Arcadia

Self-made millionaire Victor wants to leave his mark before he dies. He has no family, no lover, so on his 80th birthday he decides to create a lasting monument in the city that made his fortune. He will destroy the old market-place where he grew up amongst the street traders and beggars, and rebuild it in the shape of Arcadia: a modern utopia of glass and greenery at the heart of the metropolis. 'The tallest buildings throw the longest shadows - thus great men make their mark,' Victor's architect tells him. Yet Arcadia's shadow falls more darkly than those around him could imagine . . . Another brilliant, inventive and engrossing novel from the masterful Jim Crace.