THE MOGUL

The Mogul is about the front-page murder of a young woman outside a hip Manhattan club and how a media feeding frenzy over this sensational story leads to the downfall of a legendary newspaper mogul and his publishing empire.

It’s a suspense thriller—but also a roman à clef of sorts about the New York City media world, based in part on my own background as a top editor for many years at the New York Post, New York Daily News and NBC News.

The book is set in 2003, when print newspapers still ruled the media world (before websites, streaming services and cable news channels took over that role)—and also looks back at the glory days of New York City tabloids during the '70s, ' 80s and '90s.

. . .

"Dick Belsky’s book, at its beating heart, is about the world of tabloid newspapers in which I grew up. The Mogul is a love letter to that time, those papers, a world where the big-city day didn’t start until the newspaper trucks rolled. Enjoy the ride."

~ Mike Lupica, best-selling author and New York Daily News columnist

“Buy this book! You’ll have fun. You won’t be able to put it down. You’ll lose sleep. It will transport you back to the old New York City — the Wild Wild West of the 70s and 80s — and you’ll never want to come back."

~ Joe Eszterhas, Hollywood screenwriter for Basic Instinct and

New York Times best-selling author

"R.G. Belsky has written a compelling mystery that reaches beyond the genre, a novel about power, loyalty and the uneasy realization that the people we admire most are sometimes the ones we understand the least. Some stories are about finding the truth; others are about what the truth costs once you've found it. Written with the confidence of someone who has spent a lifetime inside America's newsrooms, Belsky writes about it without romance or apology. There's not a false note in it. “

~ Baron Birtcher, award-winning author of Knife River and Roadhouse Blues

"A highly suspenseful tale that captures the grit, glam and danger of NYC at the turn of the 21st century, The Mogul also treats readers to an insiders' view of tabloid journalism in its heyday. An absolutely captivating book. I was riveted throughout."

~ Alison Gaylin, Edgar Award-winning and USA Today bestselling author