Rating: 
Summary: Points for Originality
Review: I give Liss a lot of credit for recreating a believable early seventeenth century London backdrop for this mystery. I also give Liss kudos for portraying a unique protagonist--an articulate Jewish ex-boxer (or pugilist as the character prefers). I found the narative engaging, credible and some of the dialogue was very entertaining: "I care not a fig for you sir".However, Liss falls into the trap of creating a complex conspiracy that not only bewilders the protagaonist, Ben Weaver, but it bewilders the reader as well. Ben is played as the puppet by a raft of gentlemen, stock jobbers and underworld lords. Ben does not know who is pulling the strings and neither does the reader. My main bone of contention is that the whole "conspiracy" is deciphered at an end meeting with one of the puppeteers--a la an old episode of Scooby Doo. The conspirator wraps everything up into a neat little ball for Ben to mull over, but it is a far from satisfactory conclusion for the reader since the action is over by this point and all we are getting is a dialogue that explains all those loose ends. I suppose it is better than leaving the the questions unanswered, but it would have been more satisfying if Ben Weaver had puzzled some of these conspiracies out for himself.
Rating: 
Summary: Solid, but not quite must-read.
Review: Good, but not great is how I would rate David Liss's historical thriller, set in 1719 London at the height of the South Seas bubble (and written, not coincidentally, at the height of our own stock market bubble -- the parallels are laid on pretty thick, but are still enjoyable). As a good historical novel must do, Liss admirably conveys the (imagined) sights, sounds and smells of 18th-century urban life, both splendid and squalid. The main character moves smoothly between both worlds: the estranged son of a Jewish stockbroker, Benjamin Weaver has lived on both sides of the law and now makes his living, more or less, as a private detective. Weaver's many double lives -- Jew and Englishman, criminal and law enforcer, son and outcast -- are masterfully drawn, with the help of a vivid supporting cast of characters. Liss, currently getting a doctorate in 17th century English literature (it seems safe to say, given how well his first novel has been received, that he is probably the happiest English lit student in the country), knows his material very well, and writes with confidence and humor. He deploys some admirable literary tricks, for instance casting the novel as a memoir written decades later by Weaver, which allows him to lard in relevant and interesting historical details without too much sense of authorial intrusion. (Other successful historical novels, e.g. _The Name of the Rose_ and _Lempriere's Dictionary_ pull this trick off with geographical distance, rather than temporal, by sending their characters on journeys into unfamiliar and interesting locales.) Liss also borrows from the writing style of the novels of the time, his own stock in trade, to give the narrative a pleasantly "antiqued" diction and pace. So what holds this novel back from the greatness to which it aspires? That most important aspect of fiction, plot. The intrigues into which Weaver are drawn, involving his father's suspicious death, stock fraud and the London criminal underground, are a bit too convoluted. It's enjoyable to watch Weaver solve the mystery, with a combination of induction (Weaver's entertaining sidekick, a penniless but charming physician, introduces him to the then-new concept of probabilistic reasoning, and draws a comparison between stock-brokering, detective work and Pascal's wager) and physical violence, but it's easy to lose track of his clues and suspicions. Liss puts so much work into the convoluted mystery that it becomes a bit exhausting. About halfway through, I found myself getting bored with all the characters and their possible motives, and all the talking and thinking about them, and looking forward to another exchange of pistols or another chase through a waste-strewn alleyway. It's worth comparing _A Conspiracy of Paper_ to _The Name of the Rose_, the apotheosis of the historical thriller. When the truth came out in the climax of the latter book, it all made sense -- I could think back over what I'd read and see all the mysteries illuminated in the light of the truth. When finishing A Conspiracy of Paper, I was happy to find all the accumulated implausibilities and unlikelihoods neatly wrapped up, but the core of the mystery had been somewhat lost beneath the coat of loose ends.
Rating:
Summary: A story from England
Review: As many books, the main story of the book (when you can find it) is very good, but it has to many stories that are out of the story and that make a heavy book to read.
The main story has inside another story and with both stories (that at the end of the book both of them has the same finish) you will read about how was the life in England in 1714 and how began the stock exchange in that country.
