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The Genius

The Genius Hardback - 2008

by Kellerman, Jesse

  • Used
  • Fine
  • Hardcover
  • first

The sinister and provocative thriller fromcrime writing's freshest new voice.

Ethan Muller is struggling to establish his reputation asa dealer in the cut-throat world of contemporary art,when he stumbles onto a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity:in a decaying New York slum, an elderly tenant named VictorCracke has disappeared, leaving behind a staggeringly largetrove of original artwork. Nobody can say anything for certainabout Cracke, except that he came and went in solitude fornearly forty years, his genius hidden and unacknowledged.All that is about to change.

So what if, strictly speaking, the art doesn't belong toEthan? He can sell it and he does just that, mounting a wildlysuccessful show. Buyers clamor. Critics sing. Museums are interested,and Ethan's photo looks great in The New York Times.Then things go to hell.

Suddenly the police want to talk to him. It seems that VictorCracke had a nasty past, and the drawings hanging in the MullerGallery have begun to look a lot less like art and a lot more likeevidence.

Is Victor Cracke a genius? A murderer? Both? Is therea difference? Sucked into an investigation four decades cold,Ethan will uncover a secret legacy of shame and death, one thattouches horrifyingly close to home.

Kellerman's tight, assured prose is electrifying, exhilarating,and compulsively readable. Part confessional, part philosophicalinquiry, Stop is the detective novel reimagined likenever before.

Description

G.P. Putnam's Sons. Hardback. Fine/Fine. 2008. Hardback. Fine. First Edition. First Print. Dust jacket is protected with a Mylar cover. Books are packed and shipped in boxes.
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Details

  • Title The Genius
  • Author Kellerman, Jesse
  • Binding Hardback
  • Edition First Edition
  • Condition Used - Fine
  • Pages 374
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher G.P. Putnam's Sons, New York
  • Date April 10, 2008
  • Bookseller's Inventory # 3144
  • ISBN 9780399154591 / 0399154590
  • Weight 1.28 lbs (0.58 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.32 x 6.52 x 1.24 in (23.67 x 16.56 x 3.15 cm)
  • Ages 18 to UP years
  • Grade levels 13 - UP
  • Library of Congress subjects Mystery fiction, Psychological fiction
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 2008005810
  • Dewey Decimal Code FIC

Summary

The sinister and provocative thriller from crime writing's freshest new voice.Ethan Muller is struggling to establish his reputation as a dealer in the cut-throat world of contemporary art when he stumbles onto a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: in a decaying New York slum, an elderly tenant named Victor Cracke has disappeared, leaving behind an enormous trove of original artwork. Nobody can say anything for certain about Cracke except that he came and went in solitude for nearly forty years, his genius hidden and unacknowledged.All that is about to change.So what if, strictly speaking, the art doesn't belong to Ethan? He can sell it—and he does just that, mounting a wildly successful show. Buyers clamor. Critics sing. Museums are interested, and Ethan's photo looks great in The New York Times.And that's when things go to hell.Suddenly the police are interested in talking to him. It seems that Victor Cracke had a nasty past, and the drawings hanging in the Muller Gallery have begun to look a lot less like art and a lot more like evidence.Is Cracke a genius? A murderer? Both? Is there a difference? Sucked into an investigation four decades cold, Ethan will uncover a secret legacy of shame and death, one that touches horrifyingly close to home.Kellerman's tight, assured prose is electrifying, exhilarating, and compulsively readable. Part confessional, part philosophical inquiry, The Genius is the detective novel reimagined like never before.

Categories

Media reviews

'Greed gets Ethan Muller, a 33-year-old Manhattan art dealer, into hot water in Kellerman's superb third stand-alone thriller (after Trouble). When reclusive artist Victor Cracke disappears, Muller winds up taking possession of the boxes and boxes of intense, disturbing drawings that Cracke left behind in his shabby Queens apartment. A favorable New York Times article helps fuel lucrative sales at an exhibit of Cracke's drawings at Muller's Chelsea gallery. Soon, though, Muller starts to receive cryptic, vaguely threatening letters. He also hears from a retired NYPD detective, Lee McGrath, who recognizes the face of one of the boys in a Cracke drawing as belonging to the victim of a 40-year-old unsolved murder. That revelation turns Muller into an amateur detective as he attempts to discover how the dead boy's image along with those of several other victims made its way into the pictures. Kellerman has a gift for creating compelling characters as well as for crafting an ingenious plot that grabs the reader and refuses to let go.'
Publisher's Weekly (starred review)

Praise for TROUBLE

'Disturbingly and deliciously different, altogetherperfect for our times.'
Los Angeles Times

'A thriller so tightly wired that the reader'sself-control shatters.'
The Baltimore Sun

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