Soultown: 8a Whitney Logan Mystery

Lambert's sequel reunites naive white lawyer Whitney Logan and bristly Latina Lupe Ramos in a fast-paced, emotionally moving story set in the multicultural heart of Los Angeles. Less than a year after their adventure in Dogtown, Whitney waits for Lupe to finish her sentence for soliciting an undercover vice cop. Teaming up, they go to Koreatown to find Kim, a woman who has been caring for Lupe's son. Arriving at Kim's godmother's house to pick up the boy, they witness the shooting of the godmother's sister by a masked man who steals a black and gold box. The godmother explains that the box contains money contributed by a group of friends who award it to the winner of their yearly lottery. Whitney reluctantly agrees to question the group and determine which of them arranged for this year's $75,000 to be stolen. With Lupe acting as secretary, the two inexperienced gumshoes immerse themselves in the Korean-American community, tracking the thief among the old-order recreation clubs and hot-springs baths to the new entrepreneurs and civic leaders. Harsh urban realities lead to a number of deaths before the case ends. Lambert has a sympathetic eye for troubled souls who don't quite measure up to their own expectations or those of their culture, but her prose and characterization are overwrought and simplistic, a grating combination. (July)