Rapturous epic of the city, as magical as Helprin's great Winter's Tale even if it is not a fantasy. It is as immersive as anything ever conjured up from fairyland. 1946 New York City is the equal to Lud-in-the-Mist, Narnia, Middle Earth, Wonderland and Looking-Glass World, Gormenghast. Veteran Harry Copeland's return home and to the family business is perturbed when he meets singer Catherine Thomas Hale and they fall for each other. She chases him as much as he chases her through Broadway, Long Island, the high and low haunts of the city's criminals. But her finance won't give her up without a fight, and Harry has to summon the courage he found in the war to win her.
