1923. Home from the China Fleet, Ed Murry finds Southern Illinois still reeling from the bloody Herrin Massacre and subsequent trials. Little Egypt is now caught in the battle between bootleggers and the Ku Klux Klan. Meanwhile, Ed is caught in his own personal battle between loyalty to hometown sweetheart Pearl Dauherty and fun-loving flapper Nora O'Brien.
Will Murray's first full-length novel is set against the backdrop of a world in flux, Dixieland jazz, and shootouts in Bloody Williamson County.