Bluebird, Bluebird (A Highway 59 Novel, 1)
A thrilling novel about the explosive intersection of love, race, and justice from a writer and producer of the Emmy-winning Fox TV show Empire. "In Bluebird, Bluebird Attica Locke had both mastered the thriller and exceeded it." --Ann Patchett When it comes to law and order, East Texas plays by its own rules--a fact that Darren Mathews, a black Texas Ranger, knows all too well. Deeply ambivalent about growing up black in the lone star state, he was the first in his family to get as far away from Texas as he could. Until duty called him home. When his allegiance to his roots puts his job in jeopardy, he travels up Highway 59 to the small town of Lark, where two murders--a black lawyer from Chicago and a local white woman--have stirred up a hornet's nest of resentment. Darren must solve the crimes--and save himself in the process--before Lark's long-simmering racial fault lines erupt. From a writer and producer of the Emmy winning Fox TV show Empire, Bluebird, Bluebird is a rural noir suffused with the unique music, color, and nuance of East Texas. "Heartbreakingly resonant" --USA Today
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Community Reviews
So, I’ve been going through my to-read list, especially the stuff that's been on there a long time. I had added bunch of really weird stuff (even by my standards and I'm pretty weird anyway) back in 2020 that was a bunch of dystopian, futuristic stuff and even a bunch of zombie stories. ZOMBIE STORIES??? I HATE zombie stories!!! I hate cult stories too and I had a few of those on my list too. It all had me asking myself what the hell I was thinking back then? Oh yeah! A global pandemic that killed millions of people. Anyway, after cleaning out a bunch of crap, I discovered this one that had been on my to-read list since Nov2021.
The book summary is pretty vague so let me make it a little clearer. The primary storyline is Darren’s investigation of two murders in east Texas that an FBI friend of Darren’s believes has the stink of a cover up for a hate crime by the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) – the killing of a black, Chicago lawyer, Michael, along with a second death of a white woman, Missy, who happens to be married to an ABT wanna-be. Most of the story revolves around Darren going to Lark, TX to investigate the murders and to find out if it was an ABT hit. All the while, the white, racist townspeople make it very clear that Darren is not welcomed there and if he doesn’t leave, he’s going to end up the same way a lot of other black men in that town have already ended up. Michael’s wife, Ronni, a photojournalist, is also down there (from Chicago) trying to find out what happened to her husband and she and Darren often butt heads on how to go about finding out what happened to her husband.
There are secondary storylines like the one where Darren is on suspended leave because of his connection to a murder case of an ABT member, Malvo, who was also a federal informant. Malvo also had a run-in a few days earlier with a Darren’s friend, Mac, a law-abiding, 70yr old, black man. Mac pulled a gun on Malvo, when Malvo trespassed onto Mac’s property to stalk and harass Mac’s granddaughter. There is another secondary storyline of Darren coming to terms with the problems in his marriage as well as in his relationship with his estranged mother.
It's well into the second half that all the leads in Darren’s investigation began to wrap up into a huge, stinking pile of racist entitlement crap. The end comes really quickly after that in a really weird ending. For most of the story, this was a solid 3star read, although the ending was kind of underwhelming. After checking out the second installment, I’m vacillating on whether or not I will add the second one to my to-read list. Reading a story about the racist Trump administration and it’s racist, MAGA nut groupies does not appeal to me in the least. Once again, I HATE cult stories. Besides, while I liked Darren, I didn’t like the rest of his family, especially his mother, uncle and wife.
This story is reflective of so many towns, not just in Texas or the south, but across the country where racist, white supremacist groups terrorize and harass not just black communities, but any community who doesn’t support white supremacy. The small town police in this story are reflective of the places where racist law enforcement agencies do absolutely nothing to stop the white supremacists and are often the perpetrators and the ones who cover up the crimes against innocent people of color as well as anyone else who rages against the injustice of it all in an effort to end the injustice. This story illustrates so many places across this country that have absolutely refused to evolve from the days of Jim Crow because they truly believe that was when America was great and that the country needs to regress back to that horrible kind of country again.
