Anjelica Huston was an American fashion model before she became an actor and director.
Huston won a best actress Oscar for 'Prizzi's Honor' and received Academy Award nominations for 'Enemies, A Love Story' and 'The Grifters.'
In this first book of her autobiography Huston tells tales starting with her childhood in Ireland and England.....up to her young womanhood in New York City. Born in 1951, Huston had colorful parents, the former beautiful ballerina Enrica Soma and the larger than life director John Huston - and met large numbers of the rich and famous.
Enrica Soma, Anjelica Huston's mother
John Huston, Anjelica Huston's father
Little Anjelica Anjelica Huston with her father John Huston
In fact Huston mentions so many people - friends, acquaintances, neighbors, nannies, teachers, crushes, models, photographers, actors, actresses, directors, etc. - that they become blended together in a confusing swirl of names.
The book also seems more like a detailed list of activities - fox hunting, partying, skiving off school, moving, modeling - than a comprehensive life story. We do get a feel for the love Huston's mom bestowed on her children and for the fun and hardships that come with having John Huston - a hard-drinking womanizer and gambler who was often away directing films - for a dad.
Young Anjelica Huston
The story gets more interesting when Anjelica becomes a fashion model in her late teens and hooks up with the mentally ill photographer Bob Richardson for a four year romance.
Bob Richardson, one of Anjelica Huston's boyfriends
I'm hoping the second volume of the biography, when Huston becomes a famous actress and has a long-term romance with Jack Nicholson, is more of a comprehensive biography.
Anjelica Huston with her boyfriend Jack Nicholson
Rating: 3 stars
Detective Dave Robicheaux is one of James Lee Burke's most popular characters. In this 21st book in the 'Dave Robicheaux' series - set in the Cajun environs of south Louisiana - Dave is involved in investigating several killings and an alleged rape. The book can be read as a standalone.
*****
Background info: Dave - an investigator for the Sheriff's Department in New Iberia, Louisiana - has had a rough life.
Dave's mother deserted the family when he was a child and his father was killed in an oil rig explosion. As a young man Dave witnessed unspeakable horrors during the Vietnam War, after which he became a cop in New Orleans - a city rife with mobsters, gambling, prostitution, drugs, loan sharks, money laundering, extortion, murder, and so on.
In his job, Dave met criminals of all kinds, including: street thugs; mobsters; sociopaths; psychopaths.....and rich, entitled 'bluebloods' who would do anything for money and power. Dave rose through the police ranks to become a homicide detective and eventually left New Orleans for New Iberia - where he lives in a modest home adjacent to a bayou.
Dave's first wife Annie was murdered and his second wife Bootsie - with whom he adopted an El Salvadoran daughter named Alafair - died from lupus. These hardships exacerbated Dave's depression, nightmares, and alcoholism. Even when he's not drinking, Dave sees ghosts of Civil War soldiers who died near his home.
Dave's best friend is Clete Purcel, a fellow Vietnam vet who was Dave's partner in the New Orleans Police Department.
Clete's inability to follow rules got him kicked off the police force, and he became a private investigator/bail bondsman. Clete works for gangsters; eats to excess; drinks too much; falls for the wrong women; and uses violence (and worse) against his enemies. Clete is close to Dave's family and would give his life for them.
*****
The book has a complicated plot with numerous characters, but I'll try to provide a nutshell overview.
As the story opens Dave's third wife Molly has recently been killed in a car crash and the detective is furious at the man who collided with her, a blue-collar Cajun called T.J. Dartez. Dave doesn't know exactly what happened, but he drives up to Dartez's house and harshly accuses the Cajun of reckless driving - in front of the man's frightened wife.
Consumed by grief, Dave - a recovering alcoholic - is drawn back to the bottle, and sometimes gets blackout drunk.
While dealing with his sorrow, Dave is drawn into a contentious local situation. The detective is friendly with nearby author Levon Broussard, who writes Civil War novels.
As it happens, two powerful men want to produce a movie based on one of Broussard's books.
One Hollywood wannabee is an obese, sickly gangster named Tony Nemo - who's involved in porn, drugs, and politics.
The other is a wealthy right-wing political hopeful named Jimmy Nightingale - who spends his time on his yacht, playing polo, performing in aerial shows - and (according to an informant) using prostitutes and drugs.
When Dave is (wrongly) perceived as favoring Jimmy, the mobster becomes furious, and threatens the detective.
Soon afterward, reckless driver T.J. Dartez is found brutally beaten to death beside his truck, and Dave becomes a suspect in the murder. Unfortunately the detective was dead drunk at the time of the killing, and can't remember a thing. As far as Dave knows, he might be guilty.
