SOUTHERN MAN by Greg Iles

(1320 John A Quitman Blvd, Natchez, MS 39120, USA)

A 963 page novel that weighs quite a bit is a tall task for any reader. Can it maintain your interest? Is it worth the time and effort involved in digesting it? Apart from the fact that the publisher, William Morrow, Inc. has employed the cheapest paper possible in the production process leading to torn pages and other issues the answer is a resounding yes. The book I am alluding to is Greg Iles’ latest Cage Penn novel, SOUTHERN MAN. The effort continues the story of Mr. Penn that cemented his character portrait in Iles’ NATCHEZ BURNING trilogy and CEMETERY ROAD. Once again set in what Phil Ochs used to sing about in “Here’s to the state of Mississippi” in the 1960s, the cities of Natchez and Bienville emerge as the dominant localities for another Iles’ epic.

Iles’ casts a wide net in his story. We renewed our acquaintance with Penn fifteen years following the conclusion of the previous novel. The author does a marvelous job of bringing the reader up to speed and filling in the gaps of what occurred during the previous decade or two. This allows the book to be read as a standard–alone; but it is more satisfying if you have read the previous stories. We find Penn with a prosthetic leg as his mother is dying of cancer, and his daughter Annie, a civil rights attorney, wounded at a concert that was a demonstration against police violence after a 12 year old black boy is killed by police in Memphis. Further, Penn is obsessed with learning how his father died in the infamous Parchman Prison and how he had hoped to rescue him from the gang violence and corruption that existed all the way to Jackson, the state capital.

The storyline is very timely as issues of third party candidates, dissatisfaction with Donald Trump, racial hatred and violence fostered by white supremacists, and the fears for the loss of democracy are all present. A civil war is a possibility as a “supposed” radical black group refuses to accept the murders, illegal police actions, and the “good old boy network” that seems to still dominate the south decides to fight back. Another storyline centers on a former Army Special Operations Sergeant, Robert E. Lee White who gained notoriety as part of the team that captured and killed Abu Nasir, an al-Qaeda leader in a 2008 raid in Afghanistan. Lee, dubbed the “TikTok candidate” has energized the youth of America and other age groups and hopes to be elected president over the Democratic and Republican candidates.

(Mississippi lynching)

The story pits black vs. white, states rights vs. federal power, and the survival of democracy pitted against a fascist threat. As Iles proceeds his historical knowledge from 1960s rock n’ roll, the civil rights movement, to political crusades is impeccable. Ile’s inventive mind has placed America on the eve of a possible civil war and anarchy and contains many of the elements of our current political and racial state of affairs.

Iles offers an alternative scenario for the 2024 election relying on white anger and white panic. The story begins with a rock concert serving as the basis for a demonstration against police violence. The venue is Missionary Hill and after a noise complaint Tenisaw County Sheriff deputies mishandle the situation resulting in the killing of close to thirty people, women and children among them, all black. Known as the Mission Hill Massacre, Iles set the stage for the violence, paranoia, and political opportunity that follows.

At this point we learn that at age 38 Penn was diagnosed with myeloma, an obscure blood disorder that his mother, Peggy Cage has just passed from which impacts his behavior throughout the novel. Though Penn dominates the novel, other characters play important roles. One of the key actors is Robert E. Lee White, a man who on the surface is a war hero, successful podcast radio host, and an aspiring politician who hopes to use the massacre at Mission Hill as the starting point of his political campaign. Iles carefully teases the reader as to what White’s plans are to enhance his candidacy, however his true colors emerge as the story progresses. High on his list of tactics include assassination, befriending Penn and his daughter Annie. Further, he manipulates Charles Dufort, probably the richest man in Mississippi, Donny Kilmer, an extremely violent redneck, Sheriff Buck Tarleton, militia leader Shotwell Barlow, Martyn Black, a gamer and drone operator who happens to be White’s cousin, and most importantly the racial situation in southwest Mississippi.

White has an important personal problem he must overcome. First, he is gay and his former lover Charlot Dufort, the son of a wealthy father who refuses to help him out of drug and gambling induced debt. Second, Tommy Russo, the leading organized crime figure in Bienville and Natchez is also a loan shark that has Charlot in his crosshairs. Three, Corey Evers, his right hand man and lover who witnesses White’s sexual liaison with Sophie Dufort, the daughter of Charles Dufort. If the public learns of White’s past sexual proclivities his campaign is finished.

(Author, Greg Iles)

A number of characters stand in White’s way apart from Penn. His daughter, Annie Penn, a civil rights lawyer at first trusts White then she witnesses his true colors. Marshall McEwan, the owner and editor of the Natchez Daily newspaper, the Watchmen. Andrew McKinny, a black historian who wants to restore Penn’s home, Pencarrow, as a monument to slavery and how it affected blacks during the 19^th century. Dan Kelly, a former Delta Special Forces operative and close friend of Penn. Kenrick Washington, a black veteran, town guide, and college student who emerges as a hero at Mission Hill.. Nadine Sullivan, bookstore owner, former attorney who might be in a relationship with Penn. All play important roles in the novel.

Iles’ uses White’s strategy as one story line. The second rests upon the violence that has been taking over Bienville since the massacre. Third, the attempts of the Poker Club and white supremacists to take over county government and strip Bienville, run by blacks of their governmental powers. Former southern plantation mansions are being burnt to the ground including Pencarrow, the home Penn purchased for his dying mother. The question is who was responsible. Was it black radicals bent on revenge calling themselves “the Bastard Sons of the Confederacy,” or was it a false flag operation by white supremacists supported by the Sheriff’s office or the members of the Poker Club, made up of the political elite in the area. Third, Iles constructs a mini novel within the larger story. He successfully integrates the background history of southwest Mississippi during the pre-Civil War era. Applying the research conducted by Peggy Cage the last years of her life as she tries to determine the truth of her family’s lineage. She is able to link Barlow’s and Pencarrow with her family through diary entries, interviews and other primary materials which will result in undercutting what Penn and his mother believed their entire lives. Penn always wondered about the 1861 lynchings that killed 50 slaves and tortured many more only a few miles from his childhood home-was he in some way related to the men who committed these murders? Iles creates numerous twists and turns and is able to expertly tie all of these threads together in creating an amazing tale.

Fear and rage dominate the novel similarly to today’s political and racial occurrences. The murder of Mayor “Doc” Berry, seen as Bienville’s reincarnation of Martin Luther King by a redneck sheriff contributes to the emotional undercurrents of rage. The popularity of another hero, Kendrick Washington provides White with a literal target to boost his popularity. The actions of Ray Ransom, a Vietnam veteran who did time as a convict at Parchman but reformed his life by working with disadvantaged children, and friend of Penn are further characters enveloped in the racial storm throughout the novel.

The racial unrest and violence and political machinations that Iles portrays will keep the reader on the edge of their seats as he manipulates your emotions as you react to the story line with nothing getting lost in the shuffle. The book is terrifying because of its plausibility as Iles captures the tinderbox that is America today. It is an expertly crafted political and racial thriller which reverberates with our current world, and you should not let the book’s length deter you – it is quite a ride and worth getting aboard.