The Queen of Spades: A Fable

SWIMMING WITH SHARKS IN THE ART WORLD On a single, cold and foggy night, a notorious work of sensationalist art is stolen from the San Francisco Museum of Contemporary Art just prior to a major opening; an icon of inestimable value disappears during a brutal murder in a small Russian Orthodox church on Van Ness Avenue; and the wraith-like statues that adorn the rooftop of 580 California, twenty-three stories above the streets of the City, come alive. Once again, young journalist Maddy Stevenson, her intrepid friend and colleague Carlos Rodriguez, and her boyfriend, Detective Jimmy Wang of the SFPD, find themselves immersed in a trio of bizarre, interweaving mysteries that promise to shake the foundations of the contemporary art world – and Silicon Valley. With leads that take them halfway around the world to London and St. Petersburg, Maddy, Carlos and Jimmy wrestle with who might be more dangerous – a shadowy, underworld cartel trafficking in stolen art and jewels, the people who make and own cutting-edge art, the dark vestiges of the KGB, the handsome, young, Internet startup billionaire who sweeps Maddy off her feet… or the enigmatic, mythical and deadly Queen of Spades. Filled with unique and unforgettable characters, THE QUEEN OF SPADES is pure Peter Alexei – fast, funny, dark, deeply moving - and completely unpredictable.