Soul Circus (Pelecanos, George) (Hardcover)

Here, Pelecanos weaves a critique of the city's treatment at the hands of Congress into the story. Despite the city's 1981 repeal of the death penalty, and a 1992 citywide referendum that rejected the death penalty by a 2-1 margin, federal prosecutors have sought the death penalty in high-profile D.C. cases (such as the "Starbucks murders") with support from Congress. Strange tells himself he's working for the ex-drug lord as a matter of anti-death penalty conscience, but as in all of Pelecanos' books, there's more to it than that (as readers of Hell To Pay will know). The one misstep in his treatment of this is the appearance of a "big brother" conspiracy element that threatens to push the story into the "24/X-Files" zone. Fortunately, this never becomes too overt, and the story is allowed to move at its own pace.

Even more than in the first two books, Strange and his fiery white partner, Terry Quinn find themselves tilting at windmills in a crusade to make just a tiny difference to their community. It's been ten years since the "Murder Capital" days of the early '90s, but little change is evident in the worst parts of the city as the city regains the dubious title. If Right As Rain was about racism, and the last one about hopelessness, this one is about how guns and hopelessness form a lethal brew that threaten entire communities. Pelecanos' other target in this book is guns, more specifically, the ease by which they can be bought in Maryland and Virginia and then transferred into DC. He's clearly talked to ATF people to get the lowdown on waiting periods, and how straw purchases work. It's remarkably simple, and there's no remedy in sight. Some readers may find Pelecanos to have too much of a personal agenda woven into the plot, but he's walked the streets of Southeast DC and seen what goes down and why.

This is easily the darkest and most depressing of the three Strange books to date, gushing humanity, anger, and frustration. Strange and his creator clearly feel that the only way to turn things around is one kid at a time (Pelecanos has adopted several children), and that's the one good message to take from the book. As always, the cast of characters is large and distinctive, although Terry becomes more of an enigma filled with demons that never quite make enough sense for the reader. For fans of Pelecanos' earlier work, Nick Stefanos makes a cameo appearance here and there's a hint that he'll have a larger role in the next novel. All in all, another solid entry in Pelecanos' D.C. sagas.

Strange is trying to save former drug overlord Granville Oliver from the death penalty, while rival gang factions battle to fill the gap in the market left by Oliver’s arrest. But someone in federal law enforcement is desperate to stop Strange from finding evidence, and enlists the help of the gangs to stop him.

Meanwhile Strange and Quinn locate a young woman in what appears to be a routine disappearance case. When the woman is later found murdered in a local park, and Strange’s family and livelihood are threatened, their guilt forces them to reassess the consequences of their actions.

In typical Pelecanos style, the action is peppered with references to popular culture, especially music. Events take place to a backdrop of Missy Elliott, Ennio Morricone and Marvin Gaye.

Throughout the book, Pelecanos explores the harsh realities of life on the streets, and the obstacles faced by honest citizens in their day-to-day existence. As the characters develop, we see them struggle to find redemption by “making a difference” in the lives of those around them.

Unjudgmental about his flawed characters, Pelecanos reserves his condemnation for the social policies which leave young men with no hope to grow up too fast, mere miles from the wealth of the country’s decision-makers on Capitol Hill.