The 16th book in the Dave Robicheaux series opens on a note of profound disillusionment. Our Louisiana hero sometimes has nightmares about Vietnam. Waking, he tells himself that at least he will never again witness such suffering and betrayal of innocents (soldiers and civilians).

Then he adds (on page 2), "That was before Katrina. That was before a storm with greater impact than the bomb blast that struck Hiroshima peeled the face off southern Louisiana. That was before one of the most beautiful cities in the Western Hemisphere was killed three times, and not just by the forces of nature."

Dave, a detective with the sheriff's department in New Iberia, is about to witness the devastation of New Orleans. But first, before Hurricane Katrina hits, we slip into the viewpoints of two other characters: Otis Baylor and Clete Purcell.

Baylor, an insurance salesman, lives in a wealthy neighborhood. Baylor has come far from his impoverished Alabama childhood, and his family's involvement with the Ku Klux Klan. He built his life on a strong work ethic, and treats people with compassion and respect. Even so, he has experienced tragedy. Two years ago his daughter Thelma was raped by three black criminals who were never caught. Since then, Baylor struggles to preserve his belief in the goodness of humanity. Now he decides to keep his family in New Orleans and weather the approaching storm.

Clete is a bounty-hunter sitting in a bar in the French Quarter. Clete started out (in the first Robicheaux book The Neon Rain) as Dave's partner in Homicide with the New Orleans Police Department. From there, he branched into progressively more unusual employment. Now he watches a van parked across the street belonging to three black criminals who have skipped bail. Unbeknownst to him, they are also the same ones who raped Baylor's daughter. He tries to apprehend them, but they get away.

Now it's Monday August 29th. Dave and Sheriff Helen Soileau drive from New Iberia to New Orleans to help out. The levees have burst beneath the category-5 fury of Hurricane Katrina. Lake Pontchartrain has flooded the black population in the Lower Ninth Ward, killing thousands.

Dave and Helen witness the aftermath of unimaginable destruction: dead bodies, industrial chemicals, and raw sewage floating in the chocolate-colored waters that cover the drowned districts. Fires set by vandals rip through the Garden District, burning down antebellum mansions. Cops and looters open fire on each other in the streets. Even Dave, a combat veteran, has never seen anything like it. Throughout are woven scenes of selfless heroism, especially on the part of the U.S. Coast Guard.

The next day, Baylor struggles to clear the debris from his yard, and hopes the worst of the storm is over. He worries about looters, and his creepy racist neighbor Tom tries to fan his fears. Towards nightfall, his daughter Thelma looks out the window and sees some black men in a small motor-boat cruising through the flooded streets. She thinks she recognizes her rapists. Baylor gets his hunting rifle down from the attic and loads it, but the guys motor away.

Then we slide into their viewpoint as they loot Baylor's neighborhood. One, Bertrand, senses their lives careening out of control. His stomach ulcers flare and guilt twists at the underpinnings of his mind.

Nevertheless, he helps his brother Eddy and their friend break into an especially rich house where they find cocaine, weapons, stacks of cash, and diamonds. Obviously they've stumbled into the lair of a major criminal. For an instant, they consider leaving. But then they decide that the storm will cover their tracks.

Bertrand pockets the diamonds. Then they completely trash the house that, unbeknownst to them, belongs to Sidney Kovic, New Orleans' most dangerous gangster. As they leave, a rifle shot rings out from across the street. A bullet blasts through Eddy's spine. Bertrand struggles to get his brother into the boat and then motors off in a panic, looking for a hospital.

Soon Dave Robicheaux will get dragged into a complex investigation involving Baylor who swears he's not a vigilante; Bertrand whose horizons are shutting down; and Kovic who may or may not have employed a hit man named Bledsoe to retrieve the priceless diamonds. Bledsoe's twisted nature is revealed in oblique hints that are far more disturbing than an actual violent scene. The tension increases to electrifying levels when Bledsoe takes a personal interest in Dave's adopted daughter, a fiercely independent college girl who kicks in Bledsoe's teeth when she first meets him.

James Lee Burke is one of the grittier crime-fiction writers. He never quite makes you lose your lunch, but you hear second-hand about plenty of appalling violence. That said, he writes hauntingly beautiful descriptions of gulf-coast Louisiana even while revealing the suffering of New Orleans and its betrayal by an uncaring federal government in the worst natural disaster in American history.

His characters such as righteous Baylor and loose-cannon Clete (proud citizen of what he calls the Big Sleazy) are unforgettable. His portrayal of Bertrand is nothing short of amazing. This wretched criminal is a rapist and a loser. Yet you start to feel compassion for him as well as astonishment and hope at how much he changes over a handful of days.

I feel sorry for other authors who have published fine work this year. In another year, they might have had a shot at the book awards. This year, however, Burke's novel is sure to sweep the prizes: it's the best I've read this year, surpassing even the fabulous California Girl. The Tin Roof Blowdown is available on Amazon through this link: The Tin Roof Blowdown: A Dave Robicheaux Novel