- Hardcover: 672 pages
- Publisher: William Heinemann Ltd; First Edition, First Printing edition (1 May 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0434010006
- ISBN-13: 978-0434010004
- Product Dimensions: 21.6 x 16 x 5.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 236,190 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Something of a publishing sensation elsewhere in Europe, Q is a convoluted historical thriller by a consortium of young pseudonymous authors, who, it has to be said, are a little too in love with their own cleverness. Q is the working name of a papal spy trying to keep a lid on the Reformation, particularly on the Anabaptist radicalism which is its form most dangerous to the social order, and for decades he watches, and occasionally gets in close and betrays. The man sometimes known as Gert is his opposite--all the more so because he hardly knows of Q's existence--the idealist who is caught up in the same events: Luther's sermons, the rise and fall of Thomas Muntzer, the disastrous People's Republic of Munster.
Parallels are being struck all over the place with radicalism in the 20th century--part of what makes Gert a memorable voice is a combination of zeal, pragmatism and survival instinct that keeps him one step ahead of the Inquisitors for 30 years and enables him to, for example, do serious damage to the Holy Roman Emperor's favourite bankers. In the end, Gert and Q are left with more in common than the past they share--the rules are changing and the board is being cleared, and there is time for one last crucial intervention... This is ingeniously plotted, and full of vividly realised scenes of 16th century life; if it has a fault, it is that we live through every day of three tumultuous decades, every sermon and theological treatise, in exhausting detail. --Roz Kaveney
De groene Amsterdammer
‘I read it with increasing wonder and amazement’
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Given the subject matter and nationality of the authors, it is almost impossible not to compare ‘Q’ with the work of one of my favourite authors, Umberto Eco. Reading Eco has given me a taste for historical fiction whilst seemingly rendering almost everything else in the genre trivial. At last, in ‘Q’ I have read something to rival Eco in historical detail and (almost) richness of ideas. ‘Q’ is historical fiction at its very best, and a thoroughly enjoyable read.
‘Q’ is set against the backdrop of the religious upheavals taking place in central Europe during the sixteenth century. Martin Luther has denounced the Catholic church, and a multitude of preachers and prophets have arisen, each spreading the message about his own version of the new religion. The main character, Lot (actually just one of many names he has in the book), is infused with the fervour of the times, and joins several of these groups (Thomas Muntzer in Frankenhausen, Jan Matthys in Munster, anabaptists in Holland, smugglers of heretical religious books in Venice), witnessing at first hand their bloody struggles and violent suppression by the combined forces of Catholicism and the new orthodoxy of Lutheranism. Lot’s hope for a world in which religion is delivered to the people is repeatedly dashed by its manipulation as a tool of power by the rulers in Rome and Germany. Lot eventually begins to see a shadowy hand behind his repeated defeats, a spy disseminating false information within the groups and reporting their activity to others outside them. Wherever Lot goes in Europe, he finds his actions hampered by this mysterious man, known to him only as Qoelet, or Q. By the end of the book, Lot’s work has less to do with the spreading of radical religion, than with the search to unmask Q.
The historical detail in ‘Q’ is astonishing, with almost all the characters being factual, and the political intrigues surrounding the reformation are brilliantly re-created. Unlike some reviewers, I didn’t find the story difficult to follow, despite the complexities of politics and religion that form the essential backdrop to the story. Other reviewers complained that the story never got going. This is true to a point and, by analogy to Eco’s books, ‘Q’ is much more ‘Baudolino’ than ‘The Name of the Rose’, with Lot’s wanderings basically providing an excuse to examine the upheavals of sixteenth century Europe. Qoelet remains very much in the background, and only towards the end does he play a more direct role in Lot’s life, which was, to me, the only part of the book that was badly done. So, despite the blurb, ‘Q’ is not really a thriller about the unmasking of a spy, but rather an examination of Reformation politics and a commentary on the use of religion and power, but told through the eyes a man fighting on the losing side. If you think that sounds boring, then I guess you will find ‘Q’ boring. Also if blood, sex and swearing aren’t your cup of tea, steer clear. For me, ‘Q’ is exemplary historical fiction, perhaps a little less clever than Eco and a little less complicated in terms of ideas, but an excellent book nonetheless.
‘Q’ is set against the backdrop of the religious upheavals taking place in central Europe during the sixteenth century. Martin Luther has denounced the Catholic church, and a multitude of preachers and prophets have arisen, each spreading the message about his own version of the new religion. The main character, Lot (actually just one of many names he has in the book), is infused with the fervour of the times, and joins several of these groups (Thomas Muntzer in Frankenhausen, Jan Matthys in Munster, anabaptists in Holland, smugglers of heretical religious books in Venice), witnessing at first hand their bloody struggles and violent suppression by the combined forces of Catholicism and the new orthodoxy of Lutheranism. Lot’s hope for a world in which religion is delivered to the people is repeatedly dashed by its manipulation as a tool of power by the rulers in Rome and Germany. Lot eventually begins to see a shadowy hand behind his repeated defeats, a spy disseminating false information within the groups and reporting their activity to others outside them. Wherever Lot goes in Europe, he finds his actions hampered by this mysterious man, known to him only as Qoelet, or Q. By the end of the book, Lot’s work has less to do with the spreading of radical religion, than with the search to unmask Q.
