I have so few auto-buy authors these days. I used to have many, but one by one I drop them when the stories turn predictable and the writing stale. One actually died, but anyway...
Ellroy is heavy reading, and his dirty staccato style is what makes the scenery come alive. If you've glommed the rest of his catalog you know several players here - Perfidia is a prequel of sorts to his other series. It begins just before the attack on Pearl Harbor with the murder of a Japanese family in LA. Throughout the investigation the story peels away layers to reveal corruption within the police force, sympathies for opposing forces, and a lot of bad language. Ellroy doesn't write rainbows and unicorns.
The only problem I have with Ellroy's books is I have to go back and read the others again to jar my memory. One day I'll sit and have a good binge.
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