The Demise of Luleta Jones

The Demise of Luleta Jones is that rare work where the literary novel and the mystery intersect, presenting an aspect of African American life that all-too-often is hidden from view. Set in Chicago, Illinois, and Nashville, Tennessee, The Demise of Luleta Jones, on its surface, is a whodunit in which investigative reporter Theophilous Pugh is obsessed with uncovering the facts surrounding the mysterious death of an enigmatic public school teacher from a newly gentrified neighborhood. Beneath the surface, however, is a scathing portrayal of the dire consequences that gifted African Americans often suffer when they violate their community's narrow conventions.