Milo Allan

New York, 1901. Murray Hall is dead. A powerful politician, gambler and celebrated man about town, Hall seemed to have lived an extraordinary life. But when news of his death breaks, the papers reveal a secret he kept buried for decades, one that shocks the city and captures the world's attention. As an ambitious young journalist races to uncover the truth, Hall's life emerges as a masterclass in reinvention, ambition and survival. From Scotland to New York's political elite, this is the story of a man who rose high by staying silent, concealing a queer past that history was determined to erase. Inspired by a true story of one Scot's rise to prominence, Murray Hall finally brings all the puzzle pieces together to discover the secret of this extraordinary, ordinary man, which shocked New York, America and the world.

<p><b><i>'A riveting and remarkable retelling of a true story.'</i> - SARA SHERIDAN</b><br><b><i>'A very enjoyable novel, one that can give pleasure and invite speculation at the same time.'</i> - THE SCOTSMAN</b><br><b><i>'His remarkable life story has, for the first time, been pieced together from myriad contemporary newspaper reports, historical archives and contradictory anecdotes to form a stunning new novel'</i> - SUNDAY POST</b><br><br><b>He kept his secret for a lifetime. Now the truth will rock New York.</b><br><br>It is 1901, and Dr Gallagher has just pronounced Murray Hall dead. <b>New York politico, gambler, womaniser</b> - Hall is all these things, but when the newspapers break the news of his death to the world, they reveal <b>a side to his identity he never wanted known, a secret no one could have guessed.</b><br><br>Sam Clellan, an ambitious young journalist, is determined to <b>uncover the truth of Hall's past</b>, but his search leads him down winding alleys of fact and fiction. <b>From humble beginnings in Glasgow's tenements to a life spent rubbing up against New York's political elite</b>, Murray Hall is the definition of a self-made man. But the higher his status rises, the higher the stakes become.<br><br><b>Inspired by a true story of one Scot's rise to prominence, <i>Murray Hall</i> unearths a queer past erased by history, finally bringing all the puzzle pieces together to discover the secret of this extraordinary, ordinary man, which shocked New York, America and the world.</b><br><br><i>'Murray Hall does what historical fiction does best: shines a light on the past to illuminate the present..</i><i>.'</i> - ANGIE SPOTO<br><br><i>'Deeply moving and immersive, </i><i>Milo Allan's extraordinary novel is a constantly shifting, chameleon-like thing, taking in gender, queerness, and grief.'</i> - ALLY WILKES</p>