Houdini's Shadow

Set amid the underworlds of Montreal and New Orleans in the 1920's and 30's, Houdini's Shadow is a dark and poetic tale of desire and decadence, obsession and betrayal.

As a boy, Jake O'Sullivan witnessed a miraculous underwater escape by Harry Houdini. This childhood encounter escalates into a life-long obsession with the great escapologist. But Jake's dreams of following in his hero's footsteps are endangered when he becomes entangled in a criminal plot that threatens everything he has worked for. A mysterious woman called Lulu offers a way out, but she, too, is driven by deeper motives, and might ultimately prove to be the weight that pulls him under.

"Houdini's Shadow is a fast, compact, noirish novel that proves its own contention that 'There is always chance for redemption, an opportunity to push back shadow, but it becomes more difficult with . . . each chance you let slip through your fingers.' An old story-the only kind there is-told in a fresh way."--Steven Heighton

"With deftly-drawn characters and a plot that appears and disappears intriguingly, Robillard has performed a masterful sleight of hand."--Mark Frutkin

Acclaim for Leo Brent Robillard's previous work.

"Leaving Wyoming is a case of the word transcending 1,000 pictures." The Globe and Mail