This was a powerful, thought-provoking and very well-written novel . What a great book on the pre war South race relations. To be reading this in the light of the last few years - it definitely gives insight to our current events.

In Atlanta in the postwar, pre-civil rights era the Police Department is forced to hire its first black officers, including war veterans Lucius Boggs and Tommy Smith. Our newly minted policemen face deep hostility from their white peers and they aren’t allowed to arrest white suspects, drive squad cars, or set foot in the police headquarters. At the same time they face skepticism from their families and neighbors. All this is thrown into sharp relief when When a black woman who was last seen in a car driven by a white man turns up dead. This book has been compared to the socially resonant and morally complex crime novels of Dennis Lehane and Walter Mosley, Darktown is a vivid, smart, intricately plotted crime saga that explores the timely issues of race, law enforcement, and the uneven scales of justice.

Due to unexpected circumstances, I was unable to finish this selection. Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity.

It's a very different story from what I'm used to read. Here, no disillusioned main character who fights his demons to succeed in his investigation but two Afro-American cops who are fighting the system to bring justice.

The social dimension is really great and interesting and if you liked Dennis Lehanne's "The Given Day", this book is for you!

You'll follow the political stakes at the dawn of major changes in the country, the injustices of segregation, the various mentalities, between elementary racists and progressives.

Between Dunlow, the hateful cop, for whom the life of a black man is not a subject, protected by his colleagues, who embodies a "traditional" way of seeing the place of everyone that nobody wants to reconsider and Rakestraw, who realizes the injustices but hesitates to take sides not to be alone in front of his colleagues and also because the system in place is comfortable when the challenge brings a novelty that can be scary.

Boggs and Smith also have two different ways of approaching their difficulties, one wants to rebel, the other play with the system. Who is right, who is wrong... and can they investigate without Rakestraw's help? How to conduct an investigation without risking their life despite all the injustice and hostility?

In a nutshell

A very good story, a beautiful social Lehanne's style saga and a well-crafted story.

A very good look at the early integration of the Atlanta Police dept. Hard to read about, and wishing it was all fiction, but I'm sure it is truth. An important piece of history that should be widely read for its history as well as its ramifications playing out in police community relations today

"Darktown" was riveting. The plot centers around the first black police officers to join the Atlanta Police Department in 1948. Needless to say, the racism that permeated the department made it almost impossible for them to do their job. Intertwined with the historical aspects of this time is a murder, which adds to the" I can't put this book down" feeling.
This book is great for a book club discussion!

In this historical mystery set in 1948, the city of Atlanta hires its first black police officers. They are not allowed to work out of the same building as their white colleagues, based instead in a makeshift precinct in the basement of the Negro YMCA. Their police powers are limited, but when a young black woman is found dead and no one else seems to care, officers Smith and Boggs initiate an investigation that puts them and others in grave danger. This is a beautifully written and powerful novel addressing issues that still resonate today.

When I first received this book for review, I was a little leery of it. I decided to give it a shot, and I'm really glad I did. The story starts out a little slow, building on each of the characters and their backgrounds, but it picks up very quickly. The story was even more interesting because the setting is Atlanta, and all of the streets mentioned are very close to where I currently live. I felt like I could picture the scenes even better.

The racism mentioned in the book stays very true to how things were in the 1940s. I felt that Mullen described the actions as they actually were, and as heartbreaking as it was to read, it was incredibly enlightening. Not only is Darktown a great crime novel, but it is also a story about this history of this country and how far we have come.

I truly enjoyed reading Darktown and would highly recommend it to friends. It is not a typical book that I would read, as I generally read more YA, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I would recommend this novel for those who enjoy historical fiction and crime novels. Thank you NetGalley and Atria for sharing this novel with me!