On the eve of World War II, a murder in New York City draws two vastly different men, an American detective and a German intelligence officer, into the gathering storm.
The death of a spinster nurse killed in her apartment was one of hundreds of simple homicides, indistinguishable from any other in 1938. A suspect was caught and convicted. Then Private Investigator Fintan Dunne is lured in to the case, and coerced by conscience into unraveling the setup that has put an innocent man on death row. Following the trail takes him into a murder conspiracy of a scope that defies imagination.
Meanwhile, in Germany, with no limits to Hitler’s mania, Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, head of Military Intelligence, knows that the “hour of the cat” looms, when every German must make a choice.
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"I liked the mounting suspense and the different vantage points of major and minor players in a WWII-era scandal." — Hanna (4 out of 5 stars)
"I liked the mounting suspense and the different vantage points of major and minor players in a WWII-era scandal."
“Quinn’s novel is as much a rebuke of the systematized violence of war as it is straight-up spy thriller.”
“Two parallel plots intersect in a surprising manner in this densely written, provocative thriller. Schmidtke moves easily between German and British accents and distinguished characters easily.”
“Schmidtke’s fully voiced reading adds another dimension to this exciting story. He handles Irish, German, British accents and male and female voices with ease, and reads everything with the appropriate intonation and emotion.”
“Quinn imbues the story with a wealth of historical detail and atmosphere…This is a good choice for those who enjoy a rich, stylish period piece that…explores the fickle fate of men and nations and the destructive power of a really bad idea.”
" A rather formulaic almost mystery where the main character is a down-on-his luck private eye. Set in New York in 1938. The history was fun, but the story was kind of flat. "
" Noir ...detectives and Nazis and murder ...how can it be wrong? "
" Very enjoyable. Not unlike the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, but set in the pre-WWII New York and Berlin. "
" I didn't actually read this - I couldn't get past the first 30 pages. It was too much like a bad film noir attempt, and hopelessly boring. "
" Not good or enjoyable in the least "
" Narrated by Ned Schmidtke. "
Peter Quinn, author of the acclaimed historical novel Banished Children of Eve, previously served as speechwriter for New York governors Hugh Carey and Mario Cuomo. Currently corporate editorial director of AOL Time Warner, he lives in Hastings, New York.
Ned Schmidtke has played leading roles on Broadway, on national tours, and at dozens of regional theaters in the United States and Canada. He currently resides in Los Angeles, where he continues to work in theater, film, and television.
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