Washington DC, 1986, and the white lines are causing a generation of young African-Americans to follow the trail of easy money and a short life. Marcus Clay watches from his record store as the neighbourhood dissolves into decay, until one day that misery explodes outside his door, dragging him and his friends into a confrontation with a world of fast guns and little mercy. Pelecanos is one of the new generation of crime writers, strong on local detail and imbued with a strong street morality. He writes well, forceful if a touch predictable, but he maintains tension and pace. His growing reputation is deserved.
That said, he will write better books than this. Indeed, he probably has.