"Grafton's novel is not simply a historical curio, but a genuinely
offbeat and entertaining suspense story."--The Washington Post
The second book in the Library of Congress Crime Classics, an exciting
new classic mystery series created in exclusive partnership with the
Library of Congress. In this exquisite piece of hard-boiled crime
fiction, is this lawyer digging his way to the truth, or digging his own
grave?
A timeless and propulsive story, The Rat Began to Gnaw the Rope is:
- For fans of historical crime mysteries and crime classics
- For readers who love the works of Sue Grafton
Short, chubby, and awkward with members of the opposite sex, Gil Henry
is the youngest partner in a small law firm, not a hard-boiled sleuth.
So when an attractive young woman named Ruth McClure walks into his
office and asks him to investigate the value of the stock she inherited
from her father, he thinks nothing of it--until someone makes an attempt
on his life.
Soon Gil is inadvertently embroiled in a classic American scandal,
subterfuge, and murder. He's beaten, shot, and stabbed, as his
colleagues and enemies try to stop him from seeing the case through to
the end. Surrounded by adversaries, he teams up with Ruth and her
secretive brother to find answers to the questions someone desperately
wants to keep him from asking.
In this portrait of America on the eve of America's entry into World War
II, C.W. Grafton--himself a lawyer and the father of prolific mystery
writer Sue Grafton--pens an award-winning historical crime fiction that
combines humor and the hard-boiled style and will keep readers guessing
until its thrilling conclusion.
