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An Instance Of The Fingerpost
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Amazon.co.uk Review
An Instance of the Fingerpost is that rarest of all possible literary beasts--a mystery powered as much by ideas as by suspects, autopsies and smoking guns. Hefty, intricately plotted, and intellectually ambitious, Fingerpost has drawn the inevitable comparisons to Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose; and, for once, the comparison is apt.
The year is 1663, and the setting is Oxford, England, during the height of Restoration political intrigue. When Dr Robert Grove is found dead in his Oxford room, hands clenched and face frozen in a rictus of pain, all the signs point to poison. Rashomon- like, the narrative circles around Grove's murder as four different characters give their version of events: Marco da Cola, a visiting Italian physician--or so he would like the reader to believe; Jack Prestcott, the son of a traitor who fled the country to avoid execution; Dr. John Wallis, a mathematician and cryptographer with a predilection for conspiracy theories; and Anthony Wood, a mild- mannered Oxford antiquarian whose tale proves to be the book's "instance of the fingerpost" (the quote comes from the philosopher Bacon, who, while asserting that all evidence is ultimately fallible, allows for "one instance of a fingerpost that points in one direction only, and allows of no other possibility").
Like The Name of the Rose, this is one whodunit in which the principal mystery is the nature of truth itself. Along the way, Pears displays a keen eye for period details as diverse as the early days of medicine, the convoluted politics of the English Civil War, and the newfangled fashion for wigs. Yet Pears never loses sight of his characters, who manage to be both utterly authentic denizens of the 17th century and utterly authentic human beings. As a mystery, An Instance of the Fingerpost is entertainment of the most intelligent sort; as a novel of ideas, it proves equally satisfying. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Review
`Crammed with period detail, it's as much a novel of ideas as it is of character' --The Week
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
36 of 36 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
In setting his novel in Oxford during the 1660s, a period of considerable political ferment, Pears has created the ideal backdrop for a lengthy but highly enjoyable novel which combines the best traditions of intellectual scholarship and a plot with real drive. The murder of Dr Robert Grove, a fellow of New College, and the events surrounding it are narrated from four significantly different points of view; Marco da Cola, a Venetian Catholic doctor newly arrived in Britain; Jack Prescott, son of a Royalist traitor and desperate to clear his beloved father's name; John Wallis, one of the mathematical giants whose shoulders bore Newton and a cryptographer to the courts of both Cromwell and Charles II; and Anthony Wood, an antiquary. All of these narratives, whilst necessarily differing in terms of fact, are also clearly defined voices without being caricatured, and the novel is suffused with characters of real depth, whether historical or fictitious, such as prime suspect Sarah Blundy, daughter of a religious dissenter, her mother, and the likes of Lower, Locke, Grove and Boyle.
The main character in the novel, however, is historical Oxford itself. As easy as it is to take this depiction for granted, the consistent references to actual historical figures and contemporary developments in medicine and fashion, as well as the acute observation of the social mores and deep-seated insecurity at the time of the Restoration are, on reflection, simply breathtaking: the depth of Pears' research is astonishing, and never intrudes on the development of the plot.
It is the plot, however, which slightly depreciates the five-star status the backdrop to this novel unquestionably demands. Whilst the conflicting descriptions of the course of events are as skilfully handled as the voices which relate them, I did not find the plot as genuinely 'unputdownable' as other reviewers have maintained. The conclusion, with its inevitable twist, is a bold attempt to resolve the mystery surrounding the discrepancy between accounts, but ultimately evokes a curiously mixed sense of incredulity and dissatisfaction. As spectacular as the setting and the narratives may be, it is this unsatisfactory ending which remains in the reader's mind, a crying shame when much of the novel which preceded the 'instance of the fingerpost' was so utterly exemplary.
The main character in the novel, however, is historical Oxford itself. As easy as it is to take this depiction for granted, the consistent references to actual historical figures and contemporary developments in medicine and fashion, as well as the acute observation of the social mores and deep-seated insecurity at the time of the Restoration are, on reflection, simply breathtaking: the depth of Pears' research is astonishing, and never intrudes on the development of the plot.
