Sins of Two Fathers

Denis Hamill's novels have won acclaim for their gritty realism and evocative characters. In "Sins of Two Fathers, the veteran columnist captures the fascinating world of journalism he knows so well, penning a gripping tale about a newspaper man's responsibility to report the truth and a dying man's need for revenge. Hank Tobin is a Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper columnist with a reputation for breaking explosive stories. Twenty years ago, he overheard a man bragging in a bar about how his son torched the home of a minority family to keep the neighborhood white. When Hank broke the story on his papers front page, the boy was slapped with a ten-year prison sentence. Fast forward to today, when Tobin receives a series of anonymous tips about the firebombing of a Brooklyn mosque. The tipster, however, is none other than the father of the arsonist whom Hank had sent to prison years ago, now ill and dying. When the man proves that he has a photo of Hank's son leaving the mosque, his vengeful agenda becomes painfully obvious. As the investigation unfolds, the author takes us into the minds of these two foes by way of their heated pay phone conversations, constructing a riveting narrative of desperation and tragedy. And as Hank's struggle to find the truth deepens the cracks in his estranged family, a tale of two embattled fathers races toward a chilling and climactic denouement. This is emotional fiction at its thrilling best.