A young Jay Gatsby finds himself working as a foreign spy in this riveting debut novel by R.M. Spencer. Set eight years before The Great Gatsby at the beginning of World War I, this slyly funny, ingeniously plotted historical thriller enchants with its compelling cast of characters and unexpected twists and turns.
August 1914. Assuming a false identity, Jay boards an ocean liner bound for England. But the unexpected appearance of a woman from his past soon threatens to compromise his mission.
The story alternates between the perspective of Jay Gatsby and Ella Kaye-a minor character in The Great Gatsby based on the famed journalist Nellie Bly. Intent on reviving her faltering career, she travels to London to report on a Women's Suffrage Conference. But when war erupts, her plans shift dramatically. Racing through war-torn Europe, entangled in a dangerous web of lies, Jay and Ella struggle to maintain the secrets that will keep them each alive.