Author: Walter Mosely

Genres: Fiction/Mystery/Suspense/Thriller/AA Fiction /Historical Fiction

Rating: ⭐️

Summary: Easy Rawlins is running a detective agency in Los Angeles. He faces danger from his past when he is approached by Santangelo Burris about finding his mother, Lutisha James. Not only is she in trouble and on the run, but so is his son.

Tropes & Themes: identity and hidden secrets; race and power; legal corruption.

Character: I didn't have a favorite character in the book. However, I do love how Easy was very street smart. He seemed to have a high deference with those from his past and I love the relationships that he established with others over the years.

Thoughts: First, I wanted to read this book because I had heard so many great things about his novels. This was my first Walter Mosely book, and I was truly excited. The book started off great as I felt as if I had an understanding of the plot. I felt as if I would be led into a climax with continuing the story but that did not happen. It seemed to be multiple stories, plots and storylines for each character and chapter of the book. After reading about 51%, the author still not had found the person he was supposed to be looking for but instead, he continued to find that his family and Lutisha's family were in trouble. In the same way, it felt a bit rushed, and the details of the story just didn't align with how the book started off. Moreover, I found it hard to connect with any character as there were just too many in the storyline. I really felt that all these characters were a bit unnecessary, which made their roles irrelevant. Furthermore, details of the book were rushed, and relationships were also being established that had no background context.

On the other hand, I did love how Easy had a great relationship with those in the community. He seemed to be well respected in the community, which was demonstrated throughout the book. With that being noted, the author's writing structure was great. The storyline and plot were great as well, but the execution of a page turner was not there for me. I really wanted to DNF at 51% but I wanted to give this book a chance to climax, but it never did. The book was extremely boring, but I am willing to try another Walter Mosely novel.

Interesting characters, mystery, suspense, action, plot twists--it's all here in an another enjoyable Easy Rawlins title by Walter Mosley. The gang's all here-including Mouse and Fearless Jones--and a few new characters I think we haven't seen the last of. I loved how the story reflected the historical times and the urban strife of Los Angeles in the 70's. Mosley's urban-tinged prose never disappoints. Great book, one of Mosley's best Easy Rawlins novels. Will surely buy the physical copy upon its release and read it again as well as post my review on various outlets.

Five stars! Highly recommended!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a sneak peek.

Walter Mosley’s “Gray Dawn” was an eye opener for me! I’ve rarely read crime or detective fiction but I am so thankful that there are more than a dozen more books out there to keep Ezekiel ‘Easy’ Rawlins alive. To see Los Angeles through the eyes of a Black detective and his extensive catalogue of friends, relatives, and potential adversaries is to also gain a new perspective - - on life in a big city, on life for a Black man who is also a war veteran, on people unlike those I have ever met. Though a good deal of the narrative is through dialogue, using spoken street language, cop talk, and the like, Mosley’s descriptive language is evocative and beautiful. It is easy for readers to picture both squalor and opulence equally well. If all of Walter Mosley’s books are as thrilling and thoughtful, I am indeed to be treated to some satisfying reading ahead!

Gray Dawn is classic Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins by Walter Mosley. Easy takes a case from a rough looking man who pays with greasy cash. The job is to find the man’s mother. The case brings surprises and lost loves. The story moves slowly, but it is so satisfying. The writing is beautiful. Enjoy!

Well written, attention-grabbing and intricately plotted. I hadn’t read an Easy Rawlings novel for a long, long time, so I found the multitude of characters a little hard to follow at times (many recurring characters and relationships from earlier novels interwoven into the complex web of the story). I may have to go back and read some of the earlier works to fully appreciate this one.

This is the 17th book in the Easy Rawlins series and from where I stand it was simply the best of all of them. This series started back in 2010 with Devil in a Blue Dress that takes place at the close of WWII. Gray Dawn is set in the 70s and LA was hopping.
Easy is getting on in years and now owns a successful detective agency, a gated mountaintop home with assorted pets and family members.
Easy is approached by a young man that says he needs to get his aunt Lutisha James to call his grandmother. Before it is all over, characters from most of the Easy Rawlins series make an appearance. Old hand Fearless Jones is onboard during this deadly hunt for Lutisha Jones who as it turns out, is well known to all by a different name.
Things get dicey and very complicated and before you know it, bullets are flying and bodies are dropping at an alarming rate.