Solomon's Vineyard

First written in 1941 but banned from publication in the United States until 1988, this hard-boiled mystery covers such unsavory but potent topics as grave-robbing, religious cults, kinky sex, and whorehouse violence. In this classic noir novel, a private eye from St. Louis, who likes his steak rare, his liquor hard, and his women fallen, arrives at the small town of Paulton to protect his wealthy client's daughter from a suspicious religious cult. Throughout the span of the case, he confronts Paulton's mob boss, avenges his partner's death, and falls for a classic femme fatale named Princess.