by Attica Locke
First published 2020
Two bodies surface from the bayou in Lark, a forgotten Texas town split by Highway 59. On one side sits Geneva Sweet's diner, where she serves sweet lemonade and fried catfish to Black customers who would be turned away elsewhere. Across the road stands the pristine Jefferson family mansion with its domed roof and white picket fence, home to the area's most powerful family. The victims are a middle-aged Black lawyer from Chicago and a young white local woman. Most people assume it's another racial crime that will quickly fade from memory. But Texas Ranger Darren Mathews arrives in Lark and realizes nothing is straightforward. Mathews embodies his own contradiction as a Black lawman who must both enforce and protect himself from the very system he serves. In this East Texas setting, only a few meters separate vastly different worlds. As Mathews digs deeper into the case, he uncovers the complex truths hidden beneath Lark's deceptively simple surface. The investigation forces him to navigate the dangerous space between justice and survival in a place where appearances deceive and power runs deep.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, african-american, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water, social-commentary
Setting: Chicago, Lark, Texas
Period: Contemporary
320 pages · Paperback · Bompiani
Content warnings: racism, violence