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Published Sep 2015
432 pages
Genre: Thrillers
Publication Information
In 1886 New York, a respectable architect shouldn't have any connection to the notorious gang of thieves and killers that rules the underbelly of the city. But when John Cross's son racks up an unfathomable gambling debt to Kent's Gent's, Cross must pay it back himself. All he has to do is use his inside knowledge of high society mansions and museums to craft a robbery even the smartest detectives won't solve. The take better include some cash too - the bigger the payout, the faster this will be over.
With a newfound talent for sniffing out vulnerable and lucrative targets, Cross becomes invaluable to the gang. But Cross's entire life has become a balancing act, and it will only take one mistake for it all to come crashing down - and for his family to go down too.
"Starred Review. Belfoure's sly, roguish writing opens a window to those living both gilded and tarnished lives... Best of all, Belfoure holds together each and every thread of the novel, resulting in a most memorable, evocative read." - Publishers Weekly
"The plot primarily relies on exciting and suspenseful action sequences and is fairly short on plausibility, but the novel never takes itself too seriously. A pulse-raising read for historical crime and historical thriller fans." - Library Journal
"Belfoure takes a more skewed view of morals here than in his best-selling debut, The Paris Architect (2013), but he again displays a brisk prose style, well-developed plot, and interesting architectural details. Multiple murders notwithstanding, this is a roisterous, supremely entertaining adventure." - Booklist
"Charles Belfoure sees New York's Gilded Age with an architect's eye and evokes the atmosphere wonderfully." - Edward Rutherford, New York Times bestselling author of Paris: The Novel and New York: The Novel
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
An architect by profession, Charles Belfoure has published several architectural histories, one of which won a Graham Foundation Grant for architectural research. He graduated from the Pratt Institute and Columbia University, and he taught at Pratt as well as at Goucher College in Baltimore, Maryland. His area of specialty is historic preservation. He has been a freelance writer for the Baltimore Sun and the New York Times. He lives in Maryland.
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