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Easy Rawlins #4
Black Betty
1961: For most black Americans, these were times of hope. For former P.I. Easy Rawlins, Los Angeles's mean streets were never meaner...or more deadly. Ordinarily, Easy would have thrown the two bills in the sleazy shamus' face -- the white man who wanted him to find the notorious Black Betty, an ebony siren whose talent for all things rich and male took her from Houston's Fifth Ward to Beverly Hills. There was too much Easy wasn't being told, but he couldn't resist the prospect of seeing Betty again, even if it killed him....
360 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1994
288 people are currently reading
3848 people want to read
About the author
Walter Mosley
203 books3,895 followersWalter Mosley (b. 1952) is the author of the bestselling mystery series featuring Easy Rawlins, as well as numerous other works, from literary fiction and science fiction to a young adult novel and political monographs. His short fiction has been widely published, and his nonfiction has appeared in the New York Times Magazine and the Nation, among other publications. Mosley is the winner of numerous awards, including an O. Henry Award, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, a Grammy, and PEN America’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He lives in New York City.
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August 27, 2021
This is vintage Mosley
This is vintage Rawlins
Gritty
Intimate
Mesmerizing
Here is what Easy says about this period of time: “I tried to think of better things. About our new young Irish president and Martin Luther King; about how the world was changing and a black man in America had the chance to be a man for the first time in hundreds of years. But the same world was being rocked almost daily by underground nuclear explosions and the threat of war.” The Los Angeles of the 50s and 60s was growing at a rapid rate, and much of that growth was from the South from Alabama to Texas, both Black and White.
Easy’s view of his struggle: “Deep inside I know that the world wasn’t going to let me be an upright businessman. It was just that I had worked so hard. Since I was a child I worked the daylight hours; sweeping, gardening, delivering. I’d done every kind of low job, and I wanted my success. I wanted it --- violently." He has always been willing to “pay it forward” to help those around him. Now he is on the verge of losing what he has worked so hard for.
Easy Rawlins is hired to look for Elizabeth Eady…someone out of his past. The trail is unclear and it takes him through much of SoCal (and much of his past life). He can’t turn down the money offered to locate this woman, “Black Betty.”
The trouble he finds himself in is almost continuous:
“What kinda directions you need, son?”
“He was from the south. If I hadn’t been able to tell by his accent I sure could have from the liberties he took with my age. But I had to remember---I was out in the middle of nowhere, a black spot against a white backdrop. Even if I could have moved quickly enough to keep from being shot, what was the value of killing a white man for belittling me? I’d killed white men before in my life and that hadn’t changed a thing.”
There is a lot of brutality is this story about a missing woman, but Mosley measures this with precision and he balances it with some of the best descriptive prose you can find: “One old man was walking down the block with the most dignified limp I’d ever seen. He strutted like he had some kind of knowledge denied to us younger fools. He was probably just proud that he’d lived so long. Because behind every poor old man there’s a line of death. Siblings and children, lovers and wives. There’s disease and no doctor. There’s war, and war eats poor men like an aardvark licking up ants.” The Los Angeles we encounter is quite different than the one of the 2020s, both in terms of inhabitants and the areas that have, subsequently, been built up. Mosley describes each neighborhood in visceral detail.
Mosley wrote this thirty years ago about an LA that was thirty years previous to that. His anger and bitterness are reflected in this story about how bad it could be for Black citizens at that time and how little things had improved in terms of everything from policing to opportunities. This is a powerful and picaresque read that will be hard to compartmentalize when you have finished.
This is vintage Rawlins
Gritty
Intimate
Mesmerizing
Here is what Easy says about this period of time: “I tried to think of better things. About our new young Irish president and Martin Luther King; about how the world was changing and a black man in America had the chance to be a man for the first time in hundreds of years. But the same world was being rocked almost daily by underground nuclear explosions and the threat of war.” The Los Angeles of the 50s and 60s was growing at a rapid rate, and much of that growth was from the South from Alabama to Texas, both Black and White.
Easy’s view of his struggle: “Deep inside I know that the world wasn’t going to let me be an upright businessman. It was just that I had worked so hard. Since I was a child I worked the daylight hours; sweeping, gardening, delivering. I’d done every kind of low job, and I wanted my success. I wanted it --- violently." He has always been willing to “pay it forward” to help those around him. Now he is on the verge of losing what he has worked so hard for.
Easy Rawlins is hired to look for Elizabeth Eady…someone out of his past. The trail is unclear and it takes him through much of SoCal (and much of his past life). He can’t turn down the money offered to locate this woman, “Black Betty.”
The trouble he finds himself in is almost continuous:
“What kinda directions you need, son?”
