Part of Easy Rawlins, book 6
First published 2002
Easy Rawlins climbs into a borrowed 1936 Ford with his volatile friend Raymond "Mouse" Alexander. The year is 1939, and they're headed for Pariah, Texas. Mouse needs money from his stepfather to marry Etta Mae, the woman he loves. Easy agrees to help, but the trip stirs uncomfortable memories of his own past with Etta Mae. Neither young man has yet become who he will be. Easy hasn't learned to untangle other people's secrets. Mouse hasn't killed anyone. Their journey through the steamy Texas bayou will change both of them forever. Mouse will choose murder as his solution. Easy will watch his friendship and his understanding of himself fall apart. This trip to manhood will test everything they thought they knew about loyalty and about each other.
Genres: historical-fiction, 20th-century, crime, african-american-historical-fiction
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water
Setting: Pariah, Texas, Texas
Period: 1939
208 pages · Paperback · Atria Books
Content warnings: violence