A review by ebonyutley
The Conjure-Man Dies: A Mystery Tale of Dark Harlem by Rudolph Fisher

I didn’t know The Conjure Man Dies was the first mystery written by a black author. They had me at conjure and Harlem. I like to read the places I live, and I like to read about that mystic life so it was a no brainer. For a murder mystery, the book is incredibly funny. The dialog is witty and smart, so smart sometimes the rabbit holes are distracting, but all in all it was worth it. I spent the whole book asking “Who killed Frimbo?” And up until the last few pages there were surprises. Usually, I get to the end of a mystery or a thriller like, “yeah, okay, saw this coming,” but I honestly didn’t see this conclusion. For that, I give Fisher his props. Also his vocabulary is impressive. Rarely do I read a contemporary novel and need to look up a word, but the Conjure Man made me pull out the electronic dictionary, and I loved it. My critique is that the African stereotypes are offputting for sure and some of the escapism was farfetched, but when Fisher writes about what he knows, I trust his construction of Harlem and look forward to visiting the places he describes in present day.