White Jazz

novel by Ellroy

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July 18, 2026

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White Jazz is a 1992 crime novel by American author James Ellroy. It is the fourth and final installment of Ellroy's first L.A. Quartet series, which also includes The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, and L.A. Confidential. The novels in this series are known for their examination of police corruption and sinister eras of modern American history, particularly in Los Angeles during the 1940s and 1950s. Ellroy's writing is often characterized by its noirish style and its exploration of real-life political events. The unsolved murder of Ellroy's mother when he was a child profoundly influenced his writing, leading him to explore crime and its impact in his novels.12

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James Ellroy
Confidential (1990; film 1997), and White Jazz (1992). Perfidia (2014) was the first volume in his second L.A. Quartet. The novel, which chronologically precedes the events of the earlier series, features many of the same characters and evokes a similarly penumbral view of Los Angeles. The story continues in This…
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Confidential (1990; film 1997), and White Jazz (1992). Perfidia (2014) was the first volume in his second L.A. Quartet. The novel, which chronologically precedes the events of the earlier series, features many of the same characters and evokes a similarly penumbral view of Los Angeles. The story continues in This…
Read More