The Cosgrove Report - Softcover

G. J. A. O'Toole

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0440115949 ISBN 13: 9780440115946

Publisher: Dell Publishing Company, 1981

Synopsis

A unique historical thriller takes on the true mysteries of Lincoln's assassination "with verve, humor and impressive scholarship" (Time). In 1868, Pinkerton Detective Nicholas Cosgrove is tasked with tracking down John Wilkes Booth, a man who should be three years in his grave. Booth, President Lincoln's assassin, was also a skilled actor and master of disguise, and Secretary of War Edwin Stanton suspects he may still be at large. But Cosgrove unearths more than just the corpse of a man who is decidedly not Booth. The conspiracy to assassinate Lincoln was much larger, and far more dangerous than anyone suspects. Now, more than a century later, Cosgrove's report on his harrowing investigation has fallen into the hands of private eye Michael Croft. Charged with verifying Cosgrove's hair-raising tale-as well as its explosive implications-Croft presents the manuscript here with his own annotations. With meticulous research into official records as well as the forgotten memoirs of eyewitnesses, former CIA agent G. J. A. O'Toole has crafted a highly original novel-both a gripping historical thriller and a shockingly plausible solution to some of the most enthralling mysteries surrounding Lincoln's assassination. "A humdinger of a mystery . . . transports us to a landscape at once familiar and as exotic as a sinister, murderous oz." -The Washington Star "It has everything-mystery, adventure, history, and a delightful unsuspected ending. . . . The unique tale of an American Sherlock Holmes." -Seattle Times Magazine "With impressive scholarship and sharp wit, O'Toole lays bare for the non-specialist the real and persistent mysteries that still surround the trial of the Lincoln assassins. Altogether, highly entertaining and highly informative." -Historical Novel Society

About this title

Review

Dazzling . . . A superior example of this genre.” Nicholas Meyer, author of The Seven-Per-Cent Solution

George O’Toole has managed to catch us all in his net with The Cosgrove Report. A must for lovers of history and stylish writing, mystery fans, adventure and assassination buffs.” Arlene Francis

An enthralling, beautifully constructed mystery.” Harriet Van Horne

O’Toole makes such a convincing eyewitness, I almost suspect he was there. Don’t let anyone tell you how The Cosgrove Report ends.” Dilys Winn, Murder Ink; Murderess Ink

A humdinger of a mystery . . . transports us to a landscape at once familiar and as exotic as a sinister, murderous oz.” The Washington Star

By carriage, train, boat and balloon, Cosgrove stumbles on one denouement after another . . . novelist George O’Toole . . . follows sleuth and booth with verve, humor and impressive scholarship.” Time

An absolute delight . . . there are wheels within wheels that bring the fancier of history up with shocking suddenness . . . will appeal to the mystery fan who likes the feeling of being trapped in a mirror maze . . . not only is this good history, it is also good fun.” San Diego Union

O’Toole takes an era captured in daguerreotype and inflates it with enough life to give us a vividly vicarious understanding of the mid-19th century . . . the reader is brilliantly seduced onto the tightrope between face and fiction.” The Cleveland Press

Out of the ordinary . . . an imaginative mix of historical research and fictional extrapolation . . . the ending is as surprising as anyone could wish.” Los Angeles Times

Compelling . . . a stunning conclusion.” Grand Rapids Press

A gem . . . it truly takes the reader back to relive those days. But don’t let anyone tell you how the book ends . . . that would be cruel and inhuman treatment.” Memphis Commercial Appeal

Moves along at lightning speed . . . sprightly and intriguing . . . what gorgeous entertainment.” Columbus Dispatch

Fascinating . . . an exciting chronicle of what might have been . . . ending with a twist that should satisfy the most fanatical mystery aficionado.” Civil War Times

My hat is off to G.J.A. O’Toole. He has come up with an idea for a mystery so good . . . and he has brought it off with a flair that rivals Josephine Tey’s The Daughter of Time . . . ingenious and plausible . . . the research is meticulous.” Baltimore Sun

If you think there is no more mystery surrounding that assassination, you are dead wrong . . . a must for anyone to whom history is a wonderful old trunk in the attic, always full of dusty surprises.” Cleveland Plain Dealer

A political thriller based on a careful reading of history that will make a thrice-told tale seem completely different.” Boston Herald American

It has everything mystery, adventure, history, and a delightful unsuspected ending . . . fascinating characters, among them some of Washington’s most illustrious men . . . the unique tale of an American Sherlock Holmes.” Seattle Times Magazine

Startling. Don’t tell anyone how it ends.” The Pittsburgh Press

Contains more factual information about the truth of the assassination and the alleged conspiracy than I have seen in print anywhere . . . Lovers of mystery stories will find O’Toole a master teller of tales. This is the best of historical fiction from historical fact that you’re likely to find.” Cincinnati Enquirer

Rejoice, lovers of mystery and history. You’re in for a treat you’ll be talking about for a long time.” Newport News Daily Press

A first-rate thriller by any standards . . . a truly distinctive historical detective story. No one has done it any better.” Savannah News-Press Sunday Magazine

A tour de force of its kind.” Publishers Weekly

About this edition

• Publisher: Dell Publishing Company
• Publication date: 1981
• ISBN 10: 0440115949
• ISBN 13: 9780440115946
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 466