Review

“A compelling mystery tale that vividly evokes a dark, rich period in Kansas City's past.”—Rick Atkinson, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942–1943

"Rick Serrano stalks his grandfather's killer through the pages of Kansas City's often lurid and whiskey-soaked history. A corrupt sheriff, a conspiracy of silence, and the ghost of old John Barleycorn confront Serrano as he pursues a mission that, for him, is both emotionally fraught and professionally challenging. A terrific read."—Arthur Brisbane, Former Editor and Publisher of the Kansas City Star and author of Arthur Brisbane's Kansas City

“Rick Serrano proves one more time that he’s an excellent reporter, this time in the minefield of family. He takes us on a fascinating journey through history, not the rose-colored glasses sort you hear from Uncle Fred but the gritty kind you have to dig out of tattered old files and dusty records. Along the way we meet a series of colorful characters from Harry S Truman and Boss Tom to a walking-addicted wino and a 300-pound deputy sheriff without a clue. In the end Serrano uses the search for his grandfather’s murderer in a corrupt county jail to shed new light on Kansas City’s dark side, which, like it or not, is a big part of our heritage.”
—Robert Unger, Professor of Journalism at the University of Missouri–Kansas City and author of The Union Station Massacre: The Original Sin of J. Edgar Hoover's FBI

About the Author

Richard A. Serrano, former reporter for the Kansas City Times and former Washington correspondent for the Los Angeles Times, is author of One of Ours: Timothy McVeigh and the Oklahoma City Bombing. He lives in Fairfax, Virginia.