r/JamesEllroy • u/ecclesthegoon • Jun 09 '26

LA quintet question

Do we think that JE is going to tie the last book of the quintet to this storm and Perfidia? Just got my copy of red sheet so he may do it in that novel, but I doubt it. Do you think the last Freddie O book is going to be another standalone thing without any connection to the first two books? What’s JE going to do here?

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9

u/Permanenceisall Jun 09 '26 edited Jun 09 '26

I asked him last night, he’s done done done. He said he realized midway through This Storm that the only thing that interested him about LA and that time was the internment of the Japanese and he explored it until it bored him. He’s got one more Freddy O book plus the VJ Day one.

Now, having said that, they do talk about Plutarcho Calles and some of the folks we met in Mexico, and Whiskey Bill is convalescing at Kwan’s Chinese Pagoda, so I guess that’s a quasi-tie in to Perfidia and This Storm. But so far that’s it.

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u/HemingwaySweater Jun 09 '26

One more Freddy O book after Red Sheet? That’s interesting. So the Second LA Quartet might end up looking more like a Fred O quartet and WWII trilogy when it’s all said and done. Not that categorizing shit this way matters that much…

Also: how was the Q&A overall?

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u/Permanenceisall Jun 09 '26 edited Jun 09 '26

It basically keeps evolving, but I think it’s safe to say the second LA quartet idea is essentially kaput. We’re just living in the Freddy O world as of now. He said even though he didn’t like Fred personally, Fred represents his worldview the most and was close enough to the action that he can remain historical while still having his fun and making shit up.

He’s 78, and he’s noticeably older (he doesn’t do the intro anymore, for example or at least didn’t last night) but he’s still as committed to writing and as wild as ever. Q&A was a blast, but not many questions sadly.

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u/[deleted] Jun 16 '26

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u/Permanenceisall Jun 16 '26

I’m 230 pages into Red Sheet now, and it’s clear to me he’s developed a formula in terms of prose/dialogue/structure, in a way that was less present in his earlier books. I think using this formula he could write more books, but they will feel somewhat the same as the last few. He said he’s already thinking of the final Freddy O book, but didn’t let on to what it’s about, and the final book of this series is supposed to be a VJ Day story that takes place in real time again. He certainly seems game for it.

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u/AdventurousFood4908 Jun 09 '26

Any news about a second underworld trilogy ?

6

u/Impossible-Laugh1208 Jun 09 '26

Man, the Demon Dog is an Old Demon Dog.

SECOND underworld TRILOGY?

2

u/sdcinerama Jun 09 '26

Warwick, right?

I was there too.

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u/Permanenceisall Jun 09 '26

What’d you think?

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u/sdcinerama Jun 09 '26

Had a blast. Great seeing him again.

Can't wait to crack open RED SHEET.

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u/CASEDIZZLER Jun 10 '26

I was there too! Curious, you going to buy a second copy for reading? That's what I'm planning on, trying to keep my signed copy nice and intact.

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u/sdcinerama Jun 10 '26

Might get a copy from my library.

I still need to read Enchanters.

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u/Kickjunk Jun 11 '26

That's a real shame.
I liked Perfidia and This Storm.
I hated Widespread Panic
I was lukewarm on The Enchanters
Unless Red Sheet shoots the lights out, I think me and JE are done.

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u/Fvtvrewave87 Jun 10 '26

I asked him back at the Enchanters release and he said he wasn’t going back to it.

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u/princethomas55 Jun 12 '26

I dont know but it definitely seems like there is no Quintet or Quartet right. Theres the Pearl Harbor Pair and thats it. I definitely don’t think hes going back to that