First published 1989
Summer heat bears down on New York, and Harlem simmers near its breaking point. Detectives Coffin Ed Johnson and Grave Digger Jones watch their neighborhood descend into chaos. The world feels like it has lost its mind. The two cops grip their famous nickel-plated Colts as they work to maintain whatever peace remains possible. They chase leads on two separate investigations while violence erupts around them. Knifings multiply across the streets. Beatings become routine. Riots build toward tearing the community apart completely. Coffin Ed and Grave Digger move through a labyrinth of brutality that mixes savage comedy with raw violence. This final case in their careers tests everything they believe about justice and order in a world spinning out of control.
Genres: fiction, african-american, mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: buddy-cops, gritty
Setting: Harlem, New York
Period: Summer
192 pages · Paperback · Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Content warnings: graphic-violence, racism