Rating:
Summary: Twisty-Turny Goodness
Review: I couldn't wait to get home from work every day so I could jump back in time to 18th c. London and the adventures of Mr. Benjamin Weaver, ex-boxer, thug-for-hire, and aspiring detective. A CONSPIRACY OF PAPER begins with a simple request of Weaver from a man of stature in British society, Sir Owen Nettleton. Sir Owen asks Weaver to retrieve some personal papers of a rather delicate nature from the prostitute he mistakenly left them with. From there the story jumps off in multiple directions-into the dirty dealings of stock jobbers, into the hardship of Jewish life in British society, into a possible connection to his own father's murder a short time earlier, into Weaver's encounters with the biggest thug of them all, Jonathan Wilde. Weaver is a likable character and his friendship with Elias, the playwright/surgeon is charming. The portrait of 18th c. London is vivid-you can sense the dampness and smell the must. I've read that there are plans to film this book-it would make a fabulous movie. (Note to casting directors: How about Hugh Jackman for the role of Weaver?)
Rating:
Summary: A Very Good Historical Novel
Review: I was turned on to this book by an Amazon reviewer who compared A Conspiracy of Paper favorably with Iain Pears' masterpiece, An Instance of the Fingerpost. While I still believe Pears' labrynth masterpiece of Restoration Oxford to be the superior novel, I was tremendously impressed with this book, especially as a first novel. A Conspiracy of Paper is narrated by Benjamin Weaver, a Jewish ex-boxer living in London who has abandoned a life of crime, and who now makes his living chasing down debtors and generally "righting wrongs" for hire. He is like an early 18th century Travis McGee, smart enough to keep himself generally out of trouble, with friends and contacts in London's seemier neighborhoods. Plus, being an ex-boxer, he is not above beating information out of a recalcitrant character here and there, although he seems to try and avoid brutality wherever possible. Weaver is hired early in the novel by nobleman Sir Owen, to retrieve some embarrassing letters in the possession of a prostitute which could reveal Owen's venereal disease to his bride-to-be. At around the same time, Weaver is retained to look into the apparent suicide of a businessman, Balfour, by his haughty son. The elder Balfour died within weeks of Weaver's own father, who was killed by an errant hackney. Are these cases related? Are the deaths of Balfour and Weaver's father connected to some secret about the financial markey they learned? Were they both murdered? The answers to these questions embroil Weaver, and the reader, in the early days of the British Stock Market, and the business of "stock jobbing", a term I suppose would relate to modern arbitragers. Liss has obviously done his research, as the book jacket makes clear, and he steers the reader effortlessly through London's stock market, bawdy gin joints, coffeehouses and gambling dens of 1719. The narrative style is breezy and quick - the characters speak in a genteel tone reminiscent of the early 18th century, but the language is never difficult or arcane. To keep the reader informed and up to date, Weaver periodically summarizes his progress and poses questions to his friend and playright Elias, whose appearance in the novel was always a refreshing change of pace from the tight-lipped stock jobbers populating much of the story. Weaver never lets the reader forget that he is an outsider, a Jew in a society where Jews may not own realty, and where they are looked upon with disdain by many of the same noblemen who profit greatly by their dealings at "Exchange Alley." Ultimately, there were some interesting twists and turns of the plot, but after 400 pages the payoff at the end wasn't quite as shocking or fulfilling as perhaps I was hoping. I also didn't quite understand why, if the exploits of "Martin Rochester" were so well-known among jobbers at the Alley, only one person answered Weaver's anonymous ad. In summary, perhaps it is unfair to compare a book about early 17th century financial markets to a book like Instance of the Fingerpost, which dealt with juicier themes such as religious heresy, political intrigue and treason, medical breakthroughs, and the restoration of Charles to the throne after Cromwell's death, among others, narrated by 4 very different characters. Liss' book is nevertheless an engaging read, perfectly capturing an oft-ignored period and making a rather dry subject more interesting than I would have ever expected. If Liss comes up just short of Palliser's Quincunx or Pears' Fingerpost, he is nevertheless legitimately mentioned in excellent company. An enthusiastic thumbs up.
