The Underbelly

Description

Magrady is a semi-homeless Vietnam veteran searching for a wheelchair-bound friend who has gone missing from Skid Row: a friend who might be involved in a dangerous scheme against major players. Magrady's journey is a wild tour where the flashback-prone protagonist must deal with the impact of gentrification, take-no-prisoners community organisers, an unflinching police officer from his past in Vietnam, an elderly sexpot who is chasing him, a lusted-after magical skull and the perils of chilli-cheese fries at midnight.

Gary Phillips is the author of Bangers, The Jook, and Violent Spring. He is a former union representative and south central Los Angeles community organizer. He lives in Los Angeles.

"Honesty, distinctive characters, absurdity and good writing are here in Phillips's work." --Washington Post "Magrady's adventures, with a distinctive noir feeling and appreciation for comic books, started as an online, serialized mystery. Drawings and an interview with Phillips enhance the package, offering a compelling perspective on race and class issues in South Central L.A." --Booklist "Phillips writes some of the most earnest and engaging crime noir currently being written." --Spinetingler