Plot or Premise

Easy Rawlins lives in L.A., 1948. He’s a black war veteran who just lost his job for mouthing off to the boss. Then a man comes along with an easy proposition: find a girl who was hanging out with the blacks at the jazz bars. While Easy needs the money to keep the little house he bought, he wants to know why the guy wants the girl found. Then he finds out others are looking too. Bodies pile up, having been worked over first, and the girl turns out to be connected to politics. While Easy finds the girl, it comes along with a lot of trouble from crooks, politicos, and cops who think he’s good for one of the murders.

What I Liked

The story moves, the characters are interesting, and the descriptions of the settings are well-written enough to give the reader the feel of each place in the story.

What I Didn’t Like

The characters may be interesting but are not well-developed. This story definitely has the feel of the pulp mystery fiction of the 50s and 60s, with lots of action, but no depth to the main characters. I never particularly cared about Easy, although I like the parameters of the character.

The Bottom Line

Smooth as silk.