Fear Itself
A Fearless Jones Novel
By Walter Mosley

     Fearless Jones and his friend Paris Minton are my type of detectives. Unlikely and seemingly thrust upon the scene, these two are meant to work together. You quickly see where there friendship blossoms. This second in the Fearless Jones series of murder/mystery/intrigue, Fear Itself, kept me on the edge of my seat until its completion. Although overly filled with lots of characters to keep track of, the pace of the story compelled me to read it to completion in less than 24 hours. The writing style of Mr. Mosley has always impressed me and drawn me in, and this was no different. As popular as Easy Rawlins is, Fearless Jones is sure to follow.

     Nothing like being awakened with a loud rap on the door to start a good mystery novel, and with the unlikely friendship forged between Fearless and Paris, Paris certainly knew what that meant. 3:30am and trouble weren't uncommon metaphors. Fear Itself jumps off on page one and through the conversations and thought patterns of Fearless and Paris, you're gripped. An innocent request bequeathed to Fearless towards the whereabouts of or locating of a missing man inflates rapidly and draws two unwilling, mostly unconnected people to its complicated vortex. Fearless, you see, could best be described as "simple." Not taken to much flash, he lived his life simply and completely oblivious to most of his surroundings. He takes life day by day and lives by simple principles. Don't mistake this simplicity for weakness, though; he didn't come by the nickname of "Fearless" just because… If an injustice was being done, you would want to be on the side of right with Fearless, for he's done reconnaissance work for Uncle Sam and killing isn't above him, yet the peaceful sleep of innocence finds Fearless every night. Paris is Fearless' most trustworthy friend, and together with intelligence and innocence they forge into a life neither of them belong in. Simply starting with a request of a desperate woman to find the father of her child mushrooms quickly into 316 pages of pure excitement.

     You will find every type of character in this book: the innocent, the scared, the wicked, the conniving, and the contrived, each with separate but intertwined agendas, masterfully unraveled by two of the most unsuspecting and dubious people ever. Enjoy reading the adventure of Fearless Jones as he stares and conquers Fear Itself.