Set in 1803 in New York this book takes you back in time to the history, the politics and the lawlessness that reigned. New York is growing but it cannot take the pace ...as rival gangs battle for supremacy it can be a dangerous place to live and work. Violence erupts and a young black girl is found dead , murdered. Flanagan and O'Toole , a city marshal and a school teacher each decide to try and track down the killer, but is it safe to go it alone in these treacherous times. They both land on the outskirts of the city where criminality is rife and some things have to be seen to be believed. The author has cleverly set these two on separate paths to find justice for the murder victim but yet inevitably they will meet and maybe they will bring the killer to justice