The Gods of Gotham

Starred review from January 16, 2012
Set in 1845 New York City, Faye’s knockout first in a new series improves on her impressive debut, Dust and Shadow (2009), which pitted Sherlock Holmes against Jack the Ripper. As Irish immigrants pour into the city, fleeing the potato famine in their homeland, Timothy Wilde, a 27-year-old former bartender, adjusts to life as a policeman in New York’s newly formed police force. As one of the first to wear the copper star, Wilde soon discovers more than one unwelcome surprise. In short order on his lower Manhattan beat, he runs across an infanticide and the body of a 12-year-old Irish boy whose spleen has been removed. The investigation the novice detective launches into the boy’s murder brings him deep into the heart of human darkness. Vivid period details, fully formed characters, and a blockbuster of a twisty plot put Faye in a class with Caleb Carr. Readers will look forward to the sequel. Agent: Erin Malone, William Morris.

Author Lyndsay Faye tells how the effects of the potato famine in Ireland spill into the busy streets of New York City in 1845. That was the year the booming city's police force was created, in part to control its masses of immigrants. Narrator Steven Boyer immerses himself in the character of newly appointed police officer Timothy Wilde. Faye's dark and detailed story recounts the hardships both the Irish and Americans faced in that tumultuous period. Boyer is gripping and emotional in his portrayal of the array of rich characters Wilde encounters on his mission to solve grisly crimes against Irish orphans. When the story is at its darkest, Boyer is at his best, striking just the right balance between disgust and courage as multiple crimes unfold and Wilde's world unravels. S.C. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine