St. James Park - by John Doll (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

"A sweeping tale that offers lessons from the not-so-distant past." -Kirkus Reviews

"Doll masterfully reveals what lies just below the surface of every human soul." -Judge Paul Bernal, official historian of the City of San Jose

"Cinematic in its scope, St. James Park is a movie waiting to be made." -Joe Talbot, director of The Last Black Man in San Francisco (2019)

In a time when department stores ruled downtowns, a prominent store heir is kidnapped in 1933 under suspicious circumstances, and Hoover's Bureau of Investigation sends cynical agent Louis Cooper to investigate.

Cooper discovers that this crime is only a prelude to a dangerous play by the local power structure to expand control amid spiraling economic disruption, labor unrest, and anti-immigrant racism.

As Cooper unravels long-standing but shifting alliances of business leaders, city officials, and mobsters, he learns who is behind the kidnapping and why-but not in time to prevent a raging mob bent on vengeance.

Review Quotes

"Over the course of this intricate tale of politics, corruption, and shifting alliances, Doll delivers a fast-paced work of historical fiction that takes full advantage of its Prohibition-era California setting. The farming community is effectively shown to be beset by unrest, greed, and scandal, and the shifting plot will keep readers on their toes. Overall, the work has a cinematic quality, but it's always firmly grounded in elements of real-life history: As such, it serves as a cautionary tale on how social disparities and anti-immigrant bias can be manipulated to fuel the evil plans of powerful people. A sweeping tale that offers lessons from the not-so-distant past. Our verdict: Get it." -Kirkus Reviews

"St. James Park is a fun read for both those who are familiar with California history and those who love a gripping yarn. Besides the woes of the Great Depression which shattered all communities in the early 1930s, the city of San Jose had its own particular troubles. This unrest boiled to the surface, culminating in the historic kidnapping and murder of the wealthiest 'son of San Jose, ' young Brookie Hart. Author John Doll immerses the reader in these momentous dynamics to ponder the fantastical 'why and how' of it all. He takes us on a fictional adventure that joins the precious smell of plum blossoms with the pungent odor of bloody sin. Doll masterfully reveals what lies just below the surface of every human soul." -Judge Paul Bernal, official historian of the City of San Jose

"Based on an actual 1933 San Jose kidnapping that fueled a media blitz propagated by sleazy politicians, complacent cops, and manipulative gangsters, a vengeful mob is formed in St. James Park bent on unspeakable violence. Written in the noir style of Dashiell Hammett and James Ellroy, [John Doll's novel] brings to life a tale that foreshadows the politics of twenty-first-century America. Cinematic in its scope, St. James Park is a movie waiting to be made." -Joe Talbot, director of The Last Black Man in San Francisco (2019)

"From the opening lines of St. James Park, I was hooked. It's a genre-bending cinematic novel-evocative of a 1930s black-and-white mystery movie yet draped in twenty-first-century living color-starring unforgettable characters within a palpable sense of place: an agricultural valley unaware of the tech mecca it would become." -Clint Wilkins, former Encore Fellow, Mayor's Office in San Jose

"There's a lot to learn in this imagined version of true events from the dark past of San Jose and the University of Santa Clara. John Doll's recreation is compelling and captures the era. In the end, one of the big questions about the mystery isn't fully answered. That was a brave decision for a novelist to make, but a good one that is authentic to the history." -James M. Glaser, provost, Santa Clara University

"In St. James Park, John Doll paints a word picture of San Jose at a time of great upheaval-where a farming community is transformed by greed and corruption and where scandal, hate, fear, and shame move his characters to do their worst. The plot is unpredictable, the characters colorful and unforgettable. . . . you'll find this book impossible to put down." -Barbara Kibbe, artist and Citizen Joy leader