Joe Coughlin is nineteen when he meets Emma Gould. A smalltime thief in 1920s Boston, his task is to tie her up while his accomplices loot the bank she works in. But Joe falls in love with Emma - and his life changes forever. That meeting is the beginning of Joe's journey to becoming one of the most feared and respected gangsters. It is a journey beset by violence, double-crossing, drama and pain. And it is a journey into the soul of prohibition-era America ...
Dennis Lehane is an American author. He has published more than a dozen novels; the first several were a series of mysteries featuring recurring characters, including *A Drink Before the War*. Four of his novels were adapted into award-wining films of the same names: *Mystic River* (2003), *Shutter Island* (2010), and *Gone Baby Gone* (2007) and *Live by Night* (2016). [*--Wikipedia*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Lehane)
