An Instance Of The Fingerpost

Pears, Iain [1st PRINT / SIGNED]

ISBN 10: 0224044664 / ISBN 13: 9780224044660

Published by Jonathan Cape, 1997

About this Item

Jonathan Cape, London, 1997. Hardcover. Book Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Fine. Stated "First Published 1997", first UK edition and true first, first printing with a full number line starting at "1". 9-1/2" tall, 698 numbered pages includes "Dramatis Personae"; one-piece black binding, gilt lettering on spine; front board is plain; end pages are black-on-red bird's-eye-view of the Oxford campus; fore edge is trimmed. Book is square, hinges tight, spotlessly clean, corners not bumped, no dings on edges, head and heel of spine lightly creased but with no fabric damage. The interior is clean and unmarked; no stains or discolorations, no page corners folded or damaged; no remainder mark, not book club edition nor ex-library; no distortion of the book from reading or improper shelving; pages are tight and clean with no marks; hinges are very tight and not damaged in any way; text block sags a bit, with the head of the text pulling slightly away from the binding and the bottom of the text black having a slightly soiled front edge (it is a big, heavy book). The jacket is clean; no tears, folds, creases or fading; no bumps on spine or edges; original price of "£16.99" listed on the lower corner of front flap. Condition of book and jacket consistent with being very gently read. No other discernible or objectionable faults on book or jacket such as marks or writing within, stains, tears, chips, or other damage that would diminish its appearance. No remainder mark, no previous owner markings or inscriptions, not price clipped, not a book club edition, not a former library book. Signed by the author in thin black felt pen, in the middle of the title page, beneath his printed name. The dust jacket is in a protective mylar cover. Easily one of the best mysteries that I have ever read; it plunges you into the politics, parochialism and prejudices of a 1660's English university and does not let you up for air!

Seller Inventory # BMR-2022-12-11-3

Bibliographic Details

• Title: An Instance Of The Fingerpost
• Publisher: Jonathan Cape
• Publication Date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0224044664
• ISBN 13: 9780224044660
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Fine
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

We are in Oxford in the 1660s - a time, and place, of great intellectual, scientific, religious and political ferment. Robert Grove, a fellow of New College is found dead in suspicious circumstances. A young woman is accused of his murder. We hear about the events surrounding his death from four witnesses: Marco da Cola, a Venetian Catholic intent on claiming credit for the invention of blood transfusion; Jack Prescott, the son of a supposed traitor to the Royalist cause determined to vindicate his father; John Wallis, chief cryptographer to both Cromwell and Charles II, a mathematician, theologican and inveterate plotter; and Anthony Wood, the famous Oxford antiquary. Each witness tells their version of what happened. Only one reveals the extraordinary truth.

An Instance of the Fingerpost is a magnificent tour de force: an utterly compelling historical mystery story with a plot that twists and turns and keeps the reader guessing until the very last page.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

About the Author

Iain Pears was born in 1955. Educated at Wadham College, Oxford, he has worked as a journalist, an art historian and television consultant. He is the author of six highly praised detective novels, which include The Raphael Affair, The Bernini Bust and An Instance of the Fingerpost. He has also written a book of art history and countless articles on artistic, financial and historical subjects.


From the Trade Paperback edition.