The book summary is pretty vague so let me make it a little clearer. The primary storyline is Darren’s investigation of two murders in east Texas that an FBI friend of Darren’s believes has the stink of a cover up for a hate crime by the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) – the killing of a black, Chicago lawyer, Michael, along with a second death of a white woman, Missy, who happens to be married to an ABT wanna-be. Most of the story revolves around Darren going to Lark, TX to investigate the murders and to find out if it was an ABT hit. All the while, the white, racist townspeople make it very clear that Darren is not welcomed there and if he doesn’t leave, he’s going to end up the same way a lot of other black men in that town have already ended up. Michael’s wife, Ronni, a photojournalist, is also down there (from Chicago) trying to find out what happened to her husband and she and Darren often butt heads on how to go about finding out what happened to her husband.
There are secondary storylines like the one where Darren is on suspended leave because of his connection to a murder case of an ABT member, Malvo, who was also a federal informant. Malvo also had a run-in a few days earlier with a Darren’s friend, Mac, a law-abiding, 70yr old, black man. Mac pulled a gun on Malvo, when Malvo trespassed onto Mac’s property to stalk and harass Mac’s granddaughter. There is another secondary storyline of Darren coming to terms with the problems in his marriage as well as in his relationship with his estranged mother.
It's well into the second half that all the leads in Darren’s investigation began to wrap up into a huge, stinking pile of racist entitlement crap. The end comes really quickly after that in a really weird ending. For most of the story, this was a solid 3star read, although the ending was kind of underwhelming. After checking out the second installment, I’m vacillating on whether or not I will add the second one to my to-read list. Reading a story about the racist Trump administration and it’s racist, MAGA nut groupies does not appeal to me in the least. Once again, I HATE cult stories. Besides, while I liked Darren, I didn’t like the rest of his family, especially his mother, uncle and wife.
This story is reflective of so many towns, not just in Texas or the south, but across the country where racist, white supremacist groups terrorize and harass not just black communities, but any community who doesn’t support white supremacy. The small town police in this story are reflective of the places where racist law enforcement agencies do absolutely nothing to stop the white supremacists and are often the perpetrators and the ones who cover up the crimes against innocent people of color as well as anyone else who rages against the injustice of it all in an effort to end the injustice. This story illustrates so many places across this country that have absolutely refused to evolve from the days of Jim Crow because they truly believe that was when America was great and that the country needs to regress back to that horrible kind of country again.
I enjoyed reading most of this like I enjoy watching an episode of any good crime drama. I never got super attached to any of the characters, but the unfolding of the mystery was engaging. The ending - both the “answer” to the mystery and the author’s/protagonist’s analysis of it’s meaning - deepened my appreciation for this story. I want to read more by Locke, and will definitely pick up the next in this series once it is available.
Attica Locke’s Bluebird, Bluebird didn’t just pull me in—it snatched me into a chokehold and refused to let go. From the first page, I was caught in the slow burn of her storytelling, the thick tension of East Texas heat, and the quiet urgency that pulses through every chapter. This isn’t just a mystery; it’s a reckoning.
At the heart of it all is Darren Mathews, a Black Texas Ranger grappling with identity, duty, and history. He’s a man caught between worlds—between law and justice, family and self, silence and truth. Locke writes him with such emotional complexity that I felt like I was living inside his struggle, watching him try to carry the weight of generations on his back.
What sets Bluebird, Bluebird apart isn’t just the plot, though the mystery is beautifully layered and satisfying in its revelations. It’s how Locke wraps racial history, cultural tension, and the ache of the South around every character and scene. She doesn’t flinch, and neither can we.
This book doesn’t let you read it casually. It asks for your full attention, challenges your assumptions, and lingers in your thoughts long after the final page. I found myself rereading passages not because I missed something, but because I wanted to stay there a little longer, to sit in the discomfort and beauty she crafted so masterfully.
Bluebird, Bluebird has me in a literary chokehold, and honestly? I’m not ready to be released.
Content warning for violence, murder, racism, hate crime, and related topics. I liked pieces of this novel, and overall it was an enjoyable crime mystery. I hadn't known anything before about the Texas Rangers, and now I know lots of things! I liked the characters in this novel, I think that was the high point for me. They were all dimensional, even the bad guys. What didn't work as well for me was the pacing. I think it was meant to be a fast-paced, action/adventure feel, but there were some things that slowed it down for me. I liked the conclusion, but I kind of rolled my eyes when it ended with such a dramatic secondary plotline cliffhanger.