A review by heyimaghost
The Conjure-Man Dies: A Harlem Mystery: The First Ever African-American Crime Novel (Detective Club Crime Classics) by Rudolph Fisher

5.0

I love the way he writes. He's extremely clever--sometimes too clever for me--and very witty. Going in to this, I wasn't expecting it to be as funny as it was. I was drawn in by the mystery of the main story and also by the short story included at the end, but I have to say the conclusion to both was just not nearly as satisfying as I expected. My copy contains both The Conjure-Man Dies and John Archer's Nose. I finished the short story standing in my kitchen and just started shouting 'What!?' My girlfriend was alarmed. It came out of nowhere. It was the same with The Conjure-Man Dies. I feel like the endings could've been better, but the writing prose deserves five stars. I don't usually like American authors, though I'm kind of coming around on that. I also don't usually go for this time period, but also, coming around on that. It's all about finding the right authors and the right novels. I highly recommend this novel.