Forgers

From critically acclaimed novelist Bradford Morrow comes a richly told literary thriller about the dark side of the rare book world. The bibliophile community is stunned when a reclusive rare book collector is found on the floor of his Montauk home: hands severed, surrounded by valuable inscribed books and manuscripts that have been vandalized beyond repair. In the weeks following the victims death, his sister, Meghan, and her lover—a sometime literary forger whose specialty is the handwriting of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle—struggle to come to terms with the murder. The police fail to identify a likely suspect, and the case quickly turns cold. Soon, Meghans lover begins to receive threatening handwritten letters, ostensibly penned by long-dead authors but really from someone who seems to have disturbing insights into Adams death. Understanding that his own life is in jeopardy, he attempts to forge a new beginning for himself and Meghan. But he may not be able to escape his vengeful stalker.

“An excellent suspense novel. . . . Bradford Morrow is, quite skillfully, paying homage to one of Agatha Christies most famous whodunits. Yet even then, he offers a few twists of his own and will keep all but the most astute mystery aficionado guessing about the truth until the end.”—Washington Post

“From its provocative opening line . . . Bradford Morrows latest novel takes on a knowing, noirish tone, like a crime movie by the Coen brothers. . . . The pleasure of reading The Forgers comes not only from trying to figure out what happened to Diehl but also in deciding, chapter by chapter, how much trust to grant the narrator, who is our only source.”—Miami Herald

“The Forgers is quintessential Bradford Morrow. Brilliantly written as a suspense novel, lethally enthralling to read, and filled with arcane, fascinating information—in this case, the rarified world of high-level literary forgery.”—Joyce Carol Oates

“Bradford Morrows The Forgers is a bibliophiles dream, an existential thriller set in the world of rare book collecting that is also a powerfully moving exposé of the forger's dangerous skill: what happens when you lie so well that you lose touch with what is real? In beautifully controlled prose, Morrow traces the shaky line between paranoia and gut-intuition, memory and self-delusive fiction, hollow and real love. It's perfect all-night flashlight reading—Bradford Morrow at his lyrical, surprising, suspenseful, genre-bending best.”—Karen Russell, author of Vampires in the Lemon Grove and Swamplandia!

“The Forgers is remarkable. Bradford Morrow is remarkable. The Real Thing, which is rare on this earthly plane.”—Michael Cunningham, author of The Hours and The Snow Queen

“Like the love child of Edgar Allan Poe and Arthur Conan Doyle . . . delightful to read.”—NPR.com

“Bradford Morrow illuminates the seamy side of the rare-book trade in The Forgers.”—Vanity Fair

“In The Forgers, Bradford Morrow hits the sweet spot at the juncture of genre crime fiction and the mainstream novel with an almost mystical perfection. Readers of either form will be gratified and impressed, and those who are readers of both will be thrilled. In its deep knowledge of books and those who trade in them, and in its thousand vivid, unexpected turns of phrase—its depth of both subject and language—The Forgers could have been written only by Morrow and at only the rare and striking level of mastery he has now achieved.”—Peter Straub, author of A Dark Matter and Ghost Story

“[A] consistently unnerving mystery. . . . An ambience of old-fashioned gothic suspense that bibliophiles in particular will enjoy.”—USA Today

“With The Forgers, Bradford Morrow has masterfully combined an exquisitely thickening plot, an informed appreciation of the antiquarian book world, and a deep understanding of what makes the obsessive people who inhabit this quirky community do the sort of impassioned things they sometimes do, up to and including the commission of horrific crimes. Morrow has hit the ball out of the park—The Forgers is a grand slam, in the bottom of the ninth, to boot. This is a bibliomystery you will want to inhale in one sitting.”—Nicholas Basbanes, author of A Gentle Madness and On Paper

“The Forgers . . . stuns from its first line. . . . Morrow offers a suspenseful plot that coexists with gritty characters and ominous imagery.”—Fine Books Magazine

“[An] artfully limned suspense novel. . . . The insights Morrow offers into the lure of collecting, the rush of forgery as a potentially creative act, and underlying questions of authenticity render the whodunit one of the lesser mysteries of this sly puzzler.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“The Forgers is a readers dream: intelligently written, with beautiful details paid to the use of inks and stationary, pen pressures and hand flourishes. Bradford Morrow has created in Will a character rich in criminal indignation.”—Bookreporter

“As Morrow pulls back the curtain to reveal the murky world of book sellers and buyers and ushers readers into the mind of a forger for whom falsifying the perfect signature is a thrill, he also draws us deeper into the puzzle . . . Morrow writes with a sure, clear voice, and his prose is lush and detailed. . . . Recommended for readers who enjoy atmospheric literary thrillers such as Caleb Carrs The Alienist.”—Library Journal

“Will, the narrator of Morrows seventh novel, is a fine creation. . . . A pleasurable study of the lives of book dealers. . . . Morrows well-researched passages on the collectors art meshes well with Wills romantic longueurs about the life of fakery he left behind.”—Kirkus Reviews

“So well written, The Forgers will take some time to finish as readers might want to reread every sentence.”—Jean-Paul Adriaansen, Water Street Books, Indie Next selection

Bradford Morrow is the author of seven novels and a short story collection. He is the founding editor of Conjunctions and has contributed to many anthologies and journals. A Bard Center Fellow and professor of literature at Bard College, he lives in New York City.