Dave's boss, Sheriff Helen Soileau, gives the Dartez case to Detective Spade Labiche, a nasty misogynist who resents Dave and is probably a dirty cop.
Labiche finds Dave's fingerprints at the scene of the crime, which just might be a set up. But by who? In any case, there's not enough evidence for an arrest.....yet.
In the meantime, Helen puts Dave in charge of a different investigation. Levon Broussard's wife, Rowena - an artist from Australia - has accused Jimmy Nightingale of rape.
Rowena happened to meet Jimmy at a bar one night, and - after getting drunk- accompanied the handsome bigshot back to his boat. Afterward, Rowena cried rape while Jimmy claimed nothing happened.
Dave (inexplicably) likes Nightingale, and doesn't want the would-be senator to be guilty. However, the detective is a righteous cop, determined to make a thorough inquiry. This isn't easy because Rowena showered after the alleged incident and destroyed most of the (potential) evidence.
As if all this isn't enough, Dave has other crimes on his mind. Eight Louisiana sex workers were murdered a few years ago, and the case was never solved. Dave suspects that thuggish Kevin Penny - a lowlife who viciously beat his son Homer - might be implicated in the prostitutes' deaths, but there's no proof.
It so happens that Penny was just bailed out of jail and is slated to get his son back. This irks Clete Purcel, who's acquainted with Homer's social worker. Since Clete can never let things go he 'has a talk' with Penny (beats him up and shoves his head in the toilet) - as a warning not to abuse Homer. In fact Clete - who's never been domestic - goes out of his way to help the child. (So yay Clete!)
To add to southern Louisiana's murder toll, a very peculiar hitman called Smiley - with cherry red lips and a pronounced lisp - has flown into town for a killing spree.
Dave, Clete, and others get on Smiley's trail, but the hitman is a wily, elusive guy. As the story unfolds we learn who's pulling Smiley's strings and why.
Dave's daughter Alafair, a lawyer and novelist, also arrives in town.....to visit her troubled father.
Just for fun, Alafair decides to write a screenplay for Levon Broussard's book - which draws her into the brouhaha about the movie adaptation.
The novel has a rich palate of ancillary characters, including: Tony Nemo's hoodlum crew; cops from a neighboring parish; Jimmy Nightingale's cold-as-ice secretary (who might be his cousin or sister); a former Klansman who's had plastic surgery; a naïve, pretty bartender; a sadistic prison guard from a previous book; and more.
Eventually, after much murder and mayhem, the strings of the plot come together - though some issues are left unresolved. I wasn't happy with the epilogue, but I didn't deduct points for that.
Many elements of the story are relevant to American society today, such as: men who sexually harass women; a demagogue who enters politics to benefit himself; a xenophobic, racist political hanger-on; citizens that would vote for a rapist; and more.
As always, Burke writes beautiful prose that brings the environment - as well as the characters and their surroundings - to vivid life.
Dave is aging as the series goes on, and - in reality - Dave and Clete are probably past retirement age. I hope they go on forever, though, solving crimes and beating up bad guys.
I'd highly recommend the book to readers who enjoy mysteries, especially fans of Dave Robicheaux.
Rating: 4 stars
This novella, which is #11.5 in the 'Walt Longmire' series, has Longmire and his friends dealing with (what might be) a ghost. The book can be read as a standalone.
*****
Wyoming Highway Patrolman (HP) Bobby Womack, an Arapaho Indian assigned to the Wind River Canyon, was killed thirty years ago - at 12:34 A.M. - when he had a fiery collision with a fuel truck in a mountain tunnel.
Bobby was working under a cloud at the time, because he had shot two thieves fleeing with a bag of collectible coins - after which the coins couldn't be found.
Bobby wasn't flat out accused of taking the coins, but the incident cast a pall on his reputation.
Since Bobby's death, a handful of motorists have reported having encounters with a mysterious HP - wearing a badge that reads Womack - who helped them change a tire; gave them a warning about a broken light; etc.
Now, additional strange things are happening. An HP named Rosey Wayman, who was recently transferred to the Wind River Canyon, reports that's she's been receiving calls at 12:34 A.M. saying "Officer needs assistance”.....and they come from Bobby's radio.
On several nights Rosey has also found a rare coin on the highway, which seems to come from the stash that disappeared three decades ago.
Wayman's supervisor suggests a psychiatric evaluation, and Rosey - who insists she's not 'crazy' - is afraid of losing her job.
