The Syndicate

(Hardback)

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Description

June 1947 Eight years have passed since the events of The Pictures. Jonathan Craine has left his old life in Hollywood behind him, content to live out his days on a farm in rural California with his teenage son. But when infamous mobster and Las Vegas founder Bugsy Siegel is killed at his home in Beverly Hills, Craine is forced to face his past once again. Summoned to Las Vegas to meet mob head Meyer Lansky, Craine is given the impossible task of finding Siegel's murderers. He has no access to crime reports, no police contacts and no one to help in his investigation other than an ageing hit man and a female crime reporter with her own agenda. But Lanksy's orders aren't to be ignored; if Craine can't find Siegel's murderersin five days, he and his son will both be killed.

Reviews

When infamous mobster Bugsy Siegel is murdered, LAPD cop Jonathan Craine is summoned by the Las Vegas mafia to find out whos responsible. If he fails, he dies. Taut and atmospheric, this is an excellent classic detective novel.

* Mail on Sunday Top Books of 2018 *

Boltons excellent novels are skillful evocations of the era but have a genuine darkness at their heart[Bolton] manages to convey something of the redemptive magic of the movie business.

* Daily Telegraph *

'Brilliantly taut and atmospheric.'

* Mail on Sunday *

If you enjoy hard-boiled American crime thrillers then this book is perfect for you. Highly recommended.

* Grab This Book *

Bolton perfectly captures the era, with cameos by debauched Hollywood stars, rampant chauvinism and racism, and hearings by the House Un-American Activities Committee. Craines fear, exhaustion, and desperation are palpable as one lead after another turns to a dead end. This top-notch thriller doesnt pause from beginning to end.

* Publishers Weekly *

This is a razor-sharp evocation of the links between the movies and the mob and cements Boltons promise as a master of vintage Hollywood noir.

* Daily Mail *

The Pictures was an incisive noir thrillerandThe Syndicateis just as good The unravelling of a connection between Hollywood and the criminal world is adroitly done, and the period language never sounds a false note.

* Guardian *

'Former Los Angeles cop Jonathan Craine accepts an offer he can't refuse by mobster Meyer Lansky, plunging him back into the world of violence and corruption that lurks under the glitzy Hollywood facade. Real figures from the late 1940s mingle with the fictional in this terrific follow-up to last year's The Pictures. The powerful writing and masterful plotting carry a reminder of Chandler.'

* Sunday Times Crime Club *

Bolton is a fine writer. This is a gripping, gloves-off period tale, sharply told with no holds barred.

* Peter James, author of Not Dead Enough *

'From the shocking start to the dramatic conclusion this is a great and compelling read.'

* Bookbag *

Both gritty and glitzy, this evocative noir set in Hollywoods heyday feels like a lost reel from a Bogart classic.

* Thomas Mullen, author of Darktown *

Sharp, skilful and savagely stylish, Guy Bolton blends grit and glamour to stunning effect.

* Chris Whitaker, author of Tall Oaks, winner of the CWA New Blood Dagger 2017 *

A violent, engrossing work set in Hollywood and Las Vegas Fast moving and written with a deceptively light touch The Syndicate can only enhance Boltons growing reputation.

* Literary Review *

The movie business rules throughoutin this brilliantly portrayed crime novel Humphrey Bogart, Judy Garland, and Cary Grant all have walk on parts in this exhilarating sequel HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

* The Last Word *

Bolton is an assured writer with a style more direct than poetic a plus for this crime casserole and hes got winning characters in Craine and Conroy, among others.

* Mystery Scene *

'Profoundly satisfying.'

* Crime Review *

Whatever other good qualities a book with a historical setting may have, I consider it important for the writer to demonstrate a good sense of the time and place being treated, and I think Bolton meets that test quite well.He gives a good, provocative picture of the post-World War II zeitgeist.

* PCA Mystery & Detective Fiction Reading list *

Boltons evocation of the period and its many real-life characters is perfect and sharply drawn, and I can only think of James Ellroy or Max Allan Collins, both US authors, who have equalled Boltons feel for the atmosphere and mood of crooked Hollywood, and Craine sports all the colours of a classic troubled hardboiled character... A total success.'

* Crimetime *

'This is an entertaining and well-written novel that is set firmly in the milieu of post-war Hollywood... The plot fairly zips along with all the twists and turns that the reader expects from a noir-ish thriller.'

* Historical Novel Society *

Guy Boltons first novel,The Pictureswas shortlisted for the CWA New Blood Award, and Im sure another CWA nomination lies in wait for this, its sequel, The Syndicate The final act plays out like a Western and is all the better for it. The Syndicate is a well-written crime noir thriller and surely only the second in what could be a long-running series.

* Mystery People *

'The author has done so many things right here He not only made Craine's story a compelling read, but he moved it in unexpected directionsanyone can write a murder mystery, but making it as psychologically intense as the author's done here is a job well done.

* Crime Segment *

Author Bio

Guy Bolton lives in London and has worked in publishing, film and television. He currently works in drama at the BBC. Guy is also a screenwriter whose work has been optioned by Bedlam Productions, Hat Trick and Tiger Aspect. The Pictures is his first novel. Last year it was short-listed in the Telegraph Harvill Secker crime writing competition.