It's late summer, 1972, up in California's redwood forests. They seem a "safe and wondrous place," but some of Evergreen's population is growing pot up in the trees and others are bent on stealing it. Then there's the coming folk festival, a jamboree bringing in musicians, fans, war protestors--a ferment of flower power (the local hippies), raw power (the local biker gangs, notably the Cossacks), and the power of the law (local and federal). Skirting the edges are shades of the Manson Family and the Mexican Mafia.

Clifford Hickey, scheduled to perform a guitar gig at the festival before trucking off to law school, arrives at his brother Alvaro's peaceful woodland campsite. And within moments Alvaro, combat trained, is faced with six armed men in badges crashing the camp, and runs. Clifford, surprised, is arrested and brutally cuffed, so brutally he fears for his hands. He then learns that a young man, one of the sheriffs' nephews, has just been murdered. Alvaro is the posse's quarry.

Sohere's Clifford, on the brink of adult life, pitched into not just a murder but what develops into a duel between the Hickeys--for his father and mother soon drive up--and the law, between the Hickeys and the Cossacks--who seemingly have their own agenda for Alvaro and, between the Hickeys and the locals, and finally between the Hickeys and their own past.

Ken Kuhlken won St. Martin's Best First Private Eye Novel contest for the first Hickey family case, The Loud Adios.

"Kuhlken revisits the Hickey family in a tale as sensitive and heartfelt as it is action-packed...The often violent, paradoxically principled Tom Hickey debuted in 1991, when Kuhlken won St. Martin's Best First Private Eye Novel award, for The Loud Adios. Lying fallow hasn't hurt the Hickeys, who've only become more in"trospective and complex...Crime, punishment and

redemption. Kuhlken's best." — Kirkus (August 28, 2006)

"Set in 1972, Kuhlken's fourth mystery to feature the endearing Hickey clan (after 1994'sThe Angel Gang ) follows 22-year-old Clifford Hickey, an aspiring folk singer, as he takes one last stab at a music career before heading to USC law school at the urging of his father, former cop and PI Tom Hickey, the eccentric protagonist of the first three books in the series. Clifford plans to perform at a jamboree in Evergreen, a small town in California redwood country, but shortly after he arrives at his half-brother Alvaro's camp in the woods, the cops storm the site. Alvaro escapes, but Clifford is taken into custody. Later, Alvaro is charged with the murder of a sheriff's nephew, and Clifford must try to prove his brother's innocence in a town filled with vengeful bikers, suspicious locals, crooked cops, rogue federal agents and pot-growing hippies. Kuhlken brings the social and cultural scene of the period vividly to life.(Nov.)" -Publishers Weekly

"It is 1972, and Clifford Hickey, who is about to go to law school to please his father, wants one last chance to live his dream by performing at Big Dan's folk music festival in the redwoods forest of Evergreen, CA. As he arrives at his brother Alvaro's remote campgrounds, police storm the camp to arrest Alvaro for the murder of an officer's nephew. Alvaro escapes leaving Clifford to unravel the identity of the real killer in this fourth tale about the Hickey family (after The Loud Adios, The Venus Deal, and The Angel Gang). Only Ava, a "Jesus freak," and Clifford's ex-cop father can help him piece the clues together. Kuhlken draws colorful characters-biker gang

members, hippies, and small town law enforcement-in a world where marijuana profits and music rule. A compelling storyline with the right amount of suspense will keep readers guessing. Recommended for all collections. The author lives in California." --Library Journal

"Kuhlken (The Loud Adios, 1991) is back with another tale of the Hickey family. Although father Tom has retired from investigating, his son, Clifford, inadvertently finds himself trapped doing some sleuthing of his own. An amateur guitarist, Clifford, on his way to law school, is scheduled to perform at a folk festival in Evergreen, California. It is the summer of 1972, so the area is full of hippies, war protesters, marijuana farmers, and outlaw bikers. Clifford is supposed to meet his brother, Alvaro, a combat-trained veteran who served in Vietnam, at his campsite. An armed sheriff's posse interrupts their reunion, and Alvaro vanishes into the woods. The sheriff arrests Clifford, who later learns that someone has murdered the sheriff's nephew, and Alvaro is the prime suspect. Trapped in a battle between the law, rival biker gangs, the locals, and his own family, Clifford has an intricate puzzle to solve. Readers will enjoy this tale, which captures the history and atmosphere of 1970s California as well as the complex dynamics of a fascinating family." --Booklist

Clifford Hickey, scheduled to perform a guitar gig at a music festival, arrives at his brother Alvaro's peaceful woodland campsite, and within moments their camp is stormed by armed men who arrest the brothers for murder. Soon they are pitched into not just a murder but a duel between the Hickeys and a motorcycle gang, and the locals.