The Cloud Sketcher - Softcover

3.85

396 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0007123272 ISBN 13: 9780007123278

Publisher: Harpercollins Pb

Spanning two continents and three decades, The Cloud Sketcher is an epic tale of love, murder and revenge. Police stand ready to make an arrest as the Ile de France liner docks at New York Harbour in 1929. The passengers assume that it is notorious bootlegger Paul Mantilini who is to be taken away. But Mantilini walks down the gangplank a free man and instead it is Esko Vaananen the police arrest - a celebrated architect, and by all accounts a shy and mild-mannered young man. Born a peasant in rural Finland at the turn of the century, Esko, the son of an outcast Bolshevik, dreamed of skyscrapers and of a beautiful and tragic Russian aristocrat named Katerina. His entire life has been spent pursuing and protecting these twin passions, no matter how great the cost. It is a journey that has led him into the battlefields of the Bolshevik revolution and the jazz-age nightclubs of New York City, and finally, to strike a Faustian bargain with a ruthless gangster - all in pursuit of artistic perfection and impossible, unattainable love. And now he stands accused of murder... A grand and unashamedly romantic literary epic, The Cloud Sketcher moves from the battle of Tampere to the incredible danger of working on `the high steel' of skyscraper shells, from Prohibition to the remarkable intersection of organized crime, finance and the arts in 1920s New York, powerfully evoking an era gone by.

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About the Author:

Richard Rayner was born in Bradford and now lives in Los Angeles. His previous books include the memoir The Blue Suit, and the novel L.A. without a Map - made into a movie starring David Tennant, Vinessa Shaw, Julie Delpy and Vincent Gallo in 1998 - and the literary mystery Murder Book. In addition, he writes for the New York Times, Granta, Harper's Bazaar and other publications.

From AudioFile:

Spanning over thirty years of time, Rayner's tale of love and war builds to a smashing finale as the characters move through the world of New York architecture. The story follows Esko Vaananen from an impoverished childhood in Finland at the turn of the century to financial and professional success in New York at the end of the Roaring Twenties. The story can only be described as epic, with politics and intrigue cropping up around every bend. Actor Simon Jones reads this abridgment with the same passion the lead character shows toward life and provides distinct, varied voices for each character. Although the abridgment seems choppy at times, Jones reads with such an easy pace, the gaps go almost unnoticed. The combination of a good story and a great performance makes the production fly. H.L.S. � AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine-- Copyright � AudioFile, Portland, Maine

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