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A brilliant novel from one of America’s finest literary crime writers…
On a hot summer afternoon in Washington DC 1972, three white teenagers, stoned and fearless, drive a stolen car into a rough, black neighbourhood. Taunting local black kids through the car window, they speed off to what they think is safety.
They find themselves trapped in a dead-end street whilst an angry mob gathers. In the ensuing chaos, two of the white boys manage to escape, but Billy – the third friend – is shot dead.
Thirty-five years later, one of these men reaches out to another, opening a door that could lead to salvation. However, another survivor of that day is now out of prison, and is looking for reparation in any form he can find it . . .
On a hot summer afternoon in Washington DC 1972, three white teenagers, stoned and fearless, drive a stolen car into a rough, black neighbourhood. Taunting local black kids through the car window, they speed off to what they think is safety.
They find themselves trapped in a dead-end street whilst an angry mob gathers. In the ensuing chaos, two of the white boys manage to escape, but Billy – the third friend – is shot dead.
Thirty-five years later, one of these men reaches out to another, opening a door that could lead to salvation. However, another survivor of that day is now out of prison, and is looking for reparation in any form he can find it . . .
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Reviews
Pelecanos is in the top rank of American crime scribes, and this is him at his very best.
Pelecanos maps the social landscape of DC with a compassionate complexity, scouring the badlands of the city and the psyche for the causes of criminality and the bonds that bind communities.
A fine novel with rich dialogue and characters.
A stunning, gripping read