It is the plot, however, which slightly depreciates the five-star status the backdrop to this novel unquestionably demands. Whilst the conflicting descriptions of the course of events are as skilfully handled as the voices which relate them, I did not find the plot as genuinely 'unputdownable' as other reviewers have maintained. The conclusion, with its inevitable twist, is a bold attempt to resolve the mystery surrounding the discrepancy between accounts, but ultimately evokes a curiously mixed sense of incredulity and dissatisfaction. As spectacular as the setting and the narratives may be, it is this unsatisfactory ending which remains in the reader's mind, a crying shame when much of the novel which preceded the 'instance of the fingerpost' was so utterly exemplary.
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Where to start?
I suppose the most engaging aspect of this novel is the ability of Pear's characters to utterly and truly bring you in to who and what they are.
I found myself understanding why they acted as they did, why they saw events in a certain light despite being contradicted by others and even developing a bias for them!
The plot clicks nicely in to place with 'the instance of the fingerpost', Bacon's term for the true account. The revelation in the final part of the story touches, for me, the heart. It caused me to think when i read it and i still find myself thinking over what happened even now.
From da Cola's concealment, through Prescott's madness, Wallis' darkness and eventually Wood's love, this novel is a tour de force of how it should be done - a mixture of knowledge, witty observations, humour and how love and hatred can create two entirely different opinions from a shared incident.
Highly recommended.
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
What a feat. What an accomplishment! I've just waded my way through Iain Pears' Instance of the Fingerpost and those sentiments are the only way I can describe the feeling of my having got though it. Many were the times I came close to putting this book on the dusty pile of my literary outcasts (in fact there is only one other - 100 days of solitude - but that's another story) but something kept me reading and the last part of the four stories very much made up for it....thankfully. This is an intricate, layered, heavy and often tedious story. No matter what some of the other readers have alluded to - make no mistake - this is not a light breezy read and you will not (I repeat NOT!) be reading it by torchlight under your bedcovers. But - if you start - don't give up. You may well feel like quietly putting the book in the oxfam pile after the first part; you may feel like throwing the book off a balcony or tearing it up in a frenzy after the second; and the third might help you off to sleep....but the fourth culminates these parts into a wonderful tale and - in addition - the writing and effort that have gone into this book really are exceptional. If you haven't bought this book yet - think wisely before you embark. If you have - keep at it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
An Instance of the Fingerpost
This is a very clever and intriguing thriller based in the 17th century just after the return of Charles II. Read more
Published 27 days ago by Mrs. M. Safranek
Instance of the Fingerpost
My first Iain Pears book: I was absolutely captivated from beginning to end;
have just finished reading it and am already downloading 'Stone's Fall'; for me this was... Read more
have just finished reading it and am already downloading 'Stone's Fall'; for me this was... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Tellbee
Not as enjoyable at Stones Fall
I first read 'Stones Fall' which I thoroughly enjoyed and so looked forward to this novel which would appear to have even better reviews. Read more
Published 3 months ago by John Clements
Amazingly constructed historical plot
Four lengthy accounts of the events surrounding the murder of a fellow at New College Oxford in the 1660s. Read more
Published 4 months ago by H. Robertson
Focuses on the journey rather than the destination
This is a sustained, detailed and rambling story set in the seventeenth century, after the restoration of the monarchy. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Roman Clodia
An instant hit
Catching and holding my imagination immediately this quickly became one of my favourite ever books.
The same story told four times but each time with a twist revealing a... Read more
The same story told four times but each time with a twist revealing a... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Peterpiper
Brilliant
This is an absolutely wonderful read. The period details are excellent, with visual imagery painting a living picture of the period. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Dr. Keith Charlton
Wonderful book
Very well put together but and one you can read as many times as you want
Rob Blyther, Chislehurst
Rob Blyther, Chislehurst
Published 10 months ago by Rob Blyther Chislurst
A "technical" review
When the book arrived I found the cover slightly more damaged than what i was expecting from the " in good condition" advertised, but that could just be a matter of interpretation. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Kat
Utterly amazing book!
This book VERY rightly has already received multiple 5* reviews identifying the reasons why it's SO amazing, so I won't bore you, but just had to add my own 'WOW'! Read more
Published 14 months ago by P. Jeffrey
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