Harry Thursday

The Greek countryside and a beautiful woman might seem like enough to satisfy anyone's vacation plans, but the intrepid archaeologist Harry Thursday seems bereft of a good time if someone isn't trying to kill him. During WWII, the Russian Amber Room and a hoard of diamonds worth 200 million dollars were stolen from Göring's Kunstschutz commander, Erich Koch. Now, over thirty years later, Russian art historian Elina Kulinov is attempting to recover these items when Harry Thursday stumbles along. He joins her in a race against a Philadelphia museum and SMERSH. With everyone looking for the same items, who will find them first? And who will survive?

Robert Walton's first novel takes us back to 1976. Harry Thursday, an archaeologist, is trying to forget the violent death of his wife. An expedition to find a tomb of an ancient Inca king in the Chilean Andes ends with the discovery of a rich hoard of precious gems and trinkets, and the sudden death of the team's leader. On the way home, Harry and his wife are robbed of their find, and Harry finds himself alone on a troller bound for Panama after his beloved wife falls overboard during a heavy squall. 1978, Harry is on a camping trip with his best friend Conner in the wild mountains of North-west Wyoming. They come upon a bawdyhouse in the middle of nowhere. CJ, one of the girls, takes to Harry and runs away with them, much to the angst of the pimp Skinny, who goes on a wild killing spree to bring her back. Separated from Conner during a sudden blizzard, they must fend for themselves in the shadows of the Grand Teton Mountains. Wounded by Skinny, Harry battles an infection and fever and it is up to CJ to find the cabin used by the bordello to entertain customers. While they wait for the storm to end, Harry discovers the secret CJ is holding, and why her pimp wants her back, and then it is only a matter of time before the final standoff between Harry's destiny and his terrible past.