SOURCE: Review of Fear Itself, by Walter Mosley. Publishers Weekly 250, no. 24 (16 June 2003): 54.

In the following review, the critic argues that the partnership between Paris Minton and Fearless Jones in Fear Itself should appeal to fans of Mosley's previous crime-fighting duo, Easy Rawlins and Mouse Alexander.

In [Fear Itself,] this eagerly anticipated follow-up to Fearless Jones (2001), Watts bookstore owner Paris Minton and the dangerous but principled Fearless Jones tread the familiar territory mapped so successfully by Mosley's original detecting duo, Easy Rawlins and Raymond “Mouse” Alexander. The author depicts 1950s Los Angeles with his usual unerring accuracy, but a somewhat different dynamic drives his heroes. When Fearless drags the reluctant Paris into helping him look for Kit Mitchell (aka the Watermelon Man), their quest turns quickly murderous. Timid bookworm Paris gets caught in a deadly game of hide-and-seek whose players deal in lead, money and lies and include members...