David Finkle – författare

"The face is familiar. Elihu knows he can easily place it. He doesn''t complete the thought because the young man speaks... ''My name is Ethan Haas. My mother is Emily Haas. You''re my father.''"

In his twenties Elihu Goulding was a famous, award-winning author of two novels. His work brought fame and fortune and yet he stopped writing. Instead, he traveled, renting various places in which to live. Each time he appreciated the solitude of his newest surroundings.

Now Eli is entering his senior years and adapting to his latest rental, a New York City brownstone. One day, while taking a shower, Eli hears the front door buzzer ring, followed by assertive thumps from the door knocker. Once he is dressed and has decided the disturbance must be addressed, Eli opens the door to find a carbon copy of his younger self. Whether Eli likes it or not, an unknown chapter in his life is about to begin.

On a beautiful spring day in New York City, writer Daniel Freund receives two surprises. First he finds a long sought after 1953 edition of The Great Gatsby free for the taking on the steps of a building right down the block. The other occurs when he brings home his treasure, begins to read it and sees the words lift off the page and start rearranging themselves. After a few moments he realizes he is being sent a message that there has been a murder.

Prompted by The Great Gatsby itself, Freund begins an investigation. Guarding the brownstone''s premises is notorious nosy neighbor Ms. Estelle Belfer, who is only too happy to share the details: a death in a locked room a few years back, deemed an open-and-shut suicide by the police. Freund eventually wrangles his way into the non-crime scene and finds there is a lot more to the story. Now, wildly curious and determined to find out what really happened (and coming home to a book becoming more noisy, insistent, and emotional), he delves deeper and deeper into the case.