The Fatal Flame - Lyndsay Faye

Written by Lyndsay Faye
Read by Kirby Heyborne
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

Gods of Gotham Series, Timothy Wilde, Book 3
Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Release date: May 12, 2015
Duration: 15:57:48

No one in 1840s New York likes fires, copper star Timothy Wilde least of all. After a blaze killed his parents and another left him with a terrible scar, he has avoided flames of all kinds. So when a seamstress turned arsonist threatens Robert Symmes, a corrupt tycoon high in the Tammany Hall ranks, Timothy isn’t thrilled that Symmes consults him. His dismay escalates when his audacious and charismatic older brother, Valentine, himself deeply politically entrenched, decides to run against the incumbent, who they suspect is guilty of assault and far darker crimes. Immediately after his brother’s courageous declaration, Timothy finds himself surrounded by powerful enemies who threaten to harm those he cares about most.

Meanwhile, the love of Timothy’s life, Mercy Underhill, unexpectedly appears on his doorstep and takes under her wing a starving Irish orphan who may be the key to stopping the combustions threatening the city—if only they can make sense of her cryptic accounts. The closer they come to deciphering her wild tales of witches and angels, however, the closer Timothy comes to the fiery and shocking conclusion that forces him to face everything he fears most.

A boisterous and suspenseful book from a master of historical adventure, The Fatal Flame is a tale for the ages.

In New York City in 1848, the police–known as “copper stars”– Tammany Hall politicians, and crime bosses rule the city with iron fists and greased palms. In the third installment of The Gods of Gotham series, Irish brogues, hard German consonants, contemporary slang called “flash,” and English are just some of the accents that narrator Kirby Heyborne uses as he performs this gritty piece of historical fiction. Heyborne reads the narrative steadily in cultured tones as he recounts Timothy Wilde’s convoluted investigation of arson fires. When Wilde’s brother becomes embroiled in local politics, both their lives are endangered, and the tension escalates. Extensive description, old-fashioned diction, and a compelling backstory are interspersed with violence and politics, all of which Heyborne capably delivers. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2015,