It is 1965 and the place is Los Angeles.  Devastating riots are taking place.  Small business owners who spent their entire life building what they now have, lost everything.  If a fire didn't destroy their business, the looting would do as much damage.

During the riots, a man was pulled from his car.  He managed to escape into a nearby apartment building.  A short time later, a redheaded woman named Little Scarlet was found dead in the same building.  The man who escaped is the obvious suspect but he has disappeared.

The police need to investigate this case but since tensions are so high, they are afraid their presence might spark more violence.  The police decide to contact Easy Rawlins.  The last thing Easy expected was for the police to ask for his help but that is exactly what they wanted. 

Easy "agrees" to help only because he was forced into it.  The police "sort of" mentioned to Easy that he was playing private detective without a license.  Easy asks his friend, Mouse, to help him investigate this case. 

Do the two find the killer of Little Scarlet?  What dangers do they face along the way?

It didn't take long for Walter Mosley to become one of my favorite writers.  He does such a great job with the character Easy Rawlins.  He just makes him seem so calm and cool.  It is interesting to see how Walter Mosley takes this murder and complements it by including some history of the riots in 1965.  Walter's last novel was "The Man in My Basement".  That one was really good.  This one is even better.  Be sure to read this one!


REVIEWED BY NANCY EATON

DO NOT REPRINT WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE REVIEWER, NANCY EATON