It is the summer of 1840--for some in New York City a season of prosperity; for others, another season of desperation. This is the milieu of "On Night's Shore," an amazing literary thriller from an author hailed by the "New York Times Book Review" as "a masterful storyteller." Randall Silvis's "On Night's Shore" opens with one of the most spellbinding scenes in contemporary writing. A girl tosses her baby from a warehouse window, then follows the infant into the Hudson River far below. The only witness to this desperate act ...
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It is the summer of 1840--for some in New York City a season of prosperity; for others, another season of desperation. This is the milieu of "On Night's Shore," an amazing literary thriller from an author hailed by the "New York Times Book Review" as "a masterful storyteller." Randall Silvis's "On Night's Shore" opens with one of the most spellbinding scenes in contemporary writing. A girl tosses her baby from a warehouse window, then follows the infant into the Hudson River far below. The only witness to this desperate act is a ten-year-old street arab named Augie Dubbins, a boy who survives by the motto, "In calamity, opportunity." Augie does what he can to make a few pennies from the girl's tragedy. In doing so he encounters another of the desperate ones, a struggling young journalist named Edgar Allan Poe, a poet and critic and newspaper hack whose penchant for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time has not only stymied his advancement as a writer but has earned him more than a few enemies. Poe, too, hopes to use the girl's misfortune to fatten his threadbare purse. His efforts to do so lead to the discovery of the body of yet another young woman, and the ensuing investigation of her murder soon entraps Poe in a mire of murder, greed, lust and power that stretches from the Five Points slums to the gleaming heights of Fifth Avenue. But On Night's Shore is much more than just a page-turner. Here we see deep into the troubled psyche of Edgar Allan Poe, the father of all detective stories. We see the darkness that drove him, the demons that plagued him. We also see the tenderness with which he treated his young wife, soon to die herself, and his devoted, stalwart mother-in-law, and the avuncular kindness he lavished on Augie Dubbins, who in ten short years has witnessed more brutality and perversity than even Poe could imagine. And we see all of these characters entwined in the tentacles of a power struggle to control the fate of New York City, the sleazy underbelly of a political and business elite that speaks as much to today's society as it did to Poe's. Seldom does an historical thriller so authentically recreate a time and place as does "On Night's Shore." Not since E. L. Doctorow's Ragtime have readers been treated to such a rich cast of qlcharacters, both real and imagined, or to a story so suspenseful and compelling-all of it rendered in some of the most luminous prose being written today. In this, his eighth book of fiction, Randall Silvis brilliantly bridges the gap between serious and popular literature. "On Night's Shore" is a stunning and haunting achievement.
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Add this copy of On Night's Shore to cart. $2.17, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Reno rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Reno, NV, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by St. Martin's Press.
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This is a used book in good condition and may show some signs of use or wear. This is a used book in good condition and may show some signs of use or wear.
Add this copy of On Night's Shore: a Novel to cart. $2.79, very good condition, Sold by HPB-Emerald rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Minotaur Books.
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Add this copy of On Night's Shore: a Novel to cart. $4.00, good condition, Sold by Montclair Book Center rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Montclair, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Minotaur Books.
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Shows some light wear from age and use. Interior is good with sound binding and no marks, damage or labels. Thanks for your business! Your satisfaction is guaranteed!
Add this copy of On Night's Shore: a Novel to cart. $4.95, fair condition, Sold by ABC Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Springfield, MO, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Minotaur Books.
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Add this copy of On Night's Shore: a Novel to cart. $29.27, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Minotaur Books.
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Used: Good. Size: 4x1x6; Prompt shipment, with tracking. we ship in CLEAN SECURE boxes Contemporary Fiction; Good mass market paperback; some stain to edges; tear bottom edge fromnt cover; slight crease to spine and/or cover; tips bumped; clean pages; prompt shipping with tracking.
Add this copy of On Night's Shore: a Novel to cart. $59.60, new condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Minotaur Books.