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A True Tale of the Last Frontier and the Yukon Gold Rush
Crown
May 2011
On Sale: April 26, 2011
432 pages
ISBN: 0307461726
EAN: 9780307461728
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
It is the last decade of the 19th century. The Wild West has
been tamed and its fierce, independent and often violent
larger-than-life figures – gun-toting wanderers, trappers,
prospectors, Indian fighters, cowboys, and lawmen –are now
victims of their own success. They are heroes who’ve
outlived their usefulness.
But then gold is discovered in Alaska and the adjacent
Canadian Klondike and a new frontier suddenly looms - an
immense unexplored territory filled with frozen waterways,
dark spruce forests, and towering mountains capped by
glistening layers of snow and ice. “Klondicitis,” a giddy mix of greed and lust for adventure,
ignites a stampede. Fleeing the depths of a worldwide
economic depression and driven by starry-eyed visions of
vast wealth, tens of thousands rush northward. Joining this throng of greenhorns and grifters, whores and
highwaymen, sourdoughs and seers are three unforgettable
men. In a true-life tale that rivets from the first page, we
meet Charlie Siringo, a top-hand sharp-shooting cowboy who,
after futilely trying to settle down with his new bride,
becomes one of the Pinkerton Detective Agency’s shrewdest;
George Carmack, a California-born American Marine who’s
adopted by an Indian tribe, raises a family with a Taglish
squaw, makes the discovery that starts off the Yukon Gold
Rush – and becomes fabulously rich; and Soapy Smith, a sly
and inventive predator-conman who rules a vast criminal empire. As we follow this trio’s lives, we’re led inexorably into a
perplexing mystery. A fortune in gold bars has somehow been
stolen from the fortress-like Treadwell Mine in Juneau,
Alaska, with no clues as to how the thieves made off with
such an immensely heavy cargo. To many it appears that the
crime will never be solved. But the Pinkerton Agency has a
reputation for finding the answers that elude others.
Charged with getting the job done is Charlie Siringo who
discovers that, to run the thieves to ground, he must embark
on a rugged cross-territory odyssey that will lead him
across frigid waters and through a frozen wilderness.
Ultimately, he’ll have his quarry in his sights. But then an
additional challenge will present itself. He must face down
Soapy Smith and his gang of 300 cutthroats. Hanging in the
balance: George Carmack’s fortune in gold. At once a compelling true-life mystery and an unforgettable
portrait of a time in America’s history when thousands were
fired with a vision of riches so unimaginable as to be worth
any price, The Floor of Heaven is also an exhilarating
tribute to the courage and undaunted spirit of the men and
women who helped shape America.
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