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Content snapshot
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Violence
Very heavy
Extreme violence — brutal beatings, torture, multiple murders; some crime scenes are graphically described
Language
A lot
Raw, period-authentic language including racial slurs, profanity, and crude terms throughout
Sexual Content
A lot
A high-end prostitution ring is a central plot element; sexual content including coercion
Substance Use
A lot
Heavy drinking; drug use within the LAPD and criminal milieu
Emotional Intensity
Very heavy
The psychological corruption of three men who each make a series of moral compromises; institutionalized racism and brutality; the cost of living by a double standard
What this book is about
Three LAPD detectives — the brutal Bud White, the ambitious Ed Exley, and the celebrity-chasing Jack Vincennes — are drawn together by a mass murder at a diner and an upscale prostitution ring catering to men who pay for celebrity look-alikes. Ellroy's masterpiece is an immersive, brutal descent into the corruption at the heart of postwar Los Angeles: racism, organized crime, police brutality, and the price of ambition in a city built on illusion.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Extreme violence — brutality and torture described graphically
A prostitution ring involving celebrity look-alikes
Pervasive racial slurs — historically authentic to the 1950s LAPD
Police corruption and moral compromise as central themes
Reader Verification
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