{"product_id":"2940169066104","title":"A Ladder to the Sky: A Novel","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA seductive, unputdownable psychodrama following one cunning, ruthless man who will stop at nothing in his pursuit of success\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMaurice Swift is handsome, charming, and hungry for fame. The one thing he doesn't have is talentamp;mdash;but he's not about to let a detail like that stand in his way. After all, a would-be writer can find stories anywhere. They don't need to be his own.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWorking as a waiter in a West Berlin hotel in 1988, Maurice engineers the perfect opportunity: a chance encounter with celebrated novelist Erich Ackermann. He quickly ingratiates himself with the powerfulamp;mdash;but desperately lonelyamp;mdash;older man, teasing out of Erich a terrible, long-held secret about his activities during the war. Perfect material for Maurice's first novel.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOnce Maurice has had a taste of literary fame, he knows he can stop at nothing in pursuit of that high. Moving from the Amalfi Coast, where he matches wits with Gore Vidal, to Manhattan and London, Maurice hones his talent for deceit and manipulation, preying on the talented and vulnerable in his cold-blooded climb to the top. But the higher he climbs, the further he has to fall¿\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSweeping across the late twentieth century, \u003ci\u003eA Ladder to the Sky\u003c\/i\u003e is a fascinating portrait of a relentlessly immoral man, a tour de force of storytelling, and the next great novel from an acclaimed literary virtuoso.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47169551630576,"sku":"2940169066104","price":22.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940169066104_p0.jpg?v=1763759494","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940169066104","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}