The Pale Blue Eye: A Novel

Now a Netflix film starring Christian Bale, Harry Melling, and Gillian Anderson

“Shockingly clever and devoutly unsentimental . . . reads like a lost classic. Bayard reinvigorates historical fiction.” — New York Times Book Review

An ingenious tale of murder and revenge at West Point, featuring a retired detective and a young cadet named Edgar Allan Poe—from the author of Courting Mr. Lincoln.

At West Point Academy in 1830, the calm of an October evening is shattered by the discovery of a young cadet's body swinging from a rope. The next morning, an even greater horror comes to light. Someone has removed the dead man's heart.

Augustus Landor—who acquired some renown in his years as a New York City police detective—is called in to discreetly investigate. It's a baffling case Landor must pursue in secret, for the scandal could do irreparable damage to the fledgling institution. But he finds help from an unexpected ally—a moody, young cadet with a penchant for drink, two volumes of poetry to his name, and a murky past that changes from telling to telling.

The strange and haunted Southern poet, for whom Landor develops a fatherly affection, is named Edgar Allan Poe.

At West Point Academy in 1830, the calm of an October evening is shattered by the discovery of a young cadet's body swinging from a rope. The next morning, an even greater horror comes to light. Someone has removed the dead man's heart. Augustus Landor—who acquired some renown in his years as a New York City police detective—is called in to discreetly investigate. It's a baffling case Landor must pursue in secret, for the scandal could do irreparable damage to the fledgling institution. But he finds help from an unexpected ally—a moody, young cadet with a penchant for drink, two volumes of poetry to his name, and a murky past that changes from telling to telling. The strange and haunted Southern poet for whom Landor develops a fatherly affection, is named Edgar Allan Poe.

“Worthy of...high praise.” - Bookreporter.com

“Poe, an exacting critic...would have been impressed by Bayard’s intelligence and fluidity as a writer.” - Oregonian

“Brilliantly plotted and completely absorbing, ending with the kind of shock that few novelists are able to deliver.” - Sunday Times (London)

“A superb, lyrically written yarn. Deft and delicious.” - Providence Journal

“Well-wrought and suspenseful.“ - Buffalo News

“Shockingly clever and devoutly unsentimental...reads like a lost classic. Bayard reinvigorates historical fiction.” - New York Times Book Review

“Poe himself walks and talks so convincingly throughout the pages of this novel.” - Washington Post

“Gruesomely entertaining.” - New York Times

“Ingenious...with a rich knowledge of Poe’s life and work.” - Entertainment Weekly

“A rich and finely wrought psychological study that is a fitting tribute to Poe himself.” - The Straits Times (Singapore)

“Recommended. This novel is moody and rich in historic detail.” - Tucson Citizen

“An uncanny and original portrait. Captures the imagination with exquisite details and a compelling, disquieting story.” - Denver Rocky Mountain News

“Full of delightfully unexpected twists that continue to the very last pages of the novel.” - Denver Post

“Gracefully written...Bayard’s prose flows like silk, weightless but enveloping, and never shows its seams. - Salon.com

“What makes this more than a well-crafted thriller…is Bayard’s gift for language. He paints incredibly vivid pictures.” - Atlanta Journal-Constitution

“Bayard has produced a nuanced, wonderfully written tale, one worthy of the old master himself.” - Baltimore Sun

“Finely executed prose…An exquisitely rendered character study, imaginatively gothic, compelling.” - Memphis Commercial Appeal

“This book has it all--prose, plot and a terrifying conclusion...it will have you guessing to the very end.” - Hamilton Spectator (Canada)

“Seemlessly blends Poe into an engrossing whodunit worthy of its inspiration. ” - USA Today

“Exquisitely rendered character study, imaginatively Gothic, compelling.” - Miami Herald

“Another literary tour de force.…At novel’s end, the reader may want to start again from the beginning.” - Kirkus Reviews (Starred)

“Skillful...lyrical...Moves methodically to the suspects, the motives, and the clues that twist and turn like the Hudson itself.” - Library Journal

“(A) tour-de-force…intense and gripping …(a) beautifully crafted thriller ” - Publishers Weekly (starred review)