'Midnight Blue' Brings Child Exploitation and Sordid Police Corruption Front and Center in Bold New Crime Novel

Authors Tracy L. Moore and Keith D. Hinton, Sr. illuminate a gritty, urban landscape through the lens of personal experience.

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) February 6, 2008 -- With an unflinching gaze, "Midnight Blue" takes an authentic, often stunning look at life on New Jersey's mean streets through the eyes of a world-weary, principled cop named Khalil Petersen. The stage is set for Petersen's perilous journey when, on a bitterly cold New Year's Eve, he finds the corpse of a 15-year-old runaway who had been savagely raped and murdered on the streets of East Orange.

In the tradition of HBO's "The Wire," where street heroes and villains shapeshift with each new lead, this compelling crime/romance novel intricately weaves Petersen's determination to give voice to the voiceless---through the mysterious, tragic runaway he calls "Baby J"---together with his campaign against corruption in his precinct. In death, Baby J manages to lead Petersen through a cavernous underworld of crime and child exploitation. The trek ultimately brings Petersen face-to-face with his own ethos and character, as he takes on bad police long embroiled in practices the "good old boys" consider a perk--sexually abusing women in custody. When Petersen's former friend and love interest, Athena Gibson, arrives on the scene with uncanny ties to Baby J, Petersen learns he is not alone in his quest for justice.

"Midnight Blue" is an inspirational work of suspense and intrigue depicting ordinary people who triumph in extraordinary ways. The recently published Suspense/Romance paperback is available worldwide on such book retailer websites as Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Target, among others.

Originally, "Midnight Blue" was promoted as a work of fiction. Recently, however, the authors revealed that the book was largely born of their own real-life experiences, a fact they could not legally divulge prior to the novel's publication.

The character of Baby J is based on author Tracy L. Moore's daughter, and the story is told from the perspective of a mother who lost her child to the streets after she was raped at little more than the age of 12, by someone she knew. Unlike Baby J, Moore's child survived the ordeal. Moore has since emerged a child advocate for teen runaways, victims of rape, and domestic violence, and uses her literary voice to speak out for those who fall victim to shrewd street predators and pimps who prey expertly on kids at risk. Moore acknowledges that this cycle of violence is a phenomenon which has reached epidemic levels in virtually every major American city. From her home on the East Coast, Moore discusses her reasons for setting the record straight.

"Initially, I said this was a work of fiction to protect my daughter," said Moore. She's young and rebuilding a life after having been raped by someone in our neighborhood." As is common with victims of rape, juveniles in particular, they are often ridiculed by their peers and find themselves unable to cope with the myriad of feelings that surface in the aftermath. Moore's daughter eventually ran away for three years before she was found at age 16 in a Florida juvenile detention center.

"In order for the healing to take place for myself and others who have gone through similar situations," continued Moore, "I needed to tell my story from the point of view of a Mom who refused to believe that her child she was dead. There were times when I would hear my daughter crying, and all I could do was pray that someone would be kind to her." Moore has plans for several more books on the subject.

After 22 years in New Jersey's East Orange Police Department, including 12 years as a sergeant, Hinton also felt compelled to speak out against the egregious conduct in his own department. Having made his decision to go public, Hinton found himself exposed to personal threats and a climate of fear and loathing: "I wanted people to know what's going on in many police departments all over the country," says Hinton, "because I believe the American public has no idea of the extent of criminality that actually goes on." Hinton said that he became a target of an intense smear campaign, adding, "If it could happen to me, it could happen to anybody."

In separate interviews, both Moore and Hinton revealed how the victims of juvenile crimes are often victimized yet again by the very institutions they turn to for protection.

Born in Kansas, Tracy L. Moore is a poet and author who has been writing since the age of eight. Keith D. Hinton, Sr. is now a retired police sergeant. The two met at the University of Miami 27 years ago. Upon their reunion, they decided to collaborate on documenting their challenging journeys for public benefit resulting in their first novel "Midnight Blue."

To contact Tracy L. Moore, please visit www.outskirtspress.com/midnightblue

For more information on Los Angeles-based Media Specialist and Journalist, Suzanne Marcus-Fletcher, please contact Ravenridge@socal.rr.com

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