Blood and tears. Violence and mayhem. Love and hate. These were the rocks upon which the South was built. They were the foundation upon which Charon County stood.”
-- Narrator (Prologue)

Importance: In the prologue, Cosby introduces many of the novel’s central thematic concerns. He begins by describing Charon County (and the American South more generally) in terms of “blood and tears. Violence and mayhem” (2). In this way, he points towards the perpetual legacy of slavery and racism in the South; these horrendous traditions continue to impact Southern life.

Chaos was king.”
-- Titus Crown (chapter 4)

Importance: Here, Titus suggests that his traumatic encounter with Red DeCrain continues to affect his life. The experience with DeCrain remains with Titus, in part, because DeCrain personified “chaos” (33) itself. As Titus begins to investigate Spearman and the Last Wolf, he again feels the chaos that accompanies violent crime.

He also knew Jamal wasn’t going to like the answers to those...
-- Narrator (chapter 4)