Part of Cotton Malone, book 12
First published 2017
Former Justice Department agent Cotton Malone begins his investigation inside the Smithsonian Institution, following clues to a treasure that has eluded hunters for over a century. The Knights of the Golden Circle buried vast amounts of stolen gold and silver across the United States to fund their plans for a Southern empire spanning two continents. Now two rival factions within the surviving Order fight over the fortune. One group wants to spend the treasure, while the other seeks to preserve it. Malone discovers his own ancestor, Confederate spy Owen "Cotton" Payne, may hold the key to locating the hidden caches. A ruthless Speaker of the House and a senator's widow complicate the search with their own political schemes. The pursuit takes Malone from Washington through rural Arkansas and into the mountains of northern New Mexico, where past and present collide in a dangerous game of survival.
Genres: historical-fiction, adventure, mystery, thriller, action
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Smithsonian Institution, Arkansas, New Mexico
Period: 19th-century, Civil War
493 pages · Hardcover · Minotaur Books