House of Cards — Stanley Ellin

RECIPE FOR TERROR

Begin with an American down on his luck in Paris. Summon him to the aid of a terrified, beautiful woman in a mansion shadowed by mysterious menace. Add a strangely warped child and a group of decadent aristocrats. Violently blend in an undercover conspiracy of shattering import. And then--as you move from the twilight squares of Paris to the moonlit canals of Venice to the midnight streets of Rome--watch the world of deceptive appearances come crashing down like a HOUSE OF CARDS