Part of Dave Robicheaux, book 9
First published 1997
Detective Dave Robicheaux faces a troubling case when Aaron Crown gets arrested for murdering Louisiana's most prominent black civil rights leader decades earlier. Crown's family has long carried whispers of Klan connections, making him an easy target for public blame. Crown insists he's innocent, and Robicheaux begins to suspect the man has become a convenient scapegoat for an entire generation's sins. The situation grows more complex when Buford LaRose wins the governor's race. LaRose wrote the book that helped convict Crown, and now he offers Robicheaux the top state police job. Meanwhile, someone kills a filmmaker investigating Crown's case, and the governor's wife, who once had a relationship with Robicheaux, tries to seduce him again. These events force Robicheaux to dig deeper into Crown's story, even as powerful people work to keep certain truths buried. Robicheaux must navigate political pressure, personal temptation, and dangerous opposition to uncover what really happened to the civil rights leader.
Genres: historical-fiction, mystery, crime, detective, political-thriller, african-american-historical-fiction
Vibes: dark, emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Louisiana
Period: 20th-century
464 pages · Paperback · Grand Central Publishing
Content warnings: racism, violence