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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
Set in the era when spies were frowned upon, traces the life of John Stone, financier and industrialist.
Almost as complicated as Instance of the Fingerpost; a more satisfying ending. Well crafted. Ian Pears is one of my favorite authors, but be warned that it takes some time and concentration to read him (unless you are reading his lighter, artwork/detective mysteries, which are very quick reads).
adventurous
mysterious
Sadly, I couldn't even finish this book. Historical fiction is not typically a genre I enjoy, but I've read a few lately that have given me hope. This book did not and for a simple reason - it is much too long. The unimportant details bored me to tears, and while I believe those were put in as a way to hide the true clues, a more direct thriller would have been much more enjoyable. I read a spoiler of the ending, and perhaps if I read through to the end I'd have more of a positive feeling about it. But since I did not, it comes off as cheap. I'm sad I didn't enjoy this book more.
I borrowed this book a few years ago and it didn't suck me in with the first 20-30 pages, so I returned it. But it has been so highly reviewed for so long that I decided to try again, this time on audio book.
I'm about halfway through (11/25 hrs) and ready to give up. I'm so bored! The intricacies of the business dealings I'm sure are well-done and fascinating to some, but a 45-min commute taken up by an exposition of the brilliance of building an arms empire just isn't doing it for me. And I feel like the characters are caricatures/cliches, and are becoming more so. I just looked thought the reviews and got the gist that there are two more parts to come, but even seeing the general areas where it's headed, I just don't care. Moving on!
I'm about halfway through (11/25 hrs) and ready to give up. I'm so bored! The intricacies of the business dealings I'm sure are well-done and fascinating to some, but a 45-min commute taken up by an exposition of the brilliance of building an arms empire just isn't doing it for me. And I feel like the characters are caricatures/cliches, and are becoming more so. I just looked thought the reviews and got the gist that there are two more parts to come, but even seeing the general areas where it's headed, I just don't care. Moving on!
I'm glad I received Stone's Fall at a recent CBC Books trivia night! I dove into this hefty tome looking for some light, enjoyable reading and that's what I got. I would describe the story as historical mystery with a little suspense thrown in. We begin the onion-like story in London 1909: an incredibly wealthy financier, John Stone, has been found dead. His widow hires a journalist to ostensbily write her husband's biography, but in fact ferret out a mystery revealed Stone's will. As the search commences, more is revealed about Stone's life and rise to wealth, but we are really left with more questions than answers. The second part travels back in place and time to Paris 1890s and follows the life of a British spy introduced in the first part and his connection to Stone. Finally, the last part is Stone's narrative in Venice 1868, where many more questions are his life are answered.
I said the story was onion-like, and I applaud Iain Pears for his effective narrative that slowly reveals more and more about Stone's life and all the characters along the way, but by going back in time! I wasn't expecting to be so surprised by the very end. I won't spoil the plot, so just to say that I thought I had everything figured out, but the final two pages threw in a twist I was not expecting at all.
I said the story was onion-like, and I applaud Iain Pears for his effective narrative that slowly reveals more and more about Stone's life and all the characters along the way, but by going back in time! I wasn't expecting to be so surprised by the very end. I won't spoil the plot, so just to say that I thought I had everything figured out, but the final two pages threw in a twist I was not expecting at all.
A bit slow and complex, but worth it if you hang in there.
4.5, Literary, suspenseful, well paced, daunting, daring, dashing, you'll like it.
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Similar to his An Instance of the Fingerpost, Stone's Fall tells the parts of a story form the eyes of three people – Matthew Braddock (1909), Henry Cort (Paris, 1890) and John Stone (Venice, 1867). Braddock is a newspaper man hired in 1909 by Elizabeth Stone to ostensibly write a biography of her recently deceased husband, John Stone, who wound up dead on the street after a fall from his second floor office in his home.
A prominent behind-the-scene arms dealer and financier, shrew in his dealings, and in "it" for the love of a good challenge, Stone's death has left two puzzles behind. The first is an empire that has questionable stability, of which Stone was very well aware. The second is Stone's will, which stipulates leaving money to a child he may have parented some 20 or more years earlier. It is this mystery Elizabeth Stone wants Braddock to unravel, for without its resolution Stone's will cannot be carried out.
Matthew Braddock, himself somewhere in his 20s, tells his story of being hired, falling captive to the aura of Elizabeth Stone, discovering more about Stone's business and Elizabeth's clandestine if then he ever imagine or wanted to know, and some 40 plus years later, in 1953, receiving Henry Cort's sealed papers (upon Cort's death) to illuminate the past and tie up the many loose ends.
Henry Cort, whose "voice" I found most interesting, told the tale of Elizabeth's "beginnings" in Paris in the 1890s, how she rose through the ranks and eventually became Mrs John Stone, Lady Ravenscliff, in a marriage marked by love and mutual admiration. But it was John Stone's tale that filled in many gaps, going back even further to Venice, 1867. This tale of love runs side-by-side with growing armaments, pending changes in world peace, growing anarchy, and a look inside the ruthless world of politics, political stability, and governments. Intertwined stories and characters come alive on the page, all of which makes for exceptionally fine story telling.
A prominent behind-the-scene arms dealer and financier, shrew in his dealings, and in "it" for the love of a good challenge, Stone's death has left two puzzles behind. The first is an empire that has questionable stability, of which Stone was very well aware. The second is Stone's will, which stipulates leaving money to a child he may have parented some 20 or more years earlier. It is this mystery Elizabeth Stone wants Braddock to unravel, for without its resolution Stone's will cannot be carried out.
Matthew Braddock, himself somewhere in his 20s, tells his story of being hired, falling captive to the aura of Elizabeth Stone, discovering more about Stone's business and Elizabeth's clandestine if then he ever imagine or wanted to know, and some 40 plus years later, in 1953, receiving Henry Cort's sealed papers (upon Cort's death) to illuminate the past and tie up the many loose ends.
Henry Cort, whose "voice" I found most interesting, told the tale of Elizabeth's "beginnings" in Paris in the 1890s, how she rose through the ranks and eventually became Mrs John Stone, Lady Ravenscliff, in a marriage marked by love and mutual admiration. But it was John Stone's tale that filled in many gaps, going back even further to Venice, 1867. This tale of love runs side-by-side with growing armaments, pending changes in world peace, growing anarchy, and a look inside the ruthless world of politics, political stability, and governments. Intertwined stories and characters come alive on the page, all of which makes for exceptionally fine story telling.