Synopses & Reviews
In the sweltering summer of 1841, Mary Rogers, a popular tobacco shop counter girl, is found brutally murdered in the shallows of the Hudson River. John Colt, scion of the firearm fortune, beats his publisher to death with a hatchet. And young Irish gang leader Tommy Coleman is accused of killing his daughter, wife, and her former lover. Charged with solving it all is High Constable Jacob Hays, whose investigation will span a decade, involving gang wars, grave robbers, and clues hidden in poems by the hopeless romantic and minstrel of the night, Edgar Allan Poe.
Synopsis
In the sweltering New York summer of 1841, five people are found brutally murdered. At the center of it all is High Constable Jacob Hays, the young city's first detective and the novel's "likeable, crusty narrator" (Time Out New York). His investigation spans years, involving gang wars, graverobbers, and clues hidden in poems by that hopeless romantic and minstrel of the night: Edgar Allan Poe.
The Blackest Bird is a gripping and atmospheric historical thriller of murder and deceit in nineteenth-century New York.
Synopsis
"Irresistibly seductive. ... Murder mystery, historical novel, portal to another time; is a masterpiece."--Anthony Bourdain
Synopsis
"Irresistibly seductive. ... Murder mystery, historical novel, portal to another time; The Blackest Bird is a masterpiece."-Anthony Bourdain
About the Author
Joel Rose is the author of Kill the Poor, Kill Kill Faster Faster, and New York Sawed in Half. He founded the literary magazine Between C&D and lives in New York City and on the Jersey shore.