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Abstract: Crime represents for James Ellroy as much the center piece of his works as does his autobiography. The recurrent theme of this article is the analysis of the distance covered by the author, surpassing delinquency, alcoholism and drugs to produce a literary work so unique and in a style so different. He is ten years old when his Mother dies; she was the victim of a crime that was never to be resolved. Forty years later, the author tries in vain to solve the enigma of her assassination, a journey which leads him to a better understanding of her personality. It''s in his autobiography "My dark places" first and foremost a work of mourning that he accomplishes the elaborate work of subjectivity. We will analyze as well the family galaxy and the disturbing relationship that James Ellroy had with his parents, illustrated through the memories of his childhood. In the end we will analyze the history of the author of the Black Dahlia and his literary production in the light of the theory by N. Abraham and M. Törok. We will re-read the myth of Orpheus which will enable us to be more precise when following the road of mourning taken by Ellroy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]