“He was from the south. If I hadn’t been able to tell by his accent I sure could have from the liberties he took with my age. But I had to remember---I was out in the middle of nowhere, a black spot against a white backdrop. Even if I could have moved quickly enough to keep from being shot, what was the value of killing a white man for belittling me? I’d killed white men before in my life and that hadn’t changed a thing.”
There is a lot of brutality is this story about a missing woman, but Mosley measures this with precision and he balances it with some of the best descriptive prose you can find: “One old man was walking down the block with the most dignified limp I’d ever seen. He strutted like he had some kind of knowledge denied to us younger fools. He was probably just proud that he’d lived so long. Because behind every poor old man there’s a line of death. Siblings and children, lovers and wives. There’s disease and no doctor. There’s war, and war eats poor men like an aardvark licking up ants.” The Los Angeles we encounter is quite different than the one of the 2020s, both in terms of inhabitants and the areas that have, subsequently, been built up. Mosley describes each neighborhood in visceral detail.
Mosley wrote this thirty years ago about an LA that was thirty years previous to that. His anger and bitterness are reflected in this story about how bad it could be for Black citizens at that time and how little things had improved in terms of everything from policing to opportunities. This is a powerful and picaresque read that will be hard to compartmentalize when you have finished.
September 15, 2025
Неизвестно защо, издателство "Бард" са пуснали само първата и тази, четвърта по ред история за Изи Ролинс и после са спрели поредицата…
А е жалко, ноар романите на Уолтър Мозли са много интригуващи и доста добре написани.
Лос Анджелис има и своя тъмна страна, там където човек може да загуби живота си заради 10 цента, хвърлен крив поглед или просто, ако покаже страх. Но Изи има вече и други хора в живота си, деца за които е отговорен и не може да си позволи слабост или нерешителност…
Моята оценка -3,5*.
Ще дочета поредицата на английски.
А е жалко, ноар романите на Уолтър Мозли са много интригуващи и доста добре написани.
Лос Анджелис има и своя тъмна страна, там където човек може да загуби живота си заради 10 цента, хвърлен крив поглед или просто, ако покаже страх. Но Изи има вече и други хора в живота си, деца за които е отговорен и не може да си позволи слабост или нерешителност…
Моята оценка -3,5*.
Ще дочета поредицата на английски.
January 19, 2021
Such a good detective series with entertaining plot and interesting characters. Try to space out the books a bit so I don't run out of books to read so soon! Highly recommend this series one of the better detective novels!
September 15, 2020
Another great Easy Rawlins story. I love this series. The characters are amazing and the story flows throughout each chapter. On to book 5.
June 7, 2018
I just love this series! Mosley's writing is about a smooth and captivating as they come. Easy is such a complex character, yet Mosley makes him feel relatable and realistic. Easy's strengths and flaws make him the kind of character that you want to see come out alright in the end despite the odds against him finding real happiness and peace. I'm about to dive into A Little Yellow Dog next!
You can find me at:
•(♥).•*Monlatable Book Reviews*•.(♥)•
Twitter: @MonlatReader
Instagram: @readermonica
Facebook: Monica Reeds
Goodreads Group: The Black Bookcase
You can find me at:
•(♥).•*Monlatable Book Reviews*•.(♥)•
Twitter: @MonlatReader
Instagram: @readermonica
Facebook: Monica Reeds
Goodreads Group: The Black Bookcase
August 20, 2021
I love Walter Mosley books and Black Betty has to be one of my favorites. There was suspense--just when I thought who did it, nope, I was wrong. It was a definite page turner.
April 15, 2018
Still loving this series although there were only a few interesting twists to the story. I can't wait to continue on with Book #5 which is called A Little Yellow Dog.
December 21, 2015
This book was entertaining, however don't look for much depth in the Easy Rawlins novels. Mosley tend to talk too much about how hard it is to be a black man in 1950's LA but you never really feel the anguish. Easy's situations are too far fetched. It's simply not believable. These feeling may have come out because I've read a few too many Easy Rawlin's novels and frankly its hard to differentiate between them. Standard formula: woman in trouble in black part of town because she has messed around with someone outside of her race. Easy gets in trouble because he's black. Boring....I did enjoy the passages about his kids. It's a mystery novel and I am not a fan of the genre which could account for my lackluster appraisal. I did finish the book which means I must have found something worthwhile about it.
May 23, 2016
This was a reread for me( the first time I read this was in the early 2000's) and I loved it even more this time around. I had forgotten all the juice that was taken place in this book. all the scandal and hurt. And then there's Easy, getting himself into trouble trying to help people. This time looking for a love (more like school boy crush) that has gone missing and her employer is looking for her and will stop at nothing, and I mean just that, to find her again. This one was probably the saddest of the four books in this series that I have read, but I loved it just the same.
