It’s 1921 and gun moll Alice has run away from her life in New York, carrying very little with her apart from a bullet wound, and finds herself a guest at The Paragon Hotel, a black hotel in Portland, OR.
Faye explores the racial tensions of Oregon at the beginning of the 20th century, starting each chapter with a shocking quote from a variety of sources that she found during her research. She takes a topic that we believe to be very Southern, the KKK, and explores what was happening in the Pacific Northwest. Spoiler: it’s shocking and upsetting. She flips between two story lines, exploring the mysteries in each. I was sucked in right away and the crazy cast of characters kept me hooked. Faye’s writing is just a joy to read.
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