A high octane thriller, capturing the extraordinary capacity of humans to retain compassion in extreme circumstances Sam is a war photographer, famous for her hauntingly beautiful pictures of the dead. After a particularly gruelling assignment she checks into a luxury hotel, hoping to unwind with a few days of solitude. Abhi, the hotel manager, never wanted to be a hero; he just wants to avoid disappointing his father and brother any more than he has already. But when gun-wielding terrorists run amok through the hotel, and his five-year-old Billy is found alive under the bodies of his parents, Abhi and Sam are forced to work together to protect him from the mounting violence. As the threat of danger moves closer, the bond between this unlikely trio grows ever stronger. If they make it out alive, none of them will ever be the same.

"Nothing epitomized the glamour and excitement of Chicago's jazz age and war years like the fabled Edgewater Beach Hotel. Much more than a hotel, the Edgewater Beach was a world unto itself--the only urban resort of its kind in the nation. Located on the shores of Lake Michigan on Chicago's North Side, it offered swimming, golf, tennis, dancing, theater, fine dining, exclusive shopping, fabulous floor shows, unique watering holes, and, of course, some of the best jazz and swing music of its era. It even had its own pioneering radio station, which broadcasted across the nation and burnished its fame. Many of the legends of the big band era played its stages, and many of Hollywood's leading stars crossed its footlights. It was a stomping ground for both the rich and famous as well as ordinary people who wanted a small taste of the high life. The Edgewater Beach Hotel was world renowned. But the social upheaval of the 1960s, the ascendance of automobile culture, and rapid urban change led to its demise."--Provided by publisher.

The South's finest and one of America's best-these words have always defined the world-famous Peabody Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee. The Peabody emerged from the war-torn, post-Civil War South in 1869 to become one of the finest hotels in America. Its reputation for comfort, service, and fine dining grew along with Memphis's stature as "the river city, cotton capital, and birthplace of the blues." The most famous and infamous citizens of the era stayed at the original Peabody in its day. There, plantations were won or lost on a roll of the dice. After more than 50 years, the original hotel was replaced by a new 12-story, 615-room hotel in 1925. It was then that the hotel's name became synonymous with elegance. It also became the social center of Memphis and the mid-South, and a haunt for the rich and famous. The celebrated ducks swimming in the marble lobby fountain, parties in the skyway, or dancing on the open plantation roof to the music of the most renowned bands and orchestras of the day have all been part of this fabulous hotel's history. Today, the fully restored Peabody retains its reputation for legendary Southern hospitality and tasteful elegance. The hotel continues to serve as an anchor for the restoration and revitalization of the downtown area of one of America's most important cities.

A gun moll with a knack for disappearing flees from Prohibition-era Harlem to Portland's Paragon Hotel. The year is 1921, and "Nobody" Alice James has just arrived in Oregon with a bullet wound, a lifetime's experience battling the New York Mafia, and fifty thousand dollars in illicit cash. She befriends Max, a black Pullman porter who reminds her achingly of home and who saves Alice by leading her to the Paragon Hotel. But her unlikely sanctuary turns out to be an all-black hotel in a Jim Crow city, and its lodgers seem unduly terrified of a white woman on the premises. As she meets the churlish Dr. Pendleton, the stately Mavereen, and the club chanteuse Blossom Fontaine, she understands their dread. The Ku Klux Klan has arrived in Portland in fearful numbers--burning crosses, electing officials, infiltrating newspapers, and brutalizing blacks. And only Alice and her new Paragon "family" are searching for a missing mulatto child who has mysteriously vanished into the woods. To untangle the web of lies and misdeeds around her, Alice will have to answer for her own past, too. A richly imagined novel starring two indomitable heroines, The Paragon Hotel at once plumbs the darkest parts of America's past and the most redemptive facets of humanity. From international-bestselling, multi-award-nominated writer Lyndsay Faye, it's a masterwork of historical suspense.

Millions of people traveling America's railroads and highways pass through Omaha, breaking for an overnight stay. At the end of the day, the traveler's experience is in the hands of transportation workers, hoteliers, and restaurateurs who promise comfort, food, and safety. Omaha's hospitality industry offerings ranged from the modest Scandinavian Young Women's Christian Association and the Hotel Harley bachelor lodgings to the lofty Fontenelle and Blackstone Hotels. The resilient Paxton has been a fixture since 1882. Visitors to Omaha took in the bright lights and culture, documenting their impressions on postcards that picture the city's hotels, restaurants, train depots, bridges, and weather events.