As a follow-up to his bestselling Little Black Girl Lost, Keith Lee Johnson takes us back into the life of Johnnie Wise, a stunning 15-year-old whose beauty is so seductive it sparked a race riot in New Orleans. Now, the riot is over, the National Guard has left, and life can begin to return to normal in the black-owned Sable Parish. For Johnnie, though, there is still some unfinished business. She has made it her mission to get to know the white side of her family, the Beauregards, and takes a job as a maid in their home, watching quietly to learn what really goes on behind the walls of their stately home. What she sees is more than she ever expected. Outside of work, Johnnie is determined to win back the love of her life, Lucas Matthews, but first she must convince him that the night she spent with ruthless crime boss Napoleon Bentley meant nothing to her. To Bentley, however, the night was unforgettable, and he will stop at nothing to have Johnnie to himself. He has set the wheels in motion to take over the New Orleans Mob, with Johnnie by his side as his willing concubine. Keith Lee Johnson weaves an intriguing tale of love, lust, deception, and power, all against the backdrop of a racially troubled 1950’s New Orleans. Johnnie Wise is a young woman readers won’t soon forget.

キース・リー・ジョンソンが描く本作の真髄は、1950年代ニューオーリンズの混沌の中で、少女ジョニーが放つ危うい輝きと権力欲の衝突にあります。自らのルーツを求めて白人家系に潜入する緊迫感は、人種とアイデンティティという重層的なテーマを浮き彫りにし、読者の魂を激しく揺さぶります。 特筆すべきは、無垢さと計算高さを併せ持つヒロインの多面的な魅力です。裏社会の野心と執着が交錯する極限状態において、彼女が示す強烈な自己主張は、人間の業を鮮烈に描き出しています。著者の流麗かつ情熱的な筆致は、残酷な運命に抗う生命の鼓動を克明に刻み、比類なき没入感を与えてくれるでしょう。