May 3, 2021
Apart from Devil in a Blue Dress all the books so far have been average at best and not nearly as good. There have been some similarities that Mosley keeps repeating from previous books but they don’t really add anything to the story or the main character himself. The plot feels messy with many new characters and troubles piling up which distracts the attention from the main goal that Easy is supposed to have. Halfway through the book I felt like we were wandering around the streets with no apparent direction in mind which made me lose interest.
4 books in and I’m starting to wonder if there’s a point in moving forward.
4 books in and I’m starting to wonder if there’s a point in moving forward.
July 20, 2016
Walter Mosley is a Goodreads experience for me. Never heard of him and never would have except for GR. He seemed like an author I ought to read although out of my normal realm. I am one of those infamous white males. Mosey writes about Easy Rawlins, a black guy immersed in a black milieu of 1960s Los Angeles. So I go to my favorite online used book dealer, www.alibris.com , to buy some books in the Easy Rawlins series. As is often the case, the first book in a series is not available used and cheap. Everyone wants to try out or collect the first book. So I end up beginning with this book, the fourth in the series. And it seems like I end up paying the price for coming into a story in the middle. I don’t know the history or the characters and have a hard time figuring out what is up. But in the muddle of events there is some punchy and intriguing writing. Easy seems like both a wise and reckless character with interesting baggage, past and present. And since I am missing pages one, two and three, I have to make do with a start on page four and go with the flow.
But the GR reviews give me hope for a worthwhile experience, maybe somewhat jumbled, if I am patient. I have a few of the books in the series in no particular meaningful order or selection: the ones available in good condition for a buck. Four books from 1994, 1996, 2001 and 2004. Go easy on me, Easy!
This book has confused me. I find stellar sentences, cryptic comments, captivating paragraphs. And yet the big picture of the flow of the story eludes me somehow. I am tossed between events strange and disjointed. What seems at one moment to be shocking becomes sensitive at another. Easy is stabbed by an ice pick and then soothed and nursed by thoughts of his children. He is aggressive and tender.
Chapter 26 was good with the crows. Chapter 27 was pretty good with the B&E. But what I want to know is, “What do they have to do with each other?” Is this a book of unrelated short stories? Maybe that should be my approach. If I tried to put it all together, this story was too complicated for me. But I did find that I enjoyed plenty of the bits and pieces even if I couldn’t stitch them together in my head.
I will probably try out another of the Easy Rawlins books just to satisfy my curiosity. To see if another bulb brightens up the dimness at all. But I doubt that I will ever get to all three of the books I have on my shelf. I am giving this book three stars, which seems exactly right. I could have used a few post-it notes to try to make more sense of it, but I just don’t think it would have made any difference to me in the stars.
But the GR reviews give me hope for a worthwhile experience, maybe somewhat jumbled, if I am patient. I have a few of the books in the series in no particular meaningful order or selection: the ones available in good condition for a buck. Four books from 1994, 1996, 2001 and 2004. Go easy on me, Easy!
This book has confused me. I find stellar sentences, cryptic comments, captivating paragraphs. And yet the big picture of the flow of the story eludes me somehow. I am tossed between events strange and disjointed. What seems at one moment to be shocking becomes sensitive at another. Easy is stabbed by an ice pick and then soothed and nursed by thoughts of his children. He is aggressive and tender.
Chapter 26 was good with the crows. Chapter 27 was pretty good with the B&E. But what I want to know is, “What do they have to do with each other?” Is this a book of unrelated short stories? Maybe that should be my approach. If I tried to put it all together, this story was too complicated for me. But I did find that I enjoyed plenty of the bits and pieces even if I couldn’t stitch them together in my head.
I will probably try out another of the Easy Rawlins books just to satisfy my curiosity. To see if another bulb brightens up the dimness at all. But I doubt that I will ever get to all three of the books I have on my shelf. I am giving this book three stars, which seems exactly right. I could have used a few post-it notes to try to make more sense of it, but I just don’t think it would have made any difference to me in the stars.
November 15, 2018
I've read and enjoyed books about tough guys whom no one gets the best of but I've never read one like this. Easy Rawlins is a black PI who, while doing his job of finding a missing person, has to deal with the hostility of racism. In this book, a white PI hires him to go places where he'll fit in and the other wouldn't. He's looking for Betty, a missing black woman who was working for a rich white family and whom he remembers from his youth. She was older and stunning and unforgettable. The way to finding Betty means unlocking secrets, dealing with violence, revisiting old friends who need things he may or may not be able (or willing) to help with. It's action packed and filled with surprises, none of which are corny or obvious.
