Ken Wellss highly acclaimed picaresque Catahoula Bayou novels introduced one of the most compelling voices in fiction of the last decade (Los Angeles Times). Now Wells is back, writing about his favorite subjectthe exotic, beleaguered Louisiana wetlandsin a sharp, rollicking tale of corporate corruption and political shenanigans. The fight over one mans tract of sacred marsh fronts a deeper story of our place in the environment and our obligations to it. Justin Pitres marsh island, a legacy of his trapper grandfather, is a scenic rival to anything in the Everglades, and he has promised to protect it from all harm. But he hasnt counted on oil bigwig Tom Huffs plans to wreck his bayou paradise by ramming a pipeline through it. When cajolery doesnt sway Justin to sign the land over, Huff turns to darker methods. But Justin and his spirited wife, Grace, prove to be formidable adversariesand the game is on.Into the fray comes the charismatic Cajun governor Joe T. Evangeline, who seems more interested in chasing skirts than saving Louisianas eroding coast. The Guv, though, is a man on the edge, upended by a midlife crisis and torn between a secret political obligation to Big Oil and the persuasive powers of Julie Galjour, a feisty environmentalist. Julie is clearly out to reform more than the Guvs ecopolitics, but will his tragicomic Big Oil deals wreck both his career and his chances with the brash and beautiful activist?As Justin and Grace battle to stop this Big Oil assault, the plot thickensand the Guv becomes snared in the web. Featuring a gumbo of eccentrics and lowlifes, a kidnapping, a sexy snitch, a toxic-waste-dumping scheme, a boat chase, and a fishing trip gone horribly awry, Crawfish Mountain, spiced with Ken Wellss keen eye for locale, showcases his adventurous storytelling.From the Hardcover edition.