It continues the story of the character Papa LaBas introduced in Reed's previous novel, 1972's Mumbo Jumbo.

"[3] The Last Days of Louisiana Red, which has been described as a "HooDoo detective story and a comprehensive satire on the explosive politics of the '60s",[4] set amidst the racial violence of Berkeley, California.

[5] The story follows investigator Papa LaBas as he tries to figure out who murdered Ed Yellings, the proprietor of the Solid Gumbo Works.

In the story, Labas finds himself fighting the rising tide of violence propagated by Louisiana Red and the militant opportunists, the Moochers.

Eventually, Labas learns that the murder has been a conspiracy to dethrone the Gumbo business because Ed was trying to create medicine that would stop heroin addiction.