October 22, 2012
A Book Drenched In History January 9, 2003
Review by Judith W. Colombo
Walter Mosley doesn't just write mysteries. He creates a historical landscape peopled with vibrant and authentic characters who like most of us are flawed and lacking in some way. "Black Betty" is Mosley at his best. The mystery is enthralling and many layered, the atmosphere electric, and the villains exquisitely evil.
The time is 1961 the era of Martin Luther King, John Kennedy, and the beginning of The Civil rights movement. Easy Rawlings is raising two adopted children on his own, and his secret real-estate empire is sinking. He has no idea how to solve his financial problems until a sleazy private eye Saul Lynx approaches him with a job. Lynx offers Easy $200 to track down a former acquaintance of his, Elizabeth Eady, aka Black Betty. Betty a beautiful and sensual woman has vanished from her wealthy employer's home in Beverly Hills.
Easy's search for Betty will uncover a trail of chaos and murder. To make matters worse, Easy's psychopathic best friend Mouse is also out of prison determined to find and execute the man who betrayed him. However, this book is much more than a murder mystery; it is a journey into the heart of racial bigotry and the paradox that is the human race. The language is vibrant and moving:
On the bus there were mainly old people and young mothers and teenagers coming in late to school. Most of them were black people. Dark-skinned with generous features. Women with eyes so deep that most men can never know them. Women like Betty who'd lost too much to be silly or kind. And there were the children, like Spider and Terry T once were, with futures so bleak it could make you cry just to hear them laugh. Because behind the music of their laughing you knew there was the rattle of chains. Chains we wore for no crime; chains we wore for so long that they melded with our bones. We all carry them but nobody can see it-not even most of us. All the way home I thought about freedom coming for us at last. But what about all those centuries in chains? Where do they go when you get free?
This is not merely a fast paced and gripping mystery but a powerful story of one of the saddest aspects of American life. Mosley does not preach nor condemn, he merely presents us with a historically accurate account of an era in which this mystery story unfolds. I highly recommend this story.
Review by Judith W. Colombo
Walter Mosley doesn't just write mysteries. He creates a historical landscape peopled with vibrant and authentic characters who like most of us are flawed and lacking in some way. "Black Betty" is Mosley at his best. The mystery is enthralling and many layered, the atmosphere electric, and the villains exquisitely evil.
The time is 1961 the era of Martin Luther King, John Kennedy, and the beginning of The Civil rights movement. Easy Rawlings is raising two adopted children on his own, and his secret real-estate empire is sinking. He has no idea how to solve his financial problems until a sleazy private eye Saul Lynx approaches him with a job. Lynx offers Easy $200 to track down a former acquaintance of his, Elizabeth Eady, aka Black Betty. Betty a beautiful and sensual woman has vanished from her wealthy employer's home in Beverly Hills.
Easy's search for Betty will uncover a trail of chaos and murder. To make matters worse, Easy's psychopathic best friend Mouse is also out of prison determined to find and execute the man who betrayed him. However, this book is much more than a murder mystery; it is a journey into the heart of racial bigotry and the paradox that is the human race. The language is vibrant and moving:
On the bus there were mainly old people and young mothers and teenagers coming in late to school. Most of them were black people. Dark-skinned with generous features. Women with eyes so deep that most men can never know them. Women like Betty who'd lost too much to be silly or kind. And there were the children, like Spider and Terry T once were, with futures so bleak it could make you cry just to hear them laugh. Because behind the music of their laughing you knew there was the rattle of chains. Chains we wore for no crime; chains we wore for so long that they melded with our bones. We all carry them but nobody can see it-not even most of us. All the way home I thought about freedom coming for us at last. But what about all those centuries in chains? Where do they go when you get free?
This is not merely a fast paced and gripping mystery but a powerful story of one of the saddest aspects of American life. Mosley does not preach nor condemn, he merely presents us with a historically accurate account of an era in which this mystery story unfolds. I highly recommend this story.
May 31, 2020
'Black Betty' by Walter Mosley, number 4 in the Easy Rawlins mystery series, is very complex and very good. However, it is also very very dark. Innocence cannot be preserved on any level. Easy Rawlins is so smart but he is full of uncontrolled demons. Only his children save him from his worst impulses. He seems to pursue justice to spite the universe rather than to help, especially since for him victory against bad guys is temporary and the saved are rarely deserving except for perhaps in possessing charm, beauty or bruised trustfulness.
February 26, 2022
Poor Easy! He manages to get himself into so much trouble.. excellent as always.
