A Pair of Aces is an historical novel based on real-life people and events. Eunice Carter is the only African-American or woman on Thomas Dewey's team of twenty, who are set to bring down the mob in New York City. Polly Adler, a Russian Jewish immigrant known as the Jewish Jezzibel, is one of the most famous madams of New York City. The two will meet and plan a way to convict Lucky Luciano of being the head of a prostitution empire called the Combination. Luciano has taken over all of the brothels and has girls going to different houses and events. He doesn't care if the girls get hurt or killed. There are more where they came from, after all. Polly and some of the other madams care about their girls, and in Polly's case, she's managed to avoid mob entanglements since she opened business. None of these women want to be under the thumb of Luciano.
Eunice has a successful dentist husband and a young son. Her mother, Addie Waites Hunton, is famous for her groundbreaking work with the YWCA and the NAACP. She fought for the rights of both women and African-Americans. Eunice was the first African-American woman to graduate from Fordham University, where she obtained a law degree. Eunice's husband, Lisle, doesn't seem proud of her work and doesn't like her outshining him. When she starts receiving threats against her and her family, he insists that she quit and be a homemaker. Eunice, however, cannot do that. She is good at what she does. Dewey did not want to get Luciano on a vice charge, but Eunice built the case by talking to prostitutes, madams, and bookers, and by going to Women's Court to see all the players.
This book delves deeply into mob history and the history of women of the time. When author Murray first went digging into Eunice Carter, she found a mention of her at the Mob Museum, but nothing else. The two authors used Polly Adler's autobiography and Eunice Carter's biography, written by her grandson, well-known author Stephen L. Carter, who wrote The Emperor of Ocean Park. They also read Dewey's account of the trial. This is an unbelievable book that shows how a brave woman brought down Lucky Luciano, the head mobster of the American syndicate, and one madam who wanted to protect her girls. This book will captivate you and grab hold of your attention from the very start to the end.
Quotes
No girl wakes up in the morning wishing to spend her life as a whore.
Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray (A Pair Of Aces p 23)
Nothing moves a man faster than the fear of being shown up by a woman.
Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray (A Pair Of Aces p 332)
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