(2000)A Jew in London tries to find out who killed his father only to discover that the murder was part of a stock scam. Set in 1719. Fairly good, bogged down until after the middle.

There were a few things I didn't like about this book, but I enjoyed the story very much. It's a complicated story of stock fraud and possible murder set in a time when paper money and stock exchanges were new. Things weren't regulated as they are today. In addition, there was no police force per se...people largely hired agents to regain stolen property or "enforce" other interests. The plot kept me guessing...and changing my mind...as to how it would come together. It dragged -- just a bit; the book could have been a little shorter, I think.

I didn't like the protagonist, Benjamin Weaver, as a person. But what a well -drawn character! The consummate outsider, flawed, human, trying to get by as best he can.

The book was well researched, and the problems of market manipulation and bubbles continue to plague investors today. There were times, however, when the author explained things through dialogue between characters that felt a bit forced.

Overall, though, the book was very well written. It was written in the style of the time period it portrays, both in terms of specific words and with asides to the reader which was common in novels written in that time. ( )

The plot is centred on South Sea bubble of 1720 that is dubbed as the first stock market crash. The the novel is well researched and has a lot of references to real life characters of the 18th century London. David Liss has deftly handled two (or three ) subplots that made the storyline intriguing. Every page of the novel ripples with writer’s passion. There certain section of the novel, that I feel, are verbose.
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Good read. Love historical fiction and mystery. ( )

The narrator/protagonist, Benjamin Weaver, is a former boxer now chasing down debtors and thieves for well-to-do clients in 1719 London. A Jew, he is estranged from his family, but when a new client hires him to investigate the suicide of his father and the accidental death of Ben's wealthy stock-jobber father, Ben is forced to make peace with his uncle in order to learn more about his father's activities.

Ben knows next to nothing about the fairly new stock market, so there is a fair amount of explanations and info-dumping in this story written in formal English to fit the time period. The more Ben learns, the more he realizes he doesn't know, but attempts on his life convince him to keep pushing for answers. The are enough plot twists, some I saw coming and a couple that surprised me, to keep the story moving and like Ben, I wasn't sure who could be trusted. With its attention to period detail, this historical novel is worth reading. ( )