November 27, 2019
I love the Easy Rawlins series. What struck me about this one was Mosley's prose. I'm not sure if Mosley just stepped it up a notch with his fourth installment, or whether it was the format that caused me to notice. I read this one on my Kindle, which allowed me to linger over the well-crafted paragraphs, whereas I listened to the audio version of the first three books (audio has no mercy - it just keeps going). About halfway through I started to highlight some of my favorites. Here's one of the shorter ones:
My only complaint with Mosley's writing is the lack of a glossary to help me remember his vast array of characters. Even though I read the book pretty quickly, I had a difficult time keeping track of their comings and goings, and as a result I found the plot a little confusing at times.
When I roused, one of the crows took off immediately. But the other one cocked his eye at me and looked me up and down. His hard dull eye was the whole history of the natural world taking me in, sizing me up and classifying me a fool.
My only complaint with Mosley's writing is the lack of a glossary to help me remember his vast array of characters. Even though I read the book pretty quickly, I had a difficult time keeping track of their comings and goings, and as a result I found the plot a little confusing at times.
August 30, 2016
With Black Betty, Mosley delivers what you'd expect from an Easy Rawlins mystery if you came to it having already read a few others such as I had. The crime to be solved is made to seem convoluted but ultimately turns out to be relatively simple. Yet as with each book in this series it isn't really about the plot. It's about Easy's singular way of seeing and evaluating and dealing with the people he encounters along the way, his perspective on a period of time that seems both long ago and immediate. His character is further fleshed out with each novel, and going along for the ride with him on the particular case he's working on is always a pleasure. If you enjoy the writing of Raymond Chandler you'll probably enjoy that of Walter Mosley and vice versa, only with Mosley you get an added dose of social commentary, not to mention Easy's psychotically entertaining buddy, Mouse.
January 20, 2013
Well, it seems that RLT Reads Book Club has gone straight to hell in a hand basket. I know some of it was my fought. Over the last two years my health has been a handful and I have been off my reading game and not able to keep up. Trying to balance my health and all of RLT Brands is two full time jobs wrapped up into one. But I made an executive decision over this past holiday; to take some time for me. Life is to short to not do some of what you enjoy. So I'm back to my favorite pass time on the planet, other than shopping, drinking tea, and knitting, it is reading! I can easily read a book or two a week.
Until we get RLT Reads book club rolling again, I thought that I would at least give you some weekly reviews on the books that I'm currently reading. Over time, if you show some interest, we can see if the on-line book club can get back on its feet. Shoot me an email if you are interested in getting the book club back on it's feet RLTReads@raelewisthornton.com
My first weekly review! Here goes! I'm too excited about sharing my reads with you. I am an absolute fan of crime mystery books. My adopted God Mother, Judy down in Nashville is also an avid reader. You should hear our conversations about books that we have both read. We talk about characters like they are for real... Shoot, we think Alex Cross, the leading man in James Patterson Cross series is our future husband.
She and I both love mystery and she has been trying her best to get me to read Walter Mosley Easy Rawlins series. Because she kept pushing, I purchased a few and they just sat on my book shelf.
Then recently I started to slowly read them. Then over the holiday, I picked one up and now I can't seem to stop. To date I've read, six of the ten in this series, in no particular order. I have even read the last one he wrote in 2009, which killed off the series, Blonde Faith.
I've also read the most famous, of course, the Denzel Washington movie, Devil in a Blue Dress. I have also read, Little Scarlet, White Butterfly and Cinnamon Kiss. So far so good. They were all page turners that I didn't want to put down. I read 3 over the holiday alone. I was on a roll.
But the one I want to review for you today is Black Betty. I just finished reading it and OMG! This was one complex story line that captured the period. The thing I love most about Mosley's Easy Rawlins series is that he does an awesome job of situating his story line in the period and plays it through like a fine violin.
Black Betty is one of the most complex of all the Rawlins series so far. All of the books are situated in Southern California between the 40-60's. It's an interesting period and Rawlins gives us insight on segregation, racism and migration during this time span.
Many African-Americans escaped the degradation of the south. We often read about those from Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. Rawlins characters are all from parts of Louisiana and Texas. Which had it's own particular culture and Black folks bring it to Los Angles during it's time of growth.
Rawlins is a private investigator operating in Los Angles who begins his career by default. Well liked and well connected in the Black community Rawlins is asked to help locate people. The police use him from time to time on complex cases in the black community because it's easier for Rawlins to move among black folks then it is for white police officers. Over time, Rawlins is eventuality given his license to practice. Rawlins loves, sex, woman and alcohol, but alcohol doesn't love him. He's a man's man, with a good heart that shines bright in all of the Easy Rawlins books. Oh yeah, his side kick Mouse is a hoot, but mostly a cold-blooded killer.