The historical detail in ‘Q’ is astonishing, with almost all the characters being factual, and the political intrigues surrounding the reformation are brilliantly re-created. Unlike some reviewers, I didn’t find the story difficult to follow, despite the complexities of politics and religion that form the essential backdrop to the story. Other reviewers complained that the story never got going. This is true to a point and, by analogy to Eco’s books, ‘Q’ is much more ‘Baudolino’ than ‘The Name of the Rose’, with Lot’s wanderings basically providing an excuse to examine the upheavals of sixteenth century Europe. Qoelet remains very much in the background, and only towards the end does he play a more direct role in Lot’s life, which was, to me, the only part of the book that was badly done. So, despite the blurb, ‘Q’ is not really a thriller about the unmasking of a spy, but rather an examination of Reformation politics and a commentary on the use of religion and power, but told through the eyes a man fighting on the losing side. If you think that sounds boring, then I guess you will find ‘Q’ boring. Also if blood, sex and swearing aren’t your cup of tea, steer clear. For me, ‘Q’ is exemplary historical fiction, perhaps a little less clever than Eco and a little less complicated in terms of ideas, but an excellent book nonetheless.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I admit Q does present a bit of challenge at first, especially if (like me) you have limited knowledge of the history of Renaissance Europe. But for the reader with an open mind and who's willing to learn, this novel is an embarrassment of riches with cracking prose a fast pace and (believe it or not Olly) a great plot. It took a while for me to get my head round the story but come on - it's more Umberto Eco than James Joyce! The only reason it was confusing is because of my lack of basic historical knowledge, but the picture is fairly clear after the first 100 pages or so.
Perhaps part of the problem is that in Britain our only knowledge of Renaissance history is Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. Little are we told (either in school or in the history prgrammes that now swamp the TV schedules) that, prior to Napoleon, British history is if anything a sideshow to the main event in Europe and often not even that.
This is a huge, sweeping epic of a novel that explores, among other things, the religious fervour which swept the continent in the decades after Luther's Protest, the brutality of the Inquisition, the in-fighting that gave rise to a separate Protestant church, the nature of class struggle and revolution, the rise of mercantilism and the manner in which politics was practised in a pre-democratic era. All this and more is weaved into the fabric of a gripping plotline and is told in a narrative style that brings alive the sights, sounds and smells of a continent dragging itself out of the Middle Ages.
Read on Olly, you've missed one of this year's best publications!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book is nothing short of amazing. If you ever read Umberto Eco, and this is probably closest to the Island of the Day Before (in setting) and In the Name of the Rose (in sheer depth of philisophical debate). The amount of information you get hit with about the early years of the reformation and the foundation of the protestant faith is astounding. Those of a delicate nature may find this hard going, but I found it captivating. The style is unique, and at first is hard to get to grips with, but once you get beyond the visual style and are engulfed by the complex world you can't stop.
Whereas Eco plays with the subtlety of language and the absurdities of belief and desire, Q is obsessed with the machinations of power and the drive for absolute control. This books excites you.
Perhaps the most captivating aspect is the fact that this book is based in fact, not just the panorama that this theatre plays against, but the characters who support the leads throughout are real people who fell victim to tyranny. A must for any one who has a fleeting interest in history, or anything!
Whereas Eco plays with the subtlety of language and the absurdities of belief and desire, Q is obsessed with the machinations of power and the drive for absolute control. This books excites you.
Perhaps the most captivating aspect is the fact that this book is based in fact, not just the panorama that this theatre plays against, but the characters who support the leads throughout are real people who fell victim to tyranny. A must for any one who has a fleeting interest in history, or anything!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Rather good historical novel set during the Reformation
I mainly liked this- it inspired me to look again at the history of the Reformation in Germany, and the Peasant Wars too. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Jezza
massively overblown waste of a good idea
Having read lots of great reviews of this, I was really disappointed by it. The amount of research the authors has done showed, but sadly not just that, it was showed off so much... Read more
Published 7 months ago by A. Field
Fantastic book.
This is a must read for all those who are up to books with hitory, philosphy and sociology context. Obviously adventures of characters are pure fiction but still give ourselves... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Bartek
Y?
Q is a bit of a hodgepodge that doesn't seem to know what type of novel it is, presumably because of the number of different writers involved. Read more
Published on 8 Mar 2010 by Oracle
History brought to life
Why don't we learn this in school? One thing a that came home to me reading this was how poor the teaching of the reformation is (or at least was) - all I learnt was about was... Read more
Published on 12 Oct 2009 by Lendrick
Simply terrific
Historical novels is one of my favorite genres, so I tend to read lots of them. Sadly, the sorry consequence of doing so is - in whatever genre really - that the more books you... Read more
Published on 10 Oct 2009 by Didier
a book to read !
A fantastic book without climax or anticlimax, just life as it was in those days. Well researched (contrarily to what another reviewer wrote) and a fascinating investigation into... Read more
Published on 17 July 2009 by Roger Jay
Wu-Ming Marvellous
'Q' is a slow-burning masterpiece. Comparable to Neal Stephenson's 'The Baroque Cycle', this is a rambling novel, with many incidental characters, that slowly builds to an... Read more
Published on 27 Jun 2009 by Quicksilver
Fuggin' brilliant (badum tish!)
I'm not normally much of a re-reader, but this is a book that I've returned to and will return to. It's slightly hard going for the first section, but once you get your head... Read more
Published on 6 Aug 2008 by Enzyme
Original, Important.
The book is obviously written as an analogy to several aspects of 20th century history/politics but is in no way condescending and lets you figure out how and where parallels... Read more
Published on 30 July 2008 by Mr. Omnibus Biscuit
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