The Pride

Book excerpt: Wallace Ford explodes onto the fiction scene with a rare and revealing glimpse into the world of New Yorks African-American elite. . . When Sture Jorgenson migrated from Norway to New York, he knew he was coming to the city of eight million stories--but he had no idea what fate had in store for him. His rise from dishwasher at the Water Club to part-owner of a hotspot restaurant named for tragic legend Dorothy Dandridge has him rubbing elbows with many powerful people, but when Sture gains entrée into "The Pride," he becomes part of that coterie of New Yorks most accomplished black men and women, the lions and lionesses whose lives intersect on Wall Street, in Harlem, in the Hamptons, and on Park Avenue. . . Despite the haunting deaths of those closest to him, Paul Taylor has charged ahead, driven by ambition, demons--and dreams for his beloved baby son. A lawyer, businessman, patron of the Water Club, part-owner of Dorothys restaurant, and charter member of The Pride, Paul is living the good life, complete with luxurious Harlem townhouse, fine wine, and fine women. Of course, even the good life has its complications. . . Beautiful, elegant, and gifted with rapier-sharp wit, Diedre Douglas is Pauls ex-wife, and a financial success in her own right. She has turned her close encounter with the glass ceiling into a thriving business enterprise. But for a woman at the top, there are always new challenges. . . Gordon Perkins is Wall Streets top black investment banker, a man whose brilliance and drive are exceeded only by his insatiable appetite for domination, control, and cruelty. His wife, Kenitra, is one of many who have suffered at Gordons hands. Those who get close to him get hurt--with one notable exception. . . From the glitz and the glamour to the power struggles, private dramas--and the surprising color lines drawn even at the highest levels of society--here is an intriguing portrait of a phenomenal city, its fascinating people, and their secrets.