The Grand Complication

In this literary thriller, a scholarly man named Alexander Short meets a man in the New York Public Library who wants him to find a missing

curiosity --an antique French timepiece that has disappeared from his home. As Alexander is drawn into the case, he encounters a bizarre cast of characters, becomes fascinated with the arcane information he encounters, and gradually begins to suspect that there might be more to his quest than meets the eye. A New York Times Notable Book for 2001.