Shadows in the Smoke

It is 1949. London has endured the war but is plagued by hardship. The Smoke remains tarnished with shattered, abandoned buildings and bombsites. It is a world fueled by coal and driven by steam. Soap is still on ration; fresh meat of any kind is as well. Butter on the black market costs thirty shillings a pound. Life's little luxuries-be it bed sheets or pantyhose or tins of peaches-have the scarcity value of the Crown Jewels. It's the perfect backdrop for Jethro-honest Cockney cat burglar, jewelry thief extraordinaire, womanizer, and rogue-to redistribute the wealth of the upper classes. The day after thieving jewels from a mansion, headlines scream that the very man Jethro robbed was found dead after falling from the balcony of his home. It's deemed a homicide when the jewels are discovered missing, and Jethro sets off on a search through London's dark underworld to find out who is trying to frame him. Driven by a caustic, unforgettable voice, Shadows in the Smoke is a wonderfully entertaining and evocative read that touches upon police corruption at the very highest levels and the politics of London.