Gangster Nation

September 2001: two years since legendary Chicago hitman Sal Cupertine disappeared into the guise of Las Vegas Rabbi David Cohen. For David, everything is coming up gold: temple membership is on the rise, the new school is raking it in, and the mortuary and cemetery, where he launders bodies for the mob, is minting cash. But Sal wants out. He's got money stashed all over the city. If he makes it through Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, he'll have enough to slip away, grab his wife and kid and start afresh.

Across the country, former FBI agent Matthew Drew is now running security for a casino outside of Milwaukee, spending his time off stalking members of The Family, looking to avenge his former partner's murder. So when Sal's cousin stumbles into the casino, Matthew takes the law into his own hands, starting a chain of events that will have Rabbi Cohen running for his life, trapped in Las Vegas, with the law, society, and the post-9/11 world closing in on him.

Gangster Nation is a page-turning examination of the seedy foundations of American life. With the wit and gritty glamour that defines his writing, Goldberg traces how the things we value most in our lives - home, health, even our spirituality - have been built on the enterprises of criminals.




Genre: Mystery

"Gangster Nation punches even harder than the excellent Gangsterland did: against the backdrop of 9/11, everybody's roughed up and bleeding, and nobody's hiding it well. Tod Goldberg's weird world is getting The Sopranos-good, and The Sopranos-funny: he can hit you high, low, or straight in the gut. Meshugener wiseguys. It'll make you a better killer--and a better rabbi." - Bill Beverly

"Sal Cupertine is back--and better than ever. I love this guy." - Lee Child

"Tod Goldberg's brilliant Gangster Nation is hilarious, complex, and a total page-turner. It's also a little insane, in the best possible way." - Lisa Lutz

"Gangster Nation is a razor. It will slice you open and reveal your insides. And like the best of Tod Goldberg's work, it'll show you everything you are at your core." - Brad Meltzer

"Gangsterland was compelling in every way, and in Gangster Nation, its sequel, Tod Goldberg has written an enthralling portrait of consequences--emotional, physical, moral, you name it. Amid all the expertly choreographed violence and intrigue is a moving, thought-provoking story about the fluid nature of identity, spirituality, and love. I enjoyed every page." - Vu Tran