Walt Longmire, the Absaroka County Sheriff, wants to help his friend Rosey. So Walt and his best friend, Henry Standing Bear (aka The Cherokee Nation), plan to spend a couple of nights on patrol with Wayman, to see if they can hear the calls.
While they're in the area, Walt and Henry also speak to people who knew Bobby, to learn as much about the dead HP as possible. When Walt and Henry sit down to eat steaks with a very old Arapaho woman called Kimama Bellefeuille, she blesses the food starting with, “Cese’éihii heetih- eh’etii- hióówo’owú-u...….."
Kimama - who gives everyone nicknames - then calls Walt 'Bird Turd' (because bird poop is white). When Walt objects, Kimama dubs him 'Frosty', and when the sheriff complains AGAIN, she names him 'Bucket' (because he's beyond the pale. 😊)
The search for Bobby (if it's him) isn't straightforward, and there's suspense, danger, and excitement leading to the climax of the story. This is an entertaining novella in an authentic western setting.
Wind River Canyon
Recommended to readers who like mysteries, especially Longmire fans.
Rating: 3.5 stars
Twenty-year-old Abby Hayman is an employee of County Services in upstate New York, where she works at the Rehabilitation Center for the Blind.
That's where Abby meets Willem Zengler, a devoutly Christian college student who volunteers to read for the sightless patients.
Abby is pretty, Willem is handsome, and the two young people fall in love. Willem proposes despite the reservations of his parents, who feel like Abby is too much of an unknown quantity.
Abby lost her parents at a young age, and was raised by her Aunt Traci in Chautauqua Falls, which is a couple of hours away. Thus the Zenglers haven't met any of Abby's relatives, and feel they don't know enough about Abby or her family.
Abby is an innocent in many ways, but she does indeed have secrets. Both of Abby's parents disappeared in unknown circumstances when she was five. It's alleged that Abby's father committed suicide out west, which he threatened to do in postcards.
And it's believed that Abby's mother went off to look for the troubled man....and never returned.
Moreover, Abby's name isn't really Abby.....it's Miriam Frances. And the future bride has to explain this when she produces her birth certificate to get a marriage license.
In any case, Abby and Willem marry, and less than 24 hours later Abby steps in front of a bus. During Abby's long recuperation and rehabilitation, Willem - who barely leaves her side - tries to elicit an explanation for the incident. Was it an accident? Attempted suicide? Something else?
We learn that recurring bad dreams - involving skeletons - played a role in Abby's actions, though the meaning of the nightmares isn't immediately clear.
While Abby is slowly recovering from her injuries, there's a long flashback to the lives of Abby's parents, Nicola and Llewyn (Lew) Hayman - who lived in Chautauqua Falls.
When we meet the Hayman family, little Miriam Frances (called Meer-me) is five; Nicola is a teacher at a community college; and Lew is a cantankerous, hard-drinking veteran of the Middle East war.....perhaps suffering from PTSD.
Lew is an angry controlling man who's sure Nicola is cheating on him, and determined to prove it. To do this Lew enlists the help of little Meer-me. In his 'kind-Daddy' voice, Lew repeatedly asks Meer-me: "Does Mommy have a friend who visits her when Daddy is away?.....Does Mommy have a special friend - a male - who visits her when Daddy is away?"
Meer-me isn't sure what 'male' means, and sensing Daddy wants her to agree, murmurs "Uh-huh" and nods yes.
This leads to the Haymans' separation, and things go downhill from there.
We get a SLOW, TORTUROUS, HORRIFYING picture of Lew's subsequent behavior, which leaves Meer-me in the custody of Lew's sister Traci, who - barely able to make ends meet - moves them into the old ramshackle family home.
At the age of eight, Meer-me accidentally learns about (what she sees as) the consequences of her 'nodding yes', and it's this that spawns the nightmares that plague her.
For me, most of the flashback section is too slow and disturbing. Lew's downward spiral, and the subsequent consequences, are predictable, and a harrowing play by play feels like piling on.
Anyone familiar with true crime programs, law and order shows, or the real news can figure out where this novel is going. It's nothing new.
I also don't like Willem much, who - in his goody two shoes religious way - is also a controlling man who "knows" what God wants.
As for the women, Abby and Nicola are too weak and acquiescent. Both women should run for the hills instead of hooking up with Willem and Lew (but then there wouldn't be a story 🙂).
Joyce Carol Oates is a gifted writer, but it's not clear (to me) what she was aiming at with this book. To put the best spin on it, this is the story of childhood trauma and self blame that has serious repercussions.
Still, many readers gave this book high ratings, so - if the theme interests you - I'd suggest giving it a try.
Rating: 3 stars
