Inner City Blues

By: Paula L. Woods

Narrated by: Fran L. Washington

Meet Detective Charlotte Justice, a black woman in the very white, very male, and sometimes very racist LAPD. It is 48 hours into the LA riots, and she and her fellow officers are exhausted.

She saves curfew-breaking black doctor Lance Mitchell from a potentially lethal beating from some white officers -- only to discover nearby the body of one-time radical Cinque Lewis, the thug who years before had murdered her husband and young daughter.

Was it a random shooting or was Mitchell responsible? And what brought Lewis back to a city he'd long since fled?

Charlotte's quest for the truth behind Cinque's death will set her at odds with the LAPD's hierarchy, plunge her into the intricacies of LA's gang-banging politics to its black elite, and lead her into deep emotional waters with Mitchell's partner (and her old flame) Dr. Aubrey Scott.

Paula L. Woods has created a tough, tart, and totally original heroine -- and is sure to draw comparisons to the writing of Walter Mosley, Sue Grafton, and Michael Connelly.

©2002 Paula L. Woods (P)2008 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

I've Found a New Favorite!

I started reading Nancy Drew in the 3rd grade and detective novels have always been my favorite. I've devoted this summer to the genre exploring Walter Moseley, Chester B. Himes and now, Paula L. Woods. Inner City Blues is a well developed story with all the mystery and plot twists you hope for a detective novel. The characters are well-drawn and real. I truly enjoyed getting to know Charlotte's family, friends and co-wrokers. The players and their descriptions made the plot positively tantalizing. WARNING: The audio performance is not great - but don't let that stop you from enjoying this book!

Performance, Ugh!

The story was good, but the performer was bland, mispronounced many words and did horrible accents. Had a hard time listening to the end.

Not Bad At All

Listen. I’m college I’ve heard over and over (and I’ve told my students)…do not write the way you speak. This book is the written embodiment of why we tell folks don’t write the way you speak. It does not always come across well. Also…when converting into an audible…the reader may have issues conveying what you’re trying to say. This. Is. It. Man! Is this it! The reader had a huge issue tryin to covey emotions while speaking in “black vernacular”. I very much understand that the writer had to be true to the characters and how they spoke. The “truth” just did not land well here. Beyond that! The story wasn’t terrible. It just wasn’t. I would venture to say the story is on the cusp of being great; but something kept it from reaching that greatness. I just don’t know what it is. If it’s a series, I do not think I could move forward.