anyone who stands in his way. Billy Bob has problems with Deitrich and his shamelessly callous demeanor, but can't shake the legacy of his passion for Deitrich's "heartbreak-beautiful" wife, Peggy Jean. When Holland takes on the defense of Wilbur Pickett -- a man accused of stealing an heirloom and three hundred thousand dollars in bonds from Deitrich's office -- he finds himself up against not only Earl's power and influence, but also a past Billy Bob can't will away. A wonderfully realized novel, rich in Texas atmosphere and lore, and a dazzling portrait of the deadly consequences of self-delusion, Heartwood could only have been written by James Lee Burke, a writer in expert command of his craft. James Lee Burke: Heartwood. Island eBook, ISBN: 9780307807472 (September, 2011), 1355 KB (ca. 402 p.), $7.99.
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James Lee Burke: Heartwood (UK 2010) From the Publisher: Deaf Smith, Texas, a small town with small town problems until the local boy made good Earl Deitrich decides that he isn't prepared to share his kind of good fortune with anybody else. Wilbur Pickett is a retired rodeo rider with big dreams. Dreams of a secure future for himself and his native American wife, a blind woman who sees more than a blind woman should thanks to her ancient heritage. When Wilbur happens upon a parcel of land with black gold waiting for the taking he also happens on Deitrich and a whole bunch of violent problems. Only lawyer Billy Bob Holland is prepared to stand up for Wilbur, to stand against the juggernaut that is Deitrich and his corrupting influence. James Lee Burke: Heartwood. Orion eBook, ISBN: 9781409132844 (November, 2010), 869 KB (ca. 402 p.), £4.99.
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James Lee Burke: Heartwood (USA 2000) From the Publisher: Few writers in America today combine James Lee Burke's lush prose, crackling story lines, and tremendous sense of history and landscape. In Cimmaron Rose, longtime fans of the Dave Robicheaux series found that the struggles of Texas defense attorney Billy Bob Holland show Burke at his best in exploring classic American themes--the sometimes subtle, often violent strains between the haves and the have-nots; the collision of past and present; the inequities in the criminal justice system. Heartwood is a kind of tree that grows in layers. And as Billy Bob's grandfather once told him, you do well in life by keeping the roots in a clear stream and not letting anyone taint the water for you. But in Holland's dusty little hometown of Deaf Smith, in the hill country north of Austin, local kingpin Earl Deitrich has made a fortune running roughshod and tainting anyone who stands in his way. Billy Bob has problems with Deitrich and his shamelessly callous demeanor, but can't shake the legacy of his passion for Deitrich's "heartbreak-beautiful" wife, Peggy Jean. When Holland takes on the defense of Wilbur Pickett--a man accused of stealing an heirloom and three hundred thousand dollars in bonds from Deitrich's office--he finds himself up against not only Earl's power and influence, but also a past Billy Bob can't will away. A wonderfully realized novel, rich in Texas atmosphere and lore, and a dazzling portrait of the deadly consequences of self-delusion, Heartwood could only have been written by James Lee Burke, a writer in expert command of his craft. James Lee Burke: Heartwood. Island Books, ISBN: 0440224012 (August, 2000), 390 p., $7.50.
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James Lee Burke: Heartwood (UK 2000) From the Publisher: Wilbur Pickett is a retired rodeo rider with big dreams. Dreams of a secure future for himself and his native American wife, a blind woman who sees more than a blind woman should thanks to her ancient heritage. When Wilbur happens upon a parcel of land with black gold waiting for the taking he also happens on Deitrich and a whole bunch of violent problems. Only lawyer Billy Bob Holland is prepared to stand up for Wilbur, to stand against the juggernaut that is Deitrich and his corrupting influence. James Lee Burke: Heartwood. Orion Books, ISBN: 0752834193 (June, 2000), 338 p., £5.99.
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James Lee Burke: Heartwood (UK 1999) From the Publisher: 'Heartwood,' Billy Bob's father once told him, 'are trees that grow from the heart out, in layers like the spirit does. The core grows stronger and stronger. You lust got to keep the roots in a clear stream and let nobody taint the water for you.' And that's what Billy Bob Holland tries to do. But when his friend and neighbour Wilbur Pickett is framed for the theft of $300,000 worth of bearer bonds stolen from Earl Dietrich, the local rich dirt whose house is perched on the side of a hill like a 'great gold tooth', the Texan stream that runs through his farm turns Increasingly murky. Especially when Earl's wife - and Billy Bob's first love - Peggy Jean enters the frame. As the death toll rises, Billy Bob discovers that Dietrich has set his sights on a piece of oil-rich land belonging to Wilbur, and no one - least of all a luckless ex-rodeo rider like Wilbur - is going to stop him. True to form, Burke distils the complexities of small-town life from all perspectives: from the 'pepper belly' Mexicans and their gang, the Purple Hearts; the 'mop head' blacks hated by the gangbangers and red necks alike; and the East End boys, personified by Dietrich's son Jeff - rich, bigoted, and entirely ruthless. Burke's story is brutal, accurate and to the point, but is held together by the vision of a man who sees the world as a beautiful place in which the rolling hills and rivers and lakes, the rising and setting of the sun, are the only constants that really matter. James Lee Burke: Heartwood. Orion Books, ISBN: 0752821334 (August, 1999), 298 p., £16.99.
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James Lee Burke: Heartwood (USA 1999) From the Publisher: Few writers in America today combine James Lee Burke's lush prose, crackling story lines, and tremendous sense of history and landscape. In Cimmaron Rose, longtime fans of the Dave Robicheaux series found that the struggles of Texas defense attorney Billy Bob Holland show Burke at his best in exploring classic American themes--the sometimes subtle, often violent strains between the haves and the have-nots; the collision of past and present; the inequities in the criminal justice system. Heartwood is a kind of tree that grows in layers. And as Billy Bob's grandfather once told him, you do well in life by keeping the roots in a clear stream and not letting anyone taint the water for you. But in Holland's dusty little hometown of Deaf Smith, in the hill country north of Austin, local kingpin Earl Deitrich has made a fortune running roughshod and tainting anyone who stands in his way. Billy Bob has problems with Deitrich and his shamelessly callous demeanor, but can't shake the legacy of his passion for Deitrich's "heartbreak-beautiful" wife, Peggy Jean. When Holland takes on the defense of Wilbur Pickett--a man accused of stealing an heirloom and three hundred thousand dollars in bonds from Deitrich's office--he finds himself up against not only Earl's power and influence, but also a past Billy Bob can't will away. A wonderfully realized novel, rich in Texas atmosphere and lore, and a dazzling portrait of the deadly consequences of self-delusion, Heartwood could only have been written by James Lee Burke, a writer in expert command of his craft. James Lee Burke: Heartwood. A Novel. Doubleday, ISBN: 0385488432 (August, 1999), 341 p., $24.95.
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