Now on to Pretty Betty. This story takes place in 1961 at the height of overt segregation in the South and covert segregation and open racism in swanky L.A. Betty is a woman from Rawlins home town, who's sensuality shines bright with every step she takes. She captivates Rawlins as a young boy and years later they meet again in the midst of a complex trail of murder and mayhem.
There are clear and not so clear villains. Betty is a live-in maid for a wealthy Southern California Plantation owner. Yes, I said planation. Mosley gives us a brief insight into migrant slave labor in Pretty Betty. That's the thing about Mosley, all of his Rawlins books give us a history lesson in race relations and what it's like to be mostly black and poor during this period.
I can't tell you the story or you won't have a need to pick it up. Lets just say, there is sexual coercion power relationships and children born of mixed race at it's best. When the patriarch of the family dies, who is also Betty boss, she disappears and the hunt begins.
Murder follows Betty's trail right along with Rawlins. This complex story line of who done it and why and yes who inherits the 50 million dollars will keep you turing pages until the very end. It is worth the read!
Each Tuesday I will be reviewing two of my favorite things, tea and books #SmallPleasures Stay tuned for next week and in the meantime don't forget to read my tea Review, Passion in a Cup... http://www.raelewisthornton.com Search Tea With Rae and RLT Reads
Until we get RLT Reads book club rolling again, I thought that I would at least give you some weekly reviews on the books that I'm currently reading. Over time, if you show some interest, we can see if the on-line book club can get back on its feet. Shoot me an email if you are interested in getting the book club back on it's feet RLTReads@raelewisthornton.com
My first weekly review! Here goes! I'm too excited about sharing my reads with you. I am an absolute fan of crime mystery books. My adopted God Mother, Judy down in Nashville is also an avid reader. You should hear our conversations about books that we have both read. We talk about characters like they are for real... Shoot, we think Alex Cross, the leading man in James Patterson Cross series is our future husband.
She and I both love mystery and she has been trying her best to get me to read Walter Mosley Easy Rawlins series. Because she kept pushing, I purchased a few and they just sat on my book shelf.
Then recently I started to slowly read them. Then over the holiday, I picked one up and now I can't seem to stop. To date I've read, six of the ten in this series, in no particular order. I have even read the last one he wrote in 2009, which killed off the series, Blonde Faith.
I've also read the most famous, of course, the Denzel Washington movie, Devil in a Blue Dress. I have also read, Little Scarlet, White Butterfly and Cinnamon Kiss. So far so good. They were all page turners that I didn't want to put down. I read 3 over the holiday alone. I was on a roll.
But the one I want to review for you today is Black Betty. I just finished reading it and OMG! This was one complex story line that captured the period. The thing I love most about Mosley's Easy Rawlins series is that he does an awesome job of situating his story line in the period and plays it through like a fine violin.
Black Betty is one of the most complex of all the Rawlins series so far. All of the books are situated in Southern California between the 40-60's. It's an interesting period and Rawlins gives us insight on segregation, racism and migration during this time span.
Many African-Americans escaped the degradation of the south. We often read about those from Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. Rawlins characters are all from parts of Louisiana and Texas. Which had it's own particular culture and Black folks bring it to Los Angles during it's time of growth.
Rawlins is a private investigator operating in Los Angles who begins his career by default. Well liked and well connected in the Black community Rawlins is asked to help locate people. The police use him from time to time on complex cases in the black community because it's easier for Rawlins to move among black folks then it is for white police officers. Over time, Rawlins is eventuality given his license to practice. Rawlins loves, sex, woman and alcohol, but alcohol doesn't love him. He's a man's man, with a good heart that shines bright in all of the Easy Rawlins books. Oh yeah, his side kick Mouse is a hoot, but mostly a cold-blooded killer.
Now on to Pretty Betty. This story takes place in 1961 at the height of overt segregation in the South and covert segregation and open racism in swanky L.A. Betty is a woman from Rawlins home town, who's sensuality shines bright with every step she takes. She captivates Rawlins as a young boy and years later they meet again in the midst of a complex trail of murder and mayhem.
There are clear and not so clear villains. Betty is a live-in maid for a wealthy Southern California Plantation owner. Yes, I said planation. Mosley gives us a brief insight into migrant slave labor in Pretty Betty. That's the thing about Mosley, all of his Rawlins books give us a history lesson in race relations and what it's like to be mostly black and poor during this period.
I can't tell you the story or you won't have a need to pick it up. Lets just say, there is sexual coercion power relationships and children born of mixed race at it's best. When the patriarch of the family dies, who is also Betty boss, she disappears and the hunt begins.
Murder follows Betty's trail right along with Rawlins. This complex story line of who done it and why and yes who inherits the 50 million dollars will keep you turing pages until the very end. It is worth the read!
