The Last Fair Deal Going Down

The Sledge family faces a series of tragedies. Reuben's oldest brother is hanged for murdering his wife, another brother is committed to an asylum after spying on a woman he loves, and his sister Nellie is raped and disgraced. These events drive Reuben into deep despair and turn him against the people of Des Moines. Beneath these events exists the City—not Des Moines itself, but an inner or lower City from which no one has ever escaped. Each of Reuben's dead relatives has been claimed by the City. When Reuben learns that the woman he loves has descended into the City, he decides in a moment of panic to follow her and bring her out. His journey takes him through the City's horrors and among its inhabitants, a collection of people who have built new lives in this underworld. Originally published in 1972, David Rhodes' debut novel functions both as a lament for a disappearing generation and as an account of shared ancestry.