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A Street Shaken by Light
The Story of William Neilson, Volume I
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Ideal for readers who enjoy sweeping historical fiction with elements of romance, adventure, and political intrigue, particularly those interested in 18th-century Europe, Jacobite history, and richly drawn characters.
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See moreA romantic and picaresque masterpiece set in the eighteenth-century in Scotland, France and India.
A romantic and picaresque masterpiece set in the eighteenth-century in Scotland, France and India.
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
An epic voyage well worth taking ... Exhilarating Marianka Swain, Telegraph
One of Britain's outstanding historical writers delivers a romantic and picaresque masterpiece that tells the fascinating story of William Neilson.
In 1720, the young William Neilson leaves Edinburgh to make his fortune in Europe, first sailing to Rotterdam and then on foot to Paris, where he meets and is immediately employed by the banker John Law. A day later he is in the Bastille, but not before he has encountered a young woman of surpassing beauty to whom Neilson will be devoted for the rest of his life.
Imprisoned in the Bastille, he has no possibility of seeing or communicating with his beloved. When at last he recovers his freedom, he is despatched at once to sea, bound for the Indies. He will be shipwrecked, become an equerry on the Ile-de-France, later command a disorderly legion in Persia, and become a linguist able to hold his own in diplomatic and mercantile circles, all the while anticipating a summons from the Stuart king in exile in Rome, until he is sent back to France, and thence to Scotland in the service of the Young Pretender.
This is brilliant, irresistibly entertaining fiction. A whole world of adventure and romance comes alive in the hands of one of our most ingenious storytellers, one of our finest writers.
Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
Praised as a "hugely readable adventure-romance" by the Guardian, and hailed for its exceptional storytelling by the Financial Times, James Buchan's novel immerses readers in a richly detailed historical saga. The Observer celebrates the creation of an engaging protagonist and masterful depiction of the era, promising a thrilling series ahead.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781914495540
Publisher: Headline Publishing Group
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 09 November 2023
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Mountain Leopard Press
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 22.0mm
Width: 128.0mm
Height: 196.0mm
Weight: 240g
Pages: 272
Collections
About the Author
James Buchan is a novelist and a historian whose books have won many prizes and been translated into a dozen foreign languages. He has written widely on the modern history of Scotland, most recently in John Law: A Scottish Adventurer of the Eighteenth Century. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He lives on a farm in Norfolk.
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