Dave Robicheaux is back in this powerful New York Times bestseller that takes him into the underbelly of New Iberiaβs mafia to solve the brutal murder of two teenage girls.
When a beautiful teenage girl is killed, New Iberia police detective Dave Robicheaux senses that the most likely suspect, Tee Bobby Hulin, is not the actual killer. Though a drug addict and general neer-do-well, Hulin just doesnβt fit the profile for this kind of crime. Heβs a Cajun blues singer (one of his songs is titled βJolie Blonβs Bounceβ), and heβs been raised by his grandmother Ladice Hulin, a proud and strong-willed black woman.
But when thereβs another, similar murderβthis victim a drugged-out prostitute who happens to be the daughter of one of the local mafia bigwigsβthe cries for an arrest become too loud to ignore. The mafia figure, however, prefers to take matters in his own hand and sets out to findβand punishβthe killer himself. Once again, Tee Bobby Hulin seems the most likely suspect.
Added to the mix of characters on the good guy side of the balance sheet is Clete Purcel, a long-time buddy of Robicheauxβs and a confirmed boozer and womanizer. Coming to New Iberia for a visit, Clete is quickly drawn into the struggle between the various forces of evil in the town: Jimmy Dean Styles, a black man intent on maintaining his empire of corruption; Joe Zeroski, a trailer-park mafioso with palatial aspirationsβand of course Legion Guidrey, the devil incarnate.