Each Tuesday I will be reviewing two of my favorite things, tea and books #SmallPleasures Stay tuned for next week and in the meantime don't forget to read my tea Review, Passion in a Cup... http://www.raelewisthornton.com Search Tea With Rae and RLT Reads
November 11, 2024
Great mystery, and a interesting cast of characters. I been a Easy Rawlins (MMC) fan since Devil In A Blue Dress👗! I had a good time with this.
May 31, 2019
This is my first Easy Rollins mystery. I've seen these books around forever, and wanted a taste. This was a great way to be introduced to the series.
A few incidences of violence. Made me a little uncomfortable, but then, I am very sensitive to that.
I liked the story, and the dramatization. I may try another.
A few incidences of violence. Made me a little uncomfortable, but then, I am very sensitive to that.
I liked the story, and the dramatization. I may try another.
November 6, 2020
I can't believe it's taken me this long to discover Easy Rawlins. What an enjoyable discovery! Although it took a little while to get used to the dialect, I found the story as compelling as the characters. Now, of course, I feel I need to go back and read more of this series.
May 26, 2012
Wonderfully convoluted as always, this adventure finds Easy Rawlins at his worst; an angry man who makes bad decisions that get people killed. Yet as ever he displays those characteristics which make him a likable noir hero, a willingness to put his life on the line for his beliefs and the pursuit of what's right and true and justice and all that other stuff.
Whilst Mosley is as formulaic as ever there's something infinitely readable about these books, unlike other too predictable authors in the genre. In Black Betty he finds himself touching on the civil rights movement and the legacy of American slavery a lot more than in previous books but then this one is set in 1961 so perhaps that was to be expected. This social commentary is a major part of what makes him better than a run of the mill noir writer. If this was my first Easy Rawlins novel I might have given it a higher rating but I feel like the bar was set pretty high with Devil In A Blue Dress and this one doesn't match it in terms of pure enjoyment.
Whilst Mosley is as formulaic as ever there's something infinitely readable about these books, unlike other too predictable authors in the genre. In Black Betty he finds himself touching on the civil rights movement and the legacy of American slavery a lot more than in previous books but then this one is set in 1961 so perhaps that was to be expected. This social commentary is a major part of what makes him better than a run of the mill noir writer. If this was my first Easy Rawlins novel I might have given it a higher rating but I feel like the bar was set pretty high with Devil In A Blue Dress and this one doesn't match it in terms of pure enjoyment.
October 30, 2024
Dear Reader
Walter Mosley is one of my go to authors and Black Betty was definitely a page-turner. It really was hard to put this one down and I think Black Betty would make a good movie as well. Only Denzel Washington can embody Easy Rawlins in my opinion. Just like in Devil in A Blue Dress, Black Betty had that same dangerous feel to it. Like danger was right around the corner. My heart broke for Betty and Mouse scares me just a bit but this is one that is worth the read.
Happy Reading📚
MidnightSun
Walter Mosley is one of my go to authors and Black Betty was definitely a page-turner. It really was hard to put this one down and I think Black Betty would make a good movie as well. Only Denzel Washington can embody Easy Rawlins in my opinion. Just like in Devil in A Blue Dress, Black Betty had that same dangerous feel to it. Like danger was right around the corner. My heart broke for Betty and Mouse scares me just a bit but this is one that is worth the read.
Happy Reading📚
MidnightSun
June 5, 2015
Love the atmosphere Mosley creates of post-war (WWII) LA. Had a bit of trouble keeping the characters straight, but as the conclusion approached, they all came together. Very good mystery/detective book. Because several of the characters use dialect in their speech, I would love to listen to these books. Sometimes I have to slow down to read that.
August 16, 2018
Mosley is just one of the best writers that I have been privileged to read. His turn of phrase and description are just wonderful In this one he has such a wonderful way of describing an unopened bottle of Seagrams which includes how wonderful it is yet how horrific.
February 2, 2022
I love this series. Private investigator Easy Rawlins is hired to find the maid of a wealthy Beverly Hills family. The racism of the early sixties runs throughout the story.
March 5, 2019
This series just gets better - a darker, gritty PI type novel that gives the reader realistic characters with little left to lose.
