Pleasantville

 Pleasantville

Reviewed By  Alison Poole       July 11, 2015

 

Author  Attica Locke

Distributor:     
ISBN:                 9781781254097
Publisher:         Profile Books
Release Date:    

   Website:   http://www.allenandunwin.com

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For those who love to get involved in a good murder mystery this is the book for you as it is involved, convoluted, mysterious and it is impossible to work out the ending without reading the last page; which before you decide to take this option will leave you will be none the wiser as you simply have to read the book to get the background!

Set in the time immediately after Bill Clinton has been elected to the White House with a Mayoral election to be held in Houston, the focus is placed on the Afro-American town of Pleasantville, a town which has, in times past, had incredible power in the polls.

On track to have the first Afro-American mayor, Axel Hathorne a former Chief of Police and well respected member of his community looks likely to be successful  until his position is challenged by a series of events which finds his nephew facing murder charges.

Jay Porter, attorney finds himself being pressured to defend Axel’s nephew despite the fact that he has never tried a murder case. He has issues of his own; struggling to come to terms with the loss of his beloved wife through cancer and having to take care of his two children, who are also struggling to cope with the changes in their lives. He is sick and tired of defending people and all he really wants is to be left alone! To go to hell his own way!

As Jay finds himself being dragged further into the murky undercurrents of Pleasantville he discovers his life, as well as his children’s, are now at risk as he struggles to find answers, not just to one death but that of three young women of the town.

How deep is the corruption and who is behind the murders which threaten to blow the town apart becomes apparent the further he digs and the deeper he investigates a series of events which has him struggling to accept the unacceptable.

The truth will eventually come out shattering the fabric of the community which was held to be one of the best Afro-American middle class communities in Houston, exposing the raw brutally that will stop at nothing to succeed.

Raw, challenging and woven throughout American social history this is a fascinating and intriguing look at the dark side that exists in every community.

 

 

Fiction