 The Gods of Gotham
by Lyndsay Faye Fiction / 432 pages / Hardcover Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam
March, 2012 Dear Reader, The Gods of Gotham is the story of the first cop on the first organized beat in New York City, set during the strife-torn summer of 1845 when the Great Irish Famine began. I started with just that simple a concept: Day One, Cop One. Origins resonate with me -- beginnings are powerful myth making, and I wanted to do justice to the formation of the thin blue line. I hope that reading about the ways politics, religious bigotry, immigration concerns, and poverty intersected in the nineteenth century will cause people to reflect on the ideas that shape our country. But to be honest, that's all secondary. This book is at heart about the choices good people are forced to make when confronted with the ugliest sorts of circumstances. It's a tale of a courageous man who, having lost everything, finds an avocation and a cause. What can I say? I'm a sucker for hero stories. So for me, The Gods of Gotham is actually about Timothy Wilde and his relationships with his brother and the woman he adores rather than being about crime. I don't want to go so far as to say the murder investigation is incidental, on the contrary. But what's important to me isn't the series of circumstances, but rather the way they reveal character and break Tim's heart and change his perspective and turn him into a different person. This book combines history and mystery, yes -- but in essence it's a story about both complicated and uncomplicated love. And I very much hope my readers enjoy it. Cheers to you, Lyndsay Faye LYNDSAY FAYE IS GIVING AWAY 5 COPIES OF THE GODS OF GOTHAM. ENTER TO WIN A COPY. About The Gods of Gotham:
1845. New York City forms its first police force. The great potato famine hits Ireland. These two seemingly disparate events will change New York City. Forever.
Timothy Wilde tends bar near the Exchange, saving every dollar and shilling in hopes of winning the girl of his dreams. But when his dreams literally incinerate in a fire devastating downtown Manhattan, he finds himself disfigured, unemployed, and homeless. His older brother obtains Timothy a job in the newly minted NYPD, but he is highly skeptical of this untested "police force."
One night while returning from his rounds, Timothy runs into a little slip of a girl not more than ten years old -- dashing through the dark. . . covered head to toe in blood.
The girl spins wild stories, claiming that dozens of bodies are buried in the forest north of 23rd Street. Timothy isn't sure whether to believe her or not, but, as the truth unfolds, the reluctant copper star finds himself engaged in a battle for justice that nearly costs him his brother, his romantic obsession, and his own life.
Reviews of The Gods of Gotham:
"The Gods of Gotham is a wonderful book. Lyndsay Faye's command of historical detail is remarkable, and her knowledge of human character even more so. I bought into this world in the opening pages and never once had the desire to leave. It's a great read!"
-Author Michael Connelly
"It's been almost twenty years since Caleb Carr's bestselling Olde New York crime novel, The Alienist, was published, and I've just stumbled on one of the worthiest successors yet. Lyndsay Faye's novel, The Gods of Gotham."
-Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air
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