"The action is slapstick, preposterously violent–Hieronymus Bosch meets Miles Davis."
–Walter Kirn,
The New York Times "One of the most important American writers of the 20th century.... A quirky American genius."
–Walter Mosley
"For sheer toughness it's hard to beat the black detectives Coffin Ed Johnson and Grave Digger Jones. Himes never received the recognition he deserved for his books–they combine elements of George V. Higgins, Elmore Leonard, and Richard Stark, with a bleak vision all their own."
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The Washington Post "Himes's Harlem detective series ... are remarkable for their macabre comic sense and wicked and nasty wit."
–Ishmael Reed,
Los Angeles Times