Golden Hill: A Novel of Old New York

In 1746, a man named Smith arrives in New York City, population 7,000, in his hand, a bill for 1,000 pounds payable in New York. No one can vouch for him, and he won't explain why he needs so much money. Why should New Yorkers trust him? Smith is forced to wait 60 days for the arrival of a ship from London to verify the transfer. Thus starts this wild adventure, in the rarest of commodities, the modern-day picaresque novel: the trickster or innocent wandering through the world, digging beneath convention to unearth hidden truths about how we behave toward one another. By the novel's end, Smith has escaped lynching, lingered in prison waiting for the noose, fought a duel, and been caught in congress with—well, someone. Along the way, there is an unorthodox courtship with a young woman who gives back to Smith as much as he gives to her.