Small-time black hustler Tee Bobby Hulin is partly redeemed, in Robicheauxs eyes, by a rare musical gift. Three men are present when Amanda Boudreau is raped and murdered, and Tee Bobbys prints are found at the crime scene. Dave reckons hes innocent, and Tee Bobby pleads so, then attempts suicide in his holding cell. Why? Soon after, hooker and junkie Linda Zeroski is beaten to death by a man wearing leather gloves who, with great care and precision, crushes every bone in her face. Louisianas murky history casts a long shadow in the work of James Lee Burke, but nowhere longer than here, with the LaSalles family, who settled there before the Louisiana Purchase and built their wealth upon the backs of slave labour. When lawyer Perry LaSalles takes on the defence of Tee Bobby Hulin, Dave knows his motives are fuelled by guilt. For Tee Bobbys grandmother Ladice was seduced by Perrys grandfather, and Amanda Boudreaus death is related to events that happened long before Tee Bobby was born In this rich and compelling novel James Lee Burke weaves a web of plots and subplots involving perfectly observed characters. Dense with passion and compassion, Burkes novels get better and better.