An Instance of the Fingerpost: Explore the murky world of 17th-century Oxford in this iconic historical thriller

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Rosina wrote: "Each of the four narrators has a different mystery, and the killing of Dr Grove is perhaps the least absorbing, though I found the testing of the poison by Stahl - the early forensic science - most..." Was not Hypatia the greatest philosopher of Alexandria, and a true martyr to the old values of learning? She was torn to pieces by a mob of incensed Christians not because she was a woman, but because her learning was so profound, her skills at dialectic so extensive that she reduced all who queried her to embarrassed silence. They could not argue with her, so they murdered her.”

An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears | Waterstones

II. Централно място в сюжета заема загадката около убийство в Оксфорд, к��ято е разказана от 4 различни гледни точки, но същевременно се усеща духът на епохата, както и има философски размисли. Отделните персонажи, представящи своята версия за събитията, са все интересни личности, като на моменти си противоречат един на друг, което прави „Пръстът, който те сочи“ доста вълнуващо четиво. Книгата не успя да ме заплени чак колкото страхотната „Аркадия“ на Пиърс, но определено ми направи добро впечатление! Literary Allusion Title: The title, as well as short epigraphs for each part of the narration, is taken from Francis Bacon's Novum Organum Scientarum. I sinned against the law, against God’s word reported, I abused my family and exposed them even more to risk of public shame, I again risked permanent exclusion from those rooms and books which were my delight and my whole occupation; yet in all the years that have passed since I have regretted only one thing: that it was but a passing moment, never repeated, for I have never been closer to God, nor felt his love and goodness more.” Thom wrote: "Interestingly I never cared for the various series based on his books. I'd watch a few episodes and that was it. Talented as he may have been, I doubt he's a good one for me."Iain Pears is a Coventry-born and Oxford-educated art historian and author of historical mysteries, and An Instance of the Fingerpost is his most famous novel. Good historians are not necessarily good authors and good authors are not necessarily good historians, but in Fingerpost Pears manages to strike a comfortable balance between both professions. Fascinating…quite extraordinary…elevates the murder mystery to the category of high art.”— Los Angeles Dr. Robert Grove (is found dead) suddenly poisoned in his chambers. Who did it? And, more important, why? The author definitely achieved that. And more. Knowing I couldn’t rely on their versions, I had to listen carefully to the clues. And quite honestly, I’ll be the first to admit that I missed a lot of them, and I won’t blame the fact that I was listening to the audio version whilst being busy with something else instead of reading, which obviously always requires my whole attention. But I’m not sure I would have seen the clues even if I had read it first. Question is, of course, did the author leave any clues? Maybe, maybe not. I am reading the Kindle version at the moment. But I will never know now as I know the whole story already. Iain Pears’ intricately plotted, highly intelligent and very enjoyable novel, An Instance of the Fingerpost, explores the troubling and problematic side of the historical movement labelled with the smug term ‘The Enlightenment’.

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All Women Are Lustful: Anthony Wood says this outright in his account, but this is really the belief underlying all the characters' attitudes towards Sarah. (Except maybe Wallis, who doesn't really seem to care one way or the other about her morals as long as she can be used in his elaborate plot to foil an imaginary assassination attempt.) Historical fiction tends to gather around the Tudors and Victorians but often skirts the Stuarts. They had an awful lot of messy Civil Wars and their personalities were not what one would call attractive. Unlike writers attempting valiantly to fashion together something new from the fall of Anne Boleyn or similar, An Instance of the Fingerpost offers fresh material even for the hardened historical fiction fiend such as myself. However, even without the refreshing setting and context, Pears' novel marks itself as head and shoulders above the average. Ilga ilga ir tikrai wild kelionė po 17 amžiaus Oksfordą / Londoną. Pradėdama skaityti truputį spjaudžiausi, nes maniau, kad nemėgstu istorinių detektyvų, bet pasirodo, kad nemėgstu tik skandinaviškų (laba diena, Undinėle ir 1793). O gal tiesiog Pearso detektyvas - labai geras. Ir dar įsuktas į tiek sluoksnių, kad detektyviškumas lieka kaip malonus prieskonis. There is a wonderful scene in the novel’s first section where Marco da Cola attends (and loathes) a production of King Lear by William Shakespeare. King Lear tells the story of a once-powerful monarch humiliated and unraveled by his own weakness and the treachery of his children. Why, then, might Pears have chosen to include Lear in his novel in particular? Do you see any parallels between the world invoked in King Lear (which was written in 1606) and the world of Fingerpost? How might this play have particular significance in Restoration England, particularly in Oxford, which was a Royalist stronghold? (Remember that not everyone shares da Cola’s reaction; indeed, Richard Lower reacts to the play very differently.) What, then, does the each character’s reaction to the play say about their politics?It is the 1660s and England is still in turmoil after the death of Oliver Cromwell. He unnaturally died of natural causes though he was later dug up, hung in chains, and ceremoniously beheaded. Torturing a corpse seems like an odd thing to do. It is as if they believed they could torment the departed soul with what they do with the empty shell. Regardless, Cromwell’s death left a power vacuum that was proving difficult to fill. It is easy to confuse Oliver Cromwell with Thomas Cromwell as both did rise to great heights of power. Oliver is a descendant of Thomas’s older sister. Thomas worked for Henry the VIII and did lose his head not unusual for anyone who worked closely with the colossally paranoid King.

Fingerpost - Wikipedia Fingerpost - Wikipedia

YMMV • Radar • Quotes • ( Funny • Heartwarming • Awesome) • Fridge • Characters • Fanfic Recs • Nightmare Fuel • Shout Out • Plot • Tear Jerker • Headscratchers • Trivia • WMG • Recap • Ho Yay • Image Links • Memes • Haiku • Laconic • Source • Setting Fingerposts were also used in Continental Europe; in the Electorate of Saxony they were a precursor to the Saxon post milestones. to an uncertain throne. It is a time of sects, witch hunts and conspiracies. It is also the dawn of the Enlightenment.The Name of the Rose will now have to share that position with An Instance of the Fingerpost . This book is a master piece of storytelling. I was glued to it from the first – or rather, I had my earphones glued to my ears, as I listened to the audio version. A review of a novel that barely mentions its central plot, or many of its important features or themes, is perhaps a little unorthodox — but this is precisely in keeping with the novel itself. All I can say is that it is a very clever, confident, well-written book which I would recommend heartily. It was interesting to learn towards the end that Prestcott was in Bedlam, which casts additional doubt over his narrative, but I didn't find his section very compelling, and Wallis's even less so.

An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears - Reading Guide

Forgotten the title or the author of a book? Our BookSleuth is specially designed for you. Visit BookSleuth One of the pleasures of reading (Fingerpost) is the opportunity it affords to become a kind of amateur expert on daily life in Restoration England. The Seasonal Read...: 15.8 ("A beautiful thing never gives so much pain as does failing to hear and see it.")

Mod Abigail wrote: "I gave up a little way into Prestcott’s narration. Am not surprised to hear that Sarah was not dead after the hanging because of all the blood da Cola described when he came in on the “autopsy.” If..." A "novel" novel (please pardon the attempted humor), where unreliable narrators outnumber purported reliability by a long shot. Once again my happiness at not living in the 17th century is validated as I read of the physical squalor, the political and religious unrest and distrust in England after the restoration of Charles II, the relative worthlessness of the average person's life. Amidst that there is the glimmer of new knowledge and education at Oxford the seat of "Instance".