Kings of New York

1920s New York was a wonderland of crooked cops, corrupt politicians, gangsters, mobsters, con men, and the occasional hood just trying to make a dishonest living. In the wilds of the urban jungle, two of the best that ever played the game have tried to hang it up and go legit, but then the dream score lands right under their noses. The Chicago outfits are sending people to New York in search of the Fat Lady, a statue that though on the surface appears to be one of the famous American artist’s lesser works, he swore on his deathbed was the jewel of his career. Nate and Ash, two unlikely friends, but perfect partners, put together a crew to hijack the job from the big families and along the way become embroiled in an escalating series of artifacts hidden within each other, hinting at a mystery that twists its way back in time to Archimedes himself. Kings of New York weaves its course between mystery, character drama and witty, often satirical comedy while mixing in some of the real life personalities that made the '20s such a fascinating time in the city’s history. Amid the colorful cast of characters are Nate, a man who has embraced all that life offers him with a Zen ease; Ash, an overly logistical overseer; Aubrey, an innocent caught up in the scheme who embraces her chance to escape an increasingly dull life; Karen, a master con who has been running a long game on New York society for years; and Denny, a stoic business-is-business hit-man who finds himself starting to long for a little human touch in his life. As they delve further back into the past, trying to figure out what the prize is that they are chasing, from an American sculpture to a Mughal puzzle box to a Roman cryptex, and finally to the last secret left behind by the great Archimedes, everyone is in on the chase, including the mob, Tammany Hall, gangs, and ruthless museums. In such a dangerous time with such a sought-after prize, who will survive to claim it in the end? Bursting with all the flavors the 1920s has to offer, Kings of New York is an adventure that takes the reader from cruelty to hilarity to mystery and keeps changing course until the end.