Fire Knife Dancing

Det. Apelu Soifua risks losing his career-and his life-in a case that exposes the dark heart of American Samoa, from the author of Pago Pago Tango. Long before he was a cop, Apelu Soifua performed as a fire knife dancer during his teen years in San Francisco. The Polynesian dance troupe was headed by Ezra Strand and his wife, who now live in a secluded house on the cliffs between the ocean and the jungle in Piapiatele. The elderly Ezra has once again been caught discharging a firearm, and Apelu must confiscate the weapon. He never expects Ezra to turn the shotgun on him . . . After uncovering what appears to be a smuggling operation in Ezra's house, Apelu heads to Western Samoa to investigate. He returns home with a list of women who immigrated to the American territory-and were never heard from again. When fingers start to point at Apelu and he becomes the main suspect in the murder of a prostitute, he turns to Ezra's beautiful and mysterious neighbor for help. With Apelu branded a fugitive, they begin their own search for the truth, which unveils the evil and greed hidden behind the public masks of those in high places . . . "Enright does a superb job of showing the fine line that Apelu must walk between the two very different cultures of American Samoa and the United States." -Kittling: Books