Part of Lew Archer, book 14
First published 2008
Detective Lew Archer finds himself pulled into a violent chain of murders that stretches back fifteen years. Three women have been beaten to death. A police officer lies murdered. A dead vagrant holds the crucial link to a family secret that someone will kill to protect. Archer follows the bloody connections between these crimes, racing through California's underworld as the body count rises. Each death brings him closer to a truth buried for over a decade. The case forces Archer to confront how far people will go to hide their past sins. What started as separate violent acts reveals itself as part of a larger web of guilt and revenge. Archer must unravel the family secret before more people die for it.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: California
Period: 20th-century
240 pages · Paperback · Vintage Crime
Content warnings: violence