Saint of the Narrows Street

(Paperback)

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Acclaimed author William Boyle, who has come to be known as the 'crime poet of Brooklyn', follows the lives of two sisters who become embroiled in an accidental murder and a well-planned cover-up.

'William Boyles best novel yet, a vibrant, operatic tale of two resilient, big-hearted sisters and the fateful night that sets their life on a path they never intended. Not since Richard Price has a writer brought New York to such vivid, spectacular life' Megan Abbott, New York Times bestselling author of Beware the Woman

Gravesend, Brooklyn, 1986: Risa Franzone lives in a ground-floor apartment on Saint of the Narrows Street with her bad-seed husband, Saverio, and their eight-month-old baby, Fabrizio. Risa is a loving mother, a faithful wife, a saintly neighbour - but lately, her husbands slow dive into criminality and abuse has threatened her peace, raising concerns about her and her babys safety.

On the night her younger sister, Giulia, moves in with Risa to recover from a bad break-up, a fateful accident occurs: Risa, boiled over with anger and fear, strikes a drunk, erratic Sav with a cast-iron pan, killing him on the spot.

The sisters are left with a choice: notify the authorities and make a case for selfdefense, or bury the mans body and go on with their lives as best they can. In a moment of panic, in the late hours of the night, they call upon Savs childhood friendthe sweet, loyal Christopher Chooch Gardinito help them, hoping they can trust him to carry a secret like this.

Over the vast, dramatic expanse of the next eighteen years, life goes on in the working-class Italian neighbourhood of Gravesend as Risa, Giulia, and Chooch grapple with the choice they made that nightand each forge a different path when the cracks of a supposedly seamless cover-up begin to reveal themselves.

Reviews

'The stunning Saint of the Narrows Street is William Boyles best novel yet, a vibrant, operatic tale of two resilient, big-hearted sisters and the fateful night that sets their life on a path they never intended. Not since Richard Price has a writer brought New York to such vivid, spectacular life, and Boyles southern Brooklyn is all his own: a neighborhood pulsing with hard-earned humor, dive-bar pleasures and thunderous heartbreak.' Megan Abbott, New York Times bestselling author of Beware the Woman

'You dont read a William Boyle novel as much as you inhabit his intricately drawn world. Saint of the Narrows Street is on par with the best of Pete Dexter, Richard Price, and William Kennedy. This is a tour de force, knockout book; an immediate classic that will stay with you long after you finish the last perfect chapter.' Ace Atkins, New York Times bestselling author of Dont Let the Devil Ride and The Heathens

'A new William Boyle novel is always cause for celebration, and Saint of the Narrows Street might be his best work yet. A novel brilliant in structure and in its study of the long-term effects of a single violent crime. Ambitious in scope and impossible to put down. Boyle is that rare writer who is able to walk the line of social commentary and crime thriller' Willy Vlautin, author of The Horse, The Night Always Comes, Lean on Pete, and The Motel Life

'Saint of the Narrows Street is a hundred-proof shot of tragic love. Nobody writes like William Boyle. Every character has a huge thumping heart. You can smell the skeevy bars and taste the home-cooked lasagna. Boyle deals in details, but this is a big, epic novel, and its his best yet' Eli Cranor, Edgar Award-winning author of Dont Know Tough

Author Bio

William Boyle is from Brooklyn, New York. His debut novel, Gravesend, was published as #1,000 in the Rivages/Noir collection in France, shortlisted for the Prix Polar SNCF, nominated for the Grand Prix de Litterature Policiere and shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey New Blood Dagger. Boyle is also the author of the Hammett Prize-nominated The Lonely Witness (No Exit Press), a book of short stories, Death Don't Have No Mercy and another novel, Tout est Brise, released in France by Gallmeister. A Friend is a Gift You Give Yourself was published to enormous praise, it was an Amazon Best Book in 2019. He lives in Oxford, Mississippi.