Harvard Yard - Softcover

Martin, William

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0446614505 ISBN 13: 9780446614504

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 2004

Synopsis

Peter Fallon, the hero of William Martin's bestselling novel Back Bay, has found evidence that a priceless treasure-an undiscovered Shakespeare play-is hidden somewhere in the venerable halls of Harvard University. An antiquarian who knows many of the school's carefully guarded secrets, Fallon understands the powerful implications of the discovery. But as he delves into the school's past-from witch hangings to the fires of the Civil War to the riotous 1960s-he learns that men and women have risked death, disgrace, and banishment in pursuit of this invaluable relic. And, as he uncovers rifts between generations, families, friends, and lovers, Fallon begins to understand something else: that finding this landmark manuscript is a matter of life and death.

About this title

About the Author:

William Martin is the New York Times bestselling author of ten novels, an award-winning PBS documentary, and a cult classic horror movie, too. His first novel, Back Bay, introduced treasure hunting hero Peter Fallon, who has now appeared in five novels, and spent fourteen weeks on the Times list. SInce then Martin has been telling stories of the great and the anonymous in American history, from the Pilgrims to 9/11. His novels, including Cape Cod, Annapolis, City of Dreams, and The Lincoln Letter, have established him as "a storyteller whose smootness equals his ambition" (Publisher's Weekly). He lives near Boston with his wife and has three grown children. In 2005, he was the recipient of the prestigious New England Book Award, given to "an author whose body of work stands as a significant contribution to the culture of the region."

From Booklist:

Martin continues to entertain with the successful formula he perfected in best-sellers Back Bay (1979) and Cape Cod (1991). The author races back and forth through time in order to solve a bookish mystery rooted in historical events. When antiquarian bookseller Peter Fallon follows the clues he hopes will lead him to recover a lost Shakespeare play written in the bard's own hand, he himself becomes the target of both underworld thugs and unscrupulous academics. The most compelling action takes place in the past as he traces the utterly fascinating evolution of Harvard University by interweaving it with the intimate history of one of New England's first families. Bound by oath to preserve John Harvard's library, Issac Wedge takes care to squirrel away the Shakespearean quarto the dying Harvard entrusted to his care. Realizing that Puritan reactionaries would most certainly destroy the play, Wedge hands it down for safekeeping to his own son, establishing a pattern that is repeated by each succeeding generation until it appears that the manuscript has been lost. Or has it? It is up to Fallon to put all the pieces of the puzzle together. The unexpected twists and turns through history will keep readers guessing and the pages turning. Margaret Flanagan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About this edition

• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0446614505
• ISBN 13: 9780446614504
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Number of pages: 720