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The Gods of Gotham

by Lyndsay Faye
. 978-0-39915-837-7. Fiction
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Faye's new novel, after the Sherlockian thriller Dust and Shadow, focuses on the growing distrust toward Irish Catholic immigrants in 1840s New York. Badly scarred and rendered destitute after a city fire, barman Timothy Wilde takes a job on the newly formed police force at the urging of his politically connected older brother, Valentine. As a "Copper Star," Tim is well suited to investigation, and he stumbles on a mystery involving murdered children and one of New York's most infamous brothels. Mercy Underhill, a devoted social worker and the object of Tim's unspoken affection, is drawn into the case as she tries to protect her wards. Tim searches for answers amid political scheming, nativist sentiments, and anti-Catholic riots.
VERDICT The Wilde brothers are a valiantly flawed pair (they commit illegal acts for good reasons) whose adventures dramatically light up this turbulent era. Faye's use of flash, an underground language akin to thieves' cant (British criminal jargon), further enriches this engrossing historical thriller, the first in a new series. [See Prepub Alert, 10/2/11.]
Reviewed by Catherine Lantz, Morton Coll. Lib., Cicero, IL , Jan 01, 2012
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