Synopsis A literary mystery set in 17th-century Oxford, in which a Fellow of New College is murdered, and a young woman is tried and executed as the killer. A "New York Times" Notable Book for 1998.
| Details | | Publication Date: | 1998-09-01 | | Series: | G K Hall Large Print Book Series | | Edition Description: | Large Print |
| Size | | Length: | 947 pages | | Height: | 9.8 in | | Width: | 6.5 in | | Thickness: | 1.5 in | | Weight: | 46.4 oz |
Publisher's Note In the 1660s, England's Charles II has been restored to the throne following years of civil war. Oxford is the intellectual seat of the country as well as a place of great political ferment. When a fellow of New College is found dead in suspicious circumstances, a young woman is accused of his murder. In An Instance of the Fingerpost we hear the account of the death from four witnesses, each telling his own very different version of what occurred. Only one reveals the extraordinary truth.
Industry Reviews "For almost 700 pages, Pears spins an intricate narrative web around the murder of an obnoxious Oxford don....One of the pleasures of reading 'An Instance of the Fingerpost' is the opportunity it affords to become a kind of amateur expert on daily life in Restoration England. And it is not just the physical world that is resurrected. Pears has steeped himself in the reading and the attitudes of the period, so that his characters...embody its rich contradictions..." New York Times Book Review - Andrew Miller (03/22/1998)
"Nothing in Pears's five archly amusing art mysteries hints at the range or depth or boldness of this multifaceted scrutiny of a murder case in Restoration Oxford....'Rashomon' meets 'The Name of the Rose' in a triumphant triple-decker that knocks every speck of dust from the historical mystery." Newman
"A whopping good read of Dickensian breadth....Deftly plotted, briskly written." Wagner
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