A Cheese of Some Importance

In 1815, a Vermont businessman ships a giant cheese to Washington, D.C. to honor America’s greatest military hero, Tennessee’s General Andrew Jackson. The cheese vanishes. The government receives a ransom note. Payment isn’t an option. If news of the cheese’s disappearance becomes public, north and south will blame each other for the insult. A nation still divided after three years of war could split apart. Over a commemorative cheese? Cassius Lightner, Chief Clerk of the tiny U.S. Patent Office, is skeptical. He’s also shocked when his boss assigns him to find the cheese. Luckily, his unconventional English fiancée, Amanda Crofton, is happy to help. Is the dead body behind the French embassy the key? Cassius and Amanda scramble to discover the truth before political hell breaks loose.＂With punchy wit and clever turns of phrase, Giesser fills his leads with modern vivacity and tenacity that makes the unfurling of the mystery of the missing cheese a pleasure to witness. ... In this sense, the book’s wordplay is reminiscent of the works of P.G. Wodehouse, although Giesser meanders into far darker and more salacious territory. ... As a work of darkly comic historical fiction, it’s a resounding success.＂ -- Kirkus Reviews

Mark R. Giesser is an American playwright and theatre director who lives in London.