I was so pleased to see this novel appear. I was knocked out by Darktown and couldn’t wait to read more about Lucius Boggs and Tommy Smith, the black police officers fighting crime in a racially divided Atlanta in 1948. Now two years on, the resourceful duo are up against both Klansmen and neo-Nazi ‘lightning men’ who object to black families moving into white neighbourhoods. The story is complex – bewilderingly so at times – but Lucius and Tommy’s relationships form the heart of the novel and draw you into their impossibly difficult and dangerous world of walking a tightrope between honest cops and dishonest ones, duty and family loyalty, fairness and rank injustice – all while being routinely hampered by the white cops and insulting Jim Crow restrictions on their policing. It’s definitely not a book to read a few pages at a time (as I did) as you need to keep track of who’s who, but Mullen’s research into the period is evident, his characterization and plotting are finely honed, and false trails and moral dilemmas keep you hooked. The ending holds a surprise or two – and is more satisfying than that of Darktown. A great if uncomfortable read about disturbing times.