Echoes of a Distant Summer

July 8, 2002
Set in 1982, this marvelously entertaining sequel to Johnson's well-received first novel, Standing at the Scratch Line, continues the mythic saga of King Tremain, a knife- and gun-wielding Prohibition-era Robin Hood. Leaving a bloody trail of corpses from the bayous of Louisiana to New York and San Francisco, King's fight for survival against overwhelming odds offers a deeply affecting metaphor for black America's struggle for dignity and rights in the 20th century. The sequel picks up with San Francisco civil servant Jackson Tremain being summoned to the deathbed of his estranged grandfather, former mob-enforcer King, who has spent the past 28 years exiled deep in Mexico after being framed for the murder of white cops in San Francisco. Jackson flies to Mexico just in time to learn that he is the heir to a $50 million fortune. Returning to the Bay Area, Jackson learns that contracts are already out on his life from enemies determined to claim the fortune, and soon both he and his girlfriend are imperiled by King's old nemesis, bayou crime patriarch Pug DuMont, who's in cahoots with Bay Area mafiosi. Secret treasure, gang wars, voodoo, illegitimate heirs, damsels in distress—in the hands of a lesser writer, this would be cheap pulp fiction, but the gifted Johnson gives sweep and emotional resonance to the action-packed hijinks. (Aug.)Forecast:Johnson's bio unabashedly reminds readers that the writer is the son of Maya Angelou, which shouldn't hurt sales—but Johnson acquits himself well in his own right.

March 1, 2002
Having triumphed with Standing at the Scratch Line, Johnson returns to tell more tales about the Tremain family here shaken by the assassination of tough old grandfather King Tremain.

Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2002
King Tremain is dying in his stronghold in Mexico and wants to see his grandson and heir once more to transfer his wealth, his power, and his vendettas. Finally giving in to his grandfather's manipulations after 20 years of estrangement, Jackson Tremain makes the journey from San Francisco. Their reunion triggers old emotions and sparks in Jackson and a reluctant admiration for the old man, a hustler who has amassed an enormous fortune and powerful enemies, overcoming the restrictions typically suffered by black men of his generation. When Jackson's girlfriend is taken hostage by his grandfather's enemies, Jackson discovers that the old man's ruthless instincts lie just below the surface. He enlists the aid of a multicultural array of friends and allies in a bloody and dangerous rescue mission to Mexico. This is a fast-paced saga of violence, revenge, and redemption that ranges across three generations, and across the U.S and Mexico.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)