This is the story of a thief. The prize he chased. The price he paid. And the two women who shared his journey. For Horace Pope, stealing wasn't his profession, it was his art.

As Horace always said, "A good thief plans everything down to the last second, every detail, every move. But a great thief does it on pure intuition. They feel it and they go. They strike and are gone and it's over, just like that. And they do it for the same reason a bird flies and fish swim."

Though his passion and focus was high end wristwatches, where the prices start around $100,000…and then go up…Horace could and would steal anything that fate put in front of him. Like a killer's million dollars.

And that brings us to the two women in his story. Lu Parker, Horace's ex-wife and sometimes lover, met Marci Epson while on jury duty. Jack Csiki was on trial for armed robbery and murder, with special circumstances. That means the death penalty.

So why does Jack Csiki throw Horace's gold Rolex down the garbage disposal? And how do they all end up in Paris? And how does a Muslim Halal Meat market, a French homeless encampment, and Howard Hawks' 1948 classic western "Red River" all play a part in the climax of the story?

Horace would kill me if I gave away the ending. If he were here. Wherever he is. "Horace Pope Loves to Steal"... a stylish, offbeat, sexy new literary romp from the author of "About Her Dead Husband," "The Sentimental Killer," and "Murder at the Magic Hour."