Marcel Duchamp and the New York Russian mafia may not seem connected to most people, but novelist Alec Nevala-Lee brilliantly ties them together in his debut novel The Icon Thief. At the center of this thriller is Etant Donnes, Marcel Duchamp’s enigmatic final installation. Composed in secret, Duchamp worked on the piece for over two decades and wasn’t revealed to the public until after Duchamp’s death in 1968. In his novel, Nevala-Lee sheds quite a bit of light on Duchamp’s Etant Donnes while also telling a story about organized crime, international conspiracy, and art trafficking. The Icon Thief has been described as “cerebral” and “exciting” by Publishers Weekly.