Rating:
Summary: Really 3-1/2 Stars, But You Don't Have That Rating
Review: It was a good story, but I had the feeling that too much of today's politics entered into a period story. I felt there was a lot of unnecessary, extremely politically correct, or maybe political-axe-to-grind, writing. Maybe in his next book, Liss can just write the good story, remember that "folks is folks" and that that kind of heavy axe grinding belongs in non-fiction that is extremely well documented and that that documentation is well annotated in the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Restored my faith in Edgar
Review: This marvelous book restored my faith in the judges who award the Edgars. I hated to see this marvelous story come to an end. Not only is the main character engaging, his side-kick, Elias the playwright, is terrific and all the characters are true to life. The life and times of early 18th century London are well-portrayed. The suspense as Weaver goes about his business trying to unearth the secret to what happened to his father is well done. Weaver lives in a time when people in power had just as soon permanently despose of their enemies, and Weaver takes care of a few himself. The writing is superb, contrary to the few detractors. Don't miss this book!
Rating:
Summary: What an Amazing Novel,a 1st Novel at That!!!
Review: How David Liss actually managed to put this intriguing mystery/adventure together with the prose of a sure literary old pro seems impossible. You are transported right into the heart of 1719 London, and sent into a steaming whirlwind. This was a time over 100 years before Dickens,but written in a style that would perhaps make even the Master proud. And it is a harsh,brutal world that Mr. Liss creates. Told from a first person viewpoint, the South Sea Bubble, and various financial manipulations are only a part of this sensational yarn. If you have some time,and would like to take a time machine back almost 300 years,this will land you there.
Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating historic events ruined by leaden prose.
Review: All I ask of historical fiction is that it is convincing. Again, as with The Music of the Spheres by Elizabeth Redfern, my expectations for this book, based on the many recommendations, were so sorely disappointed that I am compelled to share my unhappiness with you. The prose is glacial. The author attempts to narrate the book in the first person. Thus he must us 18th century vernacular. If clumsily executed this begs constant comparison to others, principally Patrick O'Brian. O'Brian's breezy, indirect vernacular style is considered masterful by most. Why a writer of such leaden prose would risk this comparison is incomprehensible! But compared to lesser entertainments, convincingly set in a similar period, like The Dress Lodger by Sheri Holman or Kydd by Julian Stockwin or The Requiem Shark by Nicholas Griffin, this is an exceeding poor attempt. Even Griffin's House of Sight and Shadow, with its anti-climactic plot an ultimately unsatisfying read, is competently written. And thus convincing. In this case, completely distracted from the story by a prose experience that was like watching paint dry, I set this book aside unfinished. Finally, to be completely honest so that you may find this review useful, I couldn't finish The Alienist by Caleb Carr either and I believe it was a bestseller. So, if like me, the many positive recommendations here raise hope of another happy experience of historical fiction transporting you to a favorite period, BEWARE!
Rating:
Summary: Engrossing historical fiction
Review: From the immediately engaging narrative voice of the protagonist, Benjamin Weaver, to vibrant descriptions of history and place and character, to lucid explanations of the workings of early financial markets, A Conspiracy of Paper, by David Liss, succeeds admirably. He strikes the right balance in the language of the book with his nods to both eighteenth-century prose style and the modern reader's sensibilities. Barring any glaring incongruities, compromises to accuracy in language and detail in historical fiction are acceptable, perhaps even preferred, if they improve the author's ability to communicate to a general audience of modern readers. In other words, it's my bias that history serves the fiction. Yes, the plot is convoluted. Liss succumbs to the misguided notion, rampant among mystery writers, that complexity and cleverness in plotting are necessarily synonymous. And violence, certainly, is an effective method of getting to the heart of a matter. But Weaver's reversion to violence in the last 50 pages, after struggling with his friend Elias' deductive method for hundreds of pages, seems too much a deus ex machina, as though Liss had painted himself into a corner and couldn't find a way out. These couple of reservations aside, A Conspiracy of Paper is an engrossing historical mystery.
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