In this 16th book in the 'Easy Rawlins' series, the private detective's search for a missing man morphs into a complicated saga.
*****
It's 1970, and middle-aged Ezekiel (Easy) Rawlins has come a long way since his early days as a struggling private investigator in Los Angeles.
Now a financially secure private detective and real estate dabbler, Easy has a luxurious home, which he currently shares with his teenage daughter Feather - a swimming champion;
and his adopted son Jesus, along with Jesus's wife and baby daughter. Easy is a wonderful father and grandfather, and does his best to keep his work life separate from his family life.
Easy's successful private detective agency has three sleuths and a receptionist, and as the book opens, a new case walks in the door.
A beautiful alluring Black woman called Amethystine Stoller wants Easy to find her ex-husband, a White forensic accountant called Curt Fields, who's vanished. Easy is captivated by Amethystine, who reminds him of his first love Anger Lee, and he takes the case.
A Black man like Easy has to be careful in 1970s southern California. Los Angeles is a toxically racist city, and dark-skinned men are constantly at risk of being stopped by the cops - and beaten or arrested - for no reason at all. Truth be told, for Easy there might be a reason. Some of the sleuth's best friends are thieves and killers, and Easy is no stranger to deadly violence himself.
In any case, Easy reaches out to a White LAPD cop called Melvin (Mel) Suggs, who happens to be a friend, for information about Curt Fields.
Easy learns that Mel is in hiding to avoid arrest, having been accused of wrongdoing by a (corrupt) fellow officer. Easy needs to locate Mel to get information about Curt Fields, and the PI sets out to find the cloistered cop.
From this point on, the story gets VERY complicated. In a nutshell, the Curt Fields case is connected to Mel Suggs in a roundabout way, and the whole business involves prostitutes, blackmail, gamblers, Las Vegas casinos, various family members, and so on. People end up dead, and Easy contacts his best friends, the criminals Mouse Alexander and Fearless Jones, for help.
During his investigation, Easy visits various places in southern California; speaks to lots of people; has run-ins with police officers; gets drugged and beaten; has sex with several women (who apparently find Easy irresistible); deals with a dead body; and eventually resolves the cases.
On the bright side, Easy enjoys his lovely home; makes meals for his family; plays with his grandbaby; hobnobs with his friends; has fond memories of his first love Anger Lee; and more.
Author Walter Mosley is well-known for his gritty stories, authentic dialog, depiction of racial strife, etc. I liked the book from that point of view, but was less enamored with the byzantine plot. Still, I'd recommend the novel to fans of Elmore Leonard, and to readers who enjoy unflinching suspense tales
Rating: 3.5 stars
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