It is 1891 in San Francisco. The Examiner is in competition with the Chronicle for largest circulation. The Examiner is owned by William Randolph Hearst and Ambrose Bierce is one of its most well-known writers. Tom Redmond is new to the news game but determined to make a name for himself, which he is doing due to a number of the ‘stunt journalism’ stories he is involved in. The story is told by Tom.

A story had been written, earlier, about the importing of young girls from China who are then put to work as slaves and prostitutes. Tom is doing a follow-up story and is introduced to Miss Lindley, a young woman who is involved in rescuing these girls and giving them better lives. Through Miss Lindley, to gets a real look at what is happening, and he also learns of pornography that goes on among the elite of the Sausalito yachting crowd. There may be a link between the two worlds.

When it looks that there could also be a connection between the Sausalito group and a blackmailing attempt on Hearst’s mistress, things get very interesting. With Bierce’s notoriety and connections, Tom finds himself investigating the thin threads that may link the Chinese girls’ situation and the Sausalito activities to the blackmail.

The writing is good and the pace is smooth and the dialogue is crisp and entertaining. Another great read back in time. ( )

Oakley Hall is better known for more literary works like Warlock, but his series of historical mysteries featuring Ambrose Bierce should not be missed.

If you do not know about Ambrose Bierce, then stop reading this and get a copy of The Devil’s Dictionary and then get a copy of Tales of Soldiers and Civilians. To say that he had a “sardonic view of human nature” as Wikipedia does is probably a bit too sunny. Think Mark Twain in his later days, but with the humor still intact.

Anyway, it’s 1891 and Bierce and our narrator Tom Redmond are working for Willie Hearst’s San Francisco Examiner. When some naughty photographic plates of Hearst’s girl go missing, they are dispatched to find and retrieve them. Two murders in Sausalito seem connected with the missing photo plates and the general debauchery rampant in town across the bay from the City.

Hall also takes a poke at one of the darkest dark sides in American history. Redmond is covering Chinatown and its child slavery and prostitution and falling in love with the religious activist Eliza Lindley. The tong, of course, hate Lindley and take steps to stop her – when they aren’t too busy fighting one another. Lindley’s ally and successful lawyer “falls” down a staircase and breaks his neck. Redmond is on the spot when “highbinders” from the Feng yups tong assassinate the leader of the Sam yups in a scene that rings very true.

I disagree with other reviewers here, in particular that the plot is predictable – if anything, I would give demerits for the improbability of the way the story lines are tied together. And while Redmond is the main protagonist, Bierce is certainly more than a “very minor” character.

Ambrose Bierce and the One-Eyed Jacks is an entertainment worthy of attention even if it does not rise above the level of its genre. ( )