Part of Dave Robicheaux, book 1
First published 1992
Detective Dave Robincheaux walks the humid streets of New Orleans, carrying scars from Vietnam and his struggle with the bottle. The city pulses with jazz and danger, but a new threat has emerged from the shadows. A Nicaraguan gang operates with brutal efficiency, spreading fear through neighborhoods that have seen plenty of violence before. Robincheaux knows these streets like his own heartbeat, but this enemy brings tactics forged in Central American wars. The detective must draw on every lesson learned in combat and recovery to protect his city. Each day the gang grows bolder, each night the body count rises. Robincheaux faces not just another case but a test of everything he has survived and become. The battle for New Orleans will demand more than police work. It will require a man willing to confront the darkness others fear to name.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: detective-protagonist, gritty-realism, urban-noir
Setting: New Orleans, Central America
Period: Contemporary
281 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Pocket Books
Content warnings: violence