A Conspiracy of Paper : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: A Vibrant, Gripping, Entertaining Book
Review: As someone who works in the film industry, I wanted to check out "A Conspiracy of Paper" as soon as I read that the movie rights had been acquired by Miramax. What I found delighted me. I happen to enjoy historical fiction because I love seeing how writers recreate the past, but rarely have I seen a period depicted with the verve that David Liss does here. Most historical novels that want to be taken seriously are deadly serious, as though to inject any humor into the tale would be to disqualify it as a worthwhile endeavor. On the other hand, those who take a stab at humor too often fall into the realm of the cartoonish. What I loved about "A Conspiracy of Paper" is that it is literary in the best sense, but it is also a very fun and sometimes funny book. The mystery and suspense element was fascinating, and that is what kept me franticly turning the pages, but I think what I'll remember about this book was how it depicted a world in such as way as to make it both frightening and delightful.

Rating:
Summary: The best I've read in a long time
Review: As a librarian I get to read and review for m patrons many of the books as they are published. This novel combines history, politics, economics and the local color of that period. I consider it an excellent choice for my library and have ordered multiple copies. The tone of the writing is also in tune with the period which is most interesting to read. A great departure and a worthwhile read.

Rating:
Summary: A Conspiracy of Paper
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this reading adventure. Having been born and raised in London, England, I found much to connect with. Plus the fact that my mother was married in Bevis Marks synagogue descibed as it was in 1719, made me aware of the conditions and irreverence that Jews were held in during that period. The language of the period was quite revealing also, and Mr. Liss, the author uses it with great aplomb. I learned where the term 'double cross' originated, and many other issues relating to the beginnings of a rudimentary stock market. All in all a wonderful read.

Rating:
Summary: Don¿t miss this terrific book!
Review: Anyone who loves historical thrillers that are complex but easy to get into is going to love "A Conspiracy of Paper." This book has a great mystery, great characters, and is really, really addictive. I was up a lot later for two nights than I should have been because I couldn't put it down. The author is one of the best new writers I've come across in a long time. He writes in the language of the 1700s, which scared me off at first, but then I found how easy it was to read. And once the plot got going, which it does almost right away, I was hooked. I read a lot of novels, and I like many of them, but I LOVED this one.

Rating:
Summary: Almost But Not Quite
Review: I found it interesting that the author thanked all sorts of people for help in writing this book but he neglected to mention those wonderful 18th century British writers that he is trying to emulate.The historical clothespins are there and these nice tidbits fly up every few pages. But the main thing I expected to see was some of the humor and fun that are available in Fielding, Sterne and DeFoe for example.This is my favorite period of history and while I realize that violence was different then than now, I do think there was more of a lust for life that David Liss misses. He should try again -- in fewer pages, and with a lighter tone -- to bring us the glory of the past.

Rating:
Summary: Good historical read
Review: A richly detailed story of old London that involves an unlikely "hero" in solving a murder in the stock jobbing business. In the genre of 'The Alienist' Liss gives us a up close look at life in 1719 London.

Rating:
Summary: A Conspiracy of Paper
Review: I don't need a 1000 words to describe this story, one will do. Extraordinary. This is a great story told by a masterful storyteller. If you enjoy history, detective stories, adventure, arcane knowledge, then I am sure you will enjoy this novel. The more the world changes the more it remains the same.

Rating:
Summary: A Conspiracy Of Paper
Review: In "A Conspiracy Of Paper," author David Liss has rendered an era as completely as I have yet seen it. Early 18th Century London is a setting all too little covered in modern fiction in the light of its influence on western culture today. Liss amply demonstrates this in his book, showing us the birth of modern finance, the world's first "super-criminal" (Jonathan Wild), and the state of race/class/religious relations, all of which were strongly present (in some cases, even more strongly) in 18th Century London. The author's eye for detail is exquisite, bringing us the feel, sounds, even smells of a time long gone even as it is vividly restored. His plot is a page-turner, and while complex, not so convoluted as to be unfollowable. His characters: detective/pugilist, Benjamin Weaver, surgeon/playboy, Elias Gordon, and arch-criminal, Jonathan Wild, form a prescient author's triumvirate, anticipating Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Watson, and Professor Moriarty, in the London of the next century. This reviewer hopes for more stories of Ben Weaver in the years to come.

Rating:
Summary: Pure Reading Satisfaction
Review: I picked up this book in the store because the cover caught my eye, started reading it by the rack, and could not put it down. Needless to say, I bought it! This is one of the most enjoyable books I've read in I don't know how long. The characters are likable and realistic, the setting (a time and place I didn't know anything about) is beautifully constructed, and the plot is a total page-turner. "A Conspiracy of Paper" seems, at first, to be just a regular mystery, but it is far more compliated, intricate, and clever than any mystery I've ever read. A real treat for anyone who loves to read!

Rating:
Summary: The Book of the Year!
Review: A Conspiracy of Paper is without a doubt the best historical mystery I have ever read-- suspense-filled, clever, filled with period detail, and written in a narrative voice evocative of the 18th-c without being precious or pretentious. Liss has created a hero who is irresistable and vastly complex. What makes this novel particularly remarkable is its pairing of financial intrigue with the development of probability theory, which is used to wonderful effect. The attention to Sephardic culture and boxing make this novel truly exciting and a pure reading pleasure.