Thomas Kelly (1) (1960–)

I happened to stumble across this novel in the library. The first thing that attracted me to it was the cover, and then I found out that it is historical fiction and I knew I had to read it. This novel is about the building of the Empire State Building. Briody, an ironworker working on the Empire State Building, also helps run arms, explosives, and other things back to Ireland to help the Irish republican cause. His world gets turned upside down when he meets Grace Masterson, who happens to be the mistress of Johnny Farrell a crooked man of New York politics. The two fall in love and become in danger of Farrell finding out about their romance.
I loved that the book showed glimpses of what it was like for the workers who built the Empire State Building. I loved the romance between Briody and Grace. I have to say that I wasn't fond of the ending but I understand why it was the way it was. I would recommend this novel to historical fiction lovers, and people interested in New York.… (meer)

During the '80s building boom in New York, Billy Adare was a sandhog (tunneler). He attended school at night in the hope of getting a law degree. His brother, Paddy, was an enforcer for Jack Tierney, who ran the construction racket in the West Side.

The author describes the difficulty these sandhogs had with the dust, building safety and poor working conditions. Most of them were Irish and the Mob wanted to replace them with newly immigrated Poles, pay less and pocket the difference.

When a union rep is beaten to death by Tierney's crazed brother, Billy's friends ask him to check with his brother, Paddy, to see if they can find who is strong-arming them.

The author does a nice job in describing New York of the '80s, with the music, the politics and views of the time. There is a great deal of violence in the book and much of it is aimed at the sandhogs who wanted nothing more than to make a living.

Billy is a nice character and represents the author's theme of a dwindling race, the Irish in the Bronx and their struggle to better themselves.

Well done and interesting.… (meer)