June 21, 2022
Surprised how much I did not enjoy this. Started out fine but took a huge nose dive! I’ve liked the other Easy Rawlins novels a lot, but BLACK BETTY was overlong and overwritten, dreary and dull. Too many names, new characters at every turn, convoluted plot(s) and Easy’s psycho buddy Mouse is relegated to the sidelines—and yet his minor storyline concludes the novel. I almost gave up with 20 pages left, and those 20 pages trudged along like 100. I know lots of detective/mysteries can have these charges levied against them, but here I found it all overwrought in a tedious, exhausting way. Nothing enjoyable here at all.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 23, 2012
What a spectacular book! I have no idea how Walter Mosley does it! Once again, Walter Mosley has put together another one of his amazing mystery-crime novels, and this time, I think that he has done his absolute best so far. This man simply knows how to write mystery novels, and he does it in a way unlike any other mystery book I have read. This novel, "Black Betty", is part of the "Easy Rawlins Mystery Series", and it is the fourth book in the series. Like his previous books in the series, this one starts out completely different than the others, and has Easy Rawlins doing something far different from fighting crime and solving mysteries. This time, he is just trying to be a good father as his wife had just left him a few years before, and his son, Jesus, has grown to be 15 years old, and his daughter, Feather, has reached the age of 7. His kids have grown-up a lot since the prior book, and he has too, now at the age of a respectable 41. It is 1961, in the era of JFK and MLK, and Rawlins is just trying to find a job and take care of his family after having to move out of his previous home due to his new financial issues. See, Rawlins had owned a bunch of apartments a few years back, but after risking all of his property and money on the hope of becoming rich by investing money into new property, he became virtually bankrupt and in major debt. However, one day, a detective Saul Lynx comes to Rawlins door asking him to return to his old ways of finding missing people in exchange for a few hundred dollars. Rawlins first refuses the offer, even with his financial crisis, but then when Lynx "ups" the offer and tells Rawlins that he will be looking for an old aquaintance of his, Rawlins jumps on the offer. Lynx tells Rawlins the situation and that he will be looking for an Elizabeth Eady (Black Betty), an old friend of Rawlins' when he was young and living in the 9th Ward of Houston. Rawlins begin searching right away, but before he gets too far, his friend, Raymond "Mouse" Alexander, is released from jail, and Easy has to begin juggling keeping Mouse from killing every man that looks at him wrong and trying to find Black Betty. Along the way, Rawlins requires the help of many of his old friends as he tries to get to the bottom of the curious task infront of him, and as he returns to his old ways of finding the information he wants through connections and past relationships. This time around, Rawlins gets caught in the mess and ends up basically having no choice but to find Betty, and like every other time, Rawlins has many run-ins with the law as a black man who is treading in pretty deep water. In this novel, Rawlins goes from rich neighborhoods to poor, from old friends to new friends, from sex relationships to social ones, and from old secrets to new ones. Rawlins gets himself caught-up in many sticky situations, and sometimes you really have to wonder when his luck is going to run out. Once again, there are many twists and turns in this book that keep you alert up until the very end, and sometimes, you have to read things twice (and maybe even three times) before you can fully comprehend what you just read. However, in the end, it is one person who is the center for all of the troubles and grief that all of the characters experience. This book, like all of Mosleys's books, has a theme of overcoming racism, and also strong themes of never giving up and being there for your family and the people that are your real friends. Mosley delivers another one of his powerful books, and I would reccommend this book and series to lovers of Walter Dean Myers literature, fans of African-American literature, and anyone who is looking for a good crime book with lots of action in it. I applaud Mosley once again and give him two thumbs-up for a job well-done.
March 28, 2010
I'm not quite sure how to rate this one. I more than just "liked it," because it's hard not to become involved in the lives of Mosley's complex, beaten-down characters and admire the writer who is able to write a simple mystery plot three dimensionally. Easy Rawlins is not the only real person in this book; all of them seem like flesh and blood humans. Mosley manages to create real characters while also giving Easy's voice a genuine noir cadence, which sounds authentic to Easy rather than being just a parody of the genre.
But I'm not sure if I "really liked it." Maybe it's my fault for not reading the first book in the Easy Rawlins series first, but the first half of Black Betty consists of dozens of (series familar?) character introductions and beginnings of plot threads that are quickly overcome by new, seemingly unrelated developments and new characters, and I was having trouble getting attached to anything. Mosley does bring all of his characters and plot incidents together at the end, clearly and to good effect. But it took until about page 150 for me to no longer think that I could easily put it down without the nagging feeling to return.
More like ***1/2 stars. Slow to start, but better than your average mass market crime thriller.
But I'm not sure if I "really liked it." Maybe it's my fault for not reading the first book in the Easy Rawlins series first, but the first half of Black Betty consists of dozens of (series familar?) character introductions and beginnings of plot threads that are quickly overcome by new, seemingly unrelated developments and new characters, and I was having trouble getting attached to anything. Mosley does bring all of his characters and plot incidents together at the end, clearly and to good effect. But it took until about page 150 for me to no longer think that I could easily put it down without the nagging feeling to return.
More like ***1/2 stars. Slow to start, but better than your average mass market crime thriller.
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