First published 1986
Spring arrives in Detroit, and private investigator Amos Walker wants to believe in human goodness again. That optimism dies quickly when Martha Evancek walks into his office. The elderly Polish woman needs Walker to find her missing grandson somewhere in the tight-knit community of Hamtramck. Walker barely starts his investigation when a second client appears with an equally urgent problem. A prominent Russian novelist believes someone wants him dead. Walker accepts both cases, but the detective soon realizes these seemingly unrelated jobs share a dangerous connection. The missing young man and the threatened writer exist in the same deadly web. Walker must untangle their stories before the link between them destroys his own life. The spring season in Detroit's ethnic neighborhoods holds more violence than hope, and Walker discovers that family loyalty and literary fame can both lead to murder.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Detroit, Hamtramck
Period: Spring
Hardcover · Macmillan
Content warnings: violence