Three weeks out of cancer surgery, crime reporter Syeeda McKay is in the pursuit of Los Angeles's most active serial killer. Over the last twenty years, the Phantom Slayer has hunted African-American prostitutes working in one of the worst parts of South Los Angeles, killing eight victims in the alleys off Western Avenue, and then disappearing into the shadows. But Syeeda doesn't know that the killer has turned his sights on her.
Detective Adam Sherwood, a hotshot investigator with the Robbery-Homicide Division of the LAPD, has been handed the Phantom Slayer cases, and together, he and Syeeda must figure out who is doing the killing . . . before Syeeda becomes his next victim.
Rachel Howzell Hall was born and raised in South Los Angeles. An avid reader and lover of books, she received her B.A. in English and American
Literature from the University of California at Santa Cruz. She is the author of a new mystery series featuring Elouise 'Lou' Norton.
In 2002, Rachel's first novel, A Quiet Storm, was published by Scriber to great notice, including reviews from O Magazine and Publishers Weekly,
with a starred review from Library Journal. A Quiet Storm was also a featured selection for Borders' Original Voices program, as well as an
alternate selection for Black Expressions book club. She published her second novel, The View from Here, in November 2010.
The author received rave reviews for her debut title, A Quiet Storm:
"Insightful and emphatic, first novelist's Hall's portrayal of bipolar disorder and its long-term effects on an African American family grabs readers from the start." Starred review from Library Journal.
"The author portrays mental illness (including the denial of it) with realism and sensitivity, but what really sets this novel apart is Stacey's lively
narration, which crackles with dark humor, wisdom and self-deprecation."
Publishers Weekly
"Sibling rivalry and devotion and the pressures
that can tear apart a family--and a fledgling marriage--are the
subjects of this urgent first novel by a promising African-American
writer." Oprah Magazine