From Publishers Weekly
For his seventh novel, the popular author of the Mickey Rawlings baseball mysteries changes venue and century. Hoping to fatten his meager Harper's Weekly stipend, Marshall Webb is looking for a plot for a new dime novel; his quest for a proper heroine takes him to Ellis Island in January, 1892, to meet the first immigrant ship to dock there. He finds in Christina van der Waals, a 14-year-old Dutch girl, the perfect candidate for his "girl makes good" story line; unfortunately, somewhere between Ellis Island and Manhattan, she disappears. Webb then locates her cousin, "opera singer" (read: exotic dancer) Liz Luck, whom Christina had said was to meet her, and learns that Liz was unaware of the young girl's plans. Liz's husband, a crooked cop named Gleason, throws Webb out and he heads back to the ferry terminal, determined to find Christina. His efforts lead him to Rebecca Davies, whose wealthy family funds Colden House, a haven for young women. Rebecca opens his eyes to the tragic fates of so many immigrant girls, and they join forces to search the filthy underworld of sweatshops and brothels, falling in love in the process. Rebecca's money helps pull the duo from some nasty scrapes as they face considerable personal dangers including Christina's abductor. Soos (Murder at Ebbets Field) captures the period handsomely as the couple bridges both moneyed and penniless worlds in this time of Tammany Hall corruption and na‹ve immigrants arriving in boatloads to encounter difficult odds and uncertain futures. The solid plot and well-researched background help to carry the tale, even though Soos never builds the suspense the novel calls for. Still, history buffs will enjoy this look at a harsh transitional period in New York history. Agent, Meredith Bernstein. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Known for his Mickey Rawlings baseball mysteries, Soos begins a new series set in late 19th-century New York City. His protagonist is Marshall Webb, a journalist whose search for a missing Dutch girl reveals police corruption, white slavery, and murder. A promising series debut. Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Seeking nothing more than inspiration for his next dime novel, Marshall Webb is at the opening of Ellis Island on January 1, 1892, looking for a pretty young immigrant whose story he can write, and 14-year-old Christina van der Waals from Amsterdam seems just the ticket. But when the girl disappears before reaching her cousin in New York and Webb tries to find her, he becomes embroiled with those who sell immigrants into slave labor or prostitution and the corrupt police force and Tammany Hall administration that don't help. Webb is aided by the two-man staff of the American Kinemascope Company, which hopes to beat Thomas Edison (himself a minor character) into offering moving pictures to the public. But his staunchest ally is Rebecca Davies, as forthright as she is attractive, who operates a home for women in need with financing from her wealthy family. With elements of history and mystery, plus a little romance, this is a nicely paced, entertaining novel with just enough of the happy ending its protagonist always seeks. Michele Leber
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Island of Tears FROM THE PUBLISHER
On January 1, 1892, the first immigrant ship arrived on Ellis Island. For those on board, the journey was full of sorrow and hardship. From cross the expanse of Europe, they left their families and homes behind, seeking a new beginning in the land of opportunity. But what often awaited then were corrupt government officials, ruthless sweatshop owners, and callous slumlords, all eager to exploit the immigrants' plight for their own profit.
There is plenty of profit to be made in New York City during America's "Gilded Age." Infamous Tammany Hall controls the police department, selling positions of every rank. The police, in turn, operate as a profitmaking enterprise, investigating crimes only when the price is right - and all the while collecting graft from the city's seamier businesses.
But when Christina vanishes, what began as background research for Webb's next book becomes a tireless search for the girl. Stalled by uncaring bureaucrats, his quest takes him from the Battery's Barge Office, where hustlers prey on new immigrants, to the Tenderloin's notorious vice district. Webb even makes use of a new invention, the moving picture camera. When his investigation takes him to Colden House, a shelter for abused women, Webb learns the harsh reality of how the other half truly lives and meets reformer Rebecca Davies.
When he uncovers white slavery and murder, Webb realizes hoe far the powerful will go to protect their illicit enterprises. With Rebecca's help, he is determined to stand against the corrupt criminal and political machine - and prove that justice doesn't come at a price.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
For his seventh novel, the popular author of the Mickey Rawlings baseball mysteries changes venue and century. Hoping to fatten his meager Harper's Weekly stipend, Marshall Webb is looking for a plot for a new dime novel; his quest for a proper heroine takes him to Ellis Island in January, 1892, to meet the first immigrant ship to dock there. He finds in Christina van der Waals, a 14-year-old Dutch girl, the perfect candidate for his "girl makes good" story line; unfortunately, somewhere between Ellis Island and Manhattan, she disappears. Webb then locates her cousin, "opera singer" (read: exotic dancer) Liz Luck, whom Christina had said was to meet her, and learns that Liz was unaware of the young girl's plans. Liz's husband, a crooked cop named Gleason, throws Webb out and he heads back to the ferry terminal, determined to find Christina. His efforts lead him to Rebecca Davies, whose wealthy family funds Colden House, a haven for young women. Rebecca opens his eyes to the tragic fates of so many immigrant girls, and they join forces to search the filthy underworld of sweatshops and brothels, falling in love in the process. Rebecca's money helps pull the duo from some nasty scrapes as they face considerable personal dangers including Christina's abductor. Soos (Murder at Ebbets Field) captures the period handsomely as the couple bridges both moneyed and penniless worlds in this time of Tammany Hall corruption and na?ve immigrants arriving in boatloads to encounter difficult odds and uncertain futures. The solid plot and well-researched background help to carry the tale, even though Soos never builds the suspense the novel calls for. Still, history buffs will enjoy this look at a harshtransitional period in New York history. Agent, Meredith Bernstein. (Nov. 6) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
The first person ashore on January 1, 1892, the day Ellis Island opens, is pretty young Christina van der Waals, expecting to be met by her cousin. On hand to record the ceremonies are photographers Crombie and Sehlinger, who are racing Edison to put into production a moving-picture machine, and dime-novelist Marshall Webb, who plans to write a book about the 14-year-old Dutch immigrant's happy life in her new country. But soon after Christina steps off the boat, she vanishes. And Webb's efforts to track her down illustrate just how awful life in fin-de-siecle New York can be for unprotected girls. Men like Josiah McQuaid patrol the Tenderloin district for women to hustle into sweatshops (if they're ugly) or prostitution (if they're not). And men like her cousin's common-law husband Warren Gleason, an abusive city patrolman on the take, cow their beaten wives so thoroughly they can't even see the part Gleason has played in selling Christina to McQuaid for $20. Webb's search leads him to Colden House, a woman's shelter run by wealthy do-gooder Rebecca Davies, who joins him in seeking Christina-and, after her strangled corpse turns up, in finding her killer. The path winds past a tobacco-plant sweatshop in Connecticut, a Bowery bordello called The Roost, and payoffs to cops, customs officials, and Tammany pols. Despite whores, drunks, bribes, graft, and the stench of the Tombs, the earnest hero and early-feminist heroine make this a tad dull. Most likely audience: fans of Soos's period baseball series (Hanging Curve, 1999, etc.) and devotees of the Victorian women's novel.
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