Welcome to the The Burning of The Piping Rock, based upon the actual, unsolved 1954 arson of the Piping Rock Casino in Saratoga Springs New York. Piping Rock was owned by Mafia members Joe Adonis, Frank Costello, and Myer Lansky, who fronted for America’s social elite.
The Burning of The Piping Rock is a film noir in a book, a history/mystery “transcribed” from a confession taped by the dying George A. King, a small town pharmacist with a secret too big for the grave. King tells of the night of August 16, 1954 as he drives to Piping Rock Casino with an arsonist known only as Harry the Torch. He puts you behind the wheel of the arsonist’s `51 Studebaker as the two drive into a web of blackmail, deception and death, all spun by mobsters and the decent and law abiding citizens who served them.
The Burning of The Piping Rock is Saratoga fact and fiction that’s more than a trip to the races. Start your adventure on the Chapter Excerpts page and browse the All Posts page for more personal insights about the novel.
The Burning of The Piping Rock © Joseph A. Cutshall-King. The Piping Rock WordPress site designed by Black Swan Image Works. All artwork © Black Swan Image Works.
This is a terrific story. By Chapter 2 I had that hunker-down-on-the-sofa feeling that begins a great read. I did not know much about Saratoga and the mob influence until now, but the parallels with Cuba of the same era are striking. The strong characters and sense of place conjur vivid imagery (acid test of a read-worthy material)…Martin Scorsese, option this book!
Thanks, Lynne!