The Five Points

This novel The Five Points finished in the top five out of over 7000 entries in the 1997 HarperCollins Best Seller Contest. The Five Points neighborhood of 19th Century New York City was undoubtedly the most crime-ridden impoverished and dangerous places of its day. While people tend to think of this era as a glossy golden age it was unfortunately a world of unparalleled corruption intrigue and violence. Dominated by thieves murderers swindlers brothels and gangs with such colorful names as The Dead Rabbits The Whyos and The Plug Uglies the neighborhood had long been a symbol of urban misery and toughness. This work through two stories attempts to bring this world back to life. You will meet: Petey Daley the shrewd and fierce leader of The Dead Rabbits; Police Superintendent Connery an honest cop struggling with a dishonest system; and Rudy and Ted two con artists who know just what to do. Whenever novels and Hollywood try to tackle 19th Century America they always seem to focus on the wild wild west. Welcome everyone to the wild wild Lower East Side.