Secrets of the City

Secrets of the City is celebrated author Anne Roiphe’s brilliant novel about a big-city mayor and the struggles that shape the fortunes of his city, the life of his family, and the condition of his soul. Mel Rosenberg is the mayor of a city uncannily similar to New York, which is experiencing a string of unusual attacks. But first he must contend with the pressures of his imperfect family—a shop-lifting daughter-in-law, an ungrateful son obsessed with status, an...
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Secrets of the City is celebrated author Anne Roiphe’s brilliant novel about a big-city mayor and the struggles that shape the fortunes of his city, the life of his family, and the condition of his soul. Mel Rosenberg is the mayor of a city uncannily similar to New York, which is experiencing a string of unusual attacks. But first he must contend with the pressures of his imperfect family—a shop-lifting daughter-in-law, an ungrateful son obsessed with status, an insecure daughter with a troubled marriage—not to mention a sexy, aggressive newspaper reporter who aims desperately to be his mistress. And despite his best efforts, he becomes entangled in a high-profile political scandal that could ambush his aspirations to be the first Jewish president of the United States.

Secrets of the City is a spirited, engaging story written with humor, tenderness, and shrewd insight, featuring characters who explore issues that are as contemporary as they are timeless.

“Inventive and ambitious...There’s more than enough intrigue here to snare a reader’s attention....Imparts a worthy message about prejudice and tolerance.”—New York Times Book Review

“Fast-paced...Roiphe nicely conveys the frantic pressures of city life, the endless appetite of the media, the frenzied pitch of threats, denials, deceit, despair.” –Boston Globe