House of Thieves

Starred review from June 1, 2015
In this engrossing Gilded Age novel, Belfoure (The Paris Architect) fully immerses the reader in the historical setting and the lives of the characters. John Cross and his beautiful wife, Helen, are the relatively poor relations of prominent socialite Caroline Astor. Their behavior, and their children’s, must remain impeccable if they are to maintain their precarious position as Knickerbockers (old-monied aristocrats). Their eldest son, George, a brilliant mathematician—and gambling addict—may not live long enough to start graduate school at Columbia. He owes James T. Kent, the leader of the gang Kent’s Gents, $48,000. When Kent discovers that George’s father is an architect, he spares the son and forces the father into using his skill and blueprints to help execute a series of daring burglaries. Meanwhile, middle daughter Julia, about to make her debut, is no simpering miss. A hopeful novelist fascinated by Dickens’s Oliver Twist, she plans to attend Vassar, but when she lays her eyes on a handsome pickpocket, she too begins to live a secret life. And when 10-year-old Charlie ventures out of his neighborhood, he falls in with a slightly older newsboy who grew up fast. In a delightful turn of events, John’s confession of his involvement with Kent to Helen transforms the estranged couple into a criminal Victorian version of Nick and Nora Charles. Belfoure’s sly, roguish writing opens a window to those living both gilded and tarnished lives. The architectural knowledge imparted will appeal even to those who are unable to differentiate between Queen Anne and Ikea. Best of all, Belfoure holds together each and every thread of the novel, resulting in a most memorable, evocative read. Agent: Susan Ginsberg, Writers House

Narrator Jeff Woodman just gets better and better as this complicated story, set in New York City in 1886, unfolds. To avoid scandal in an emotionally repressive society, the respectable Cross family is forced to lead double lives. This brings them, separately, to the seamier side of Manhattan, which is run by murderous, thieving gangs. When George Cross racks up an enormous gambling debt to some dangerous criminals, his father, a luckless architect, is forced to arrange several robberies at the homes of wealthy friends to pay off his son's debts. Woodman portrays John Cross with blameless charm and a hint of the illicit thrill he gets in planning the heists. Woodman sounds coolly frightening as feared gang leader Kent, and he makes all the Cross women sound completely convincing. Woodman's top-notch performance makes this audiobook fun. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine