Reviews
This book hit all of my favorite reading zones: historical fiction, mystery, adventure. It opens with Mr. Smith's arrival in New York from London, and two basic questions: how does a 23 year-old come by a bill for 1,000 pounds (about $200,000 in today's money), and what does he plan to do with all this cash once he has it in hand? These questions simmer and build among the citizens as Mr. Smith adventures around New York, never far from their prying and gossiping tongues. For me the questions often slipped to the background as one after another heart-stopping moment bubbled up; at times I was racing through passages because if I lingered the tension would have killed me. We are never very far from the start, however - suddenly readers are given tantalizing glimpses into Mr. Smith's mind, and we are urgently swept right back to those two original questions.
Delivered as the reviews on the back promised: immersive and historical but compulsively readable. And a show of brilliance how it manages to be both. I have never read an 18th century novel about anywhere other than the UK, but New York proved quickly endearing with its annoying small-city, tight-knit communal closeness. Spufford's style holds all the idiosyncrasies of the story - while mirroring the rambling ways of 18th century chronicling, it manages to be fast-paced and happily meta. I cannot figure out how this is done. If he writes anything else, I would read it.
This has been on my to-read list for years, and I finally picked it up and stuck with it. First hundred pages were a bit slow to get through but after that, oh man. So good. I’m a way that really surprised me. Felt weepy at the end. I never write reviews on here but wanted to encourage people to give this baby a shot. 18th Century New York comes alive.
An Englishman with a secret and his adventures in 18th century small town New York. Believable period detail, realistic dialog, entertaining and fast-paced plot. Bravura bonfire and chase sequence.
