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Spectacle of Corruption, A
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Binding: Audio CD
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
Edition: Abridged
Format: Bargain Price
Label: Brilliance Audio on CD Value Priced
Manufacturer: Brilliance Audio on CD Value Priced
Number Of Items: 5
Publication Date: March 28, 2005
Publisher: Brilliance Audio on CD Value Priced
Release Date: March 28, 2005
Studio: Brilliance Audio on CD Value Priced
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Editorial Review:
"I sentence you, Mr. Weaver, to be hanged for the most horrible crime of murder." Hearing that judicial decree, Benjamin Weaver--former pugilist, current "thief-taker," and future master of disguise--begins one of the sorriest days of his life. And things will only get worse, as David Liss reveals in A Spectacle of Corruption, his exuberant novel of 18th-century political chicanery. Tossed into Londons notorious Newgate Prison, Weaver employs his considerable energy and guile (plus tools slipped to him by a mysterious admirer at his trial) to escape--naked--into the city's filthy streets. But then, he risks recapture by trying to figure out who framed him for slaying labor agitator Walter Yate, and why.
How all of this trouble derived from Weaver's pursuit of the culprit behind a priests recent spate of hate mail propels the balance of this yarn--the sequel to Liss's Edgar Award-winning debut novel, A Conspiracy of Paper. It also pushes the Jewish "ruffian-for-hire" into the jeopardous midst of a British power struggle that pits supporters of King George I against the Jacobites, who favor the return of his dethroned Catholic rival, James II. Assisted by his puckish surgeon friend Elias Gordon, Weaver assumes the role of a prosperous plantation owner from Jamaica and penetrates the upper echelons of 1722 London society, hoping to gather information he can use against Dennis Dogmill, a "vicious and unpredictable" tobacco man who may actually have ordained Yate's killing. As Weaver ranges through London's fetid pubs and fancy theaters, and attracts the amorous attention of Dogmill's surprisingly shrewd sister, he also finds himself in the uncomfortable position of backing Griffin Melbury, a Tory candidate for the House of Commons--and the man who stole away his beloved Miriam Lienzo.
Liss has a keen eye for entertaining details of Georgian life, from that periods exotic diction ("The men in your gang are nothing but cutpurses and mollies and buggerantos") to its most reprehensible pastimes, including "goose pulling"--about which the less said, the better. And though some readers may bog down in the explained distinctions between Whigs and Tories, the author finds considerable humor in that political rivalry and the parties' get-out-the-vote efforts. Once you accept the rather dubious notion that fugitive Weaver could hide in plain sight, A Spectacle of Corruption can be appreciated as the lusty thriller Liss clearly intended it to be. --J. Kingston Pierce
Benjamin Weaver is awaiting death in Newgate gaol. Mysteriously convicted for a murder he didn't commit by a judge determined to see him hang, he is suddenly - and equally mysteriously - offered the means to escape. What, you may well ask, is going on? It's a question Weaver asks of himself as he slinks out into the London night on a mission to clear his name. In doing so, he steps straight into a labyrinthine plot that weaves, like Benjamin, across eighteenth century London. For the conspiracy against him is part of a grimmer and gaudier picture: one that encompasses double-dealings and dockworkers, the extorting of a priest - and a looming election with the potential to spark a revolution and topple the monarchy. Handily, Weaver is a private investigator. He's also an ex-pugilist, which is also a good thing when it comes to punching his weight in the 'polite' society of plotters and politicians, power-brokers, crime lords, assassins and spies. At the apex of which sits, rather precariously, a recent import from Hanover: The King.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Fascinating look at lies, politics and London of the 1720's
When I had read A Conspiracy of Paper earlier this year, I knew that I had to find the next book that featured Benjamin Weaver, a sometimes thieftaker and finder of things in eighteenth century London. Filled with evocative prose, exciting action, and interesting questions, it had been a novel that I had really enjoyed, and I was looking forward to finding more by author David Liss.
Some time has passed since the close of A Conspiracy of Paper. And at the moment, Benjamin Weaver is ... Read More
Rating: - Did Weaver kill Melberry? Was it revenge?
Benjamin Weaver is Jewish. Weaver is skilled in the art of theft. Weaver has a leg injury caused while fighting. Weaver is skilled at fist fighting, grappling, and disquise. Bold and direct dialogue characterize Weavers communications.
Weavers current occupation is private eye, pugilist. Weaver is employeed to discover, who is send death threats to a Church of England, priest. Weaver investigates Dennis Dogmill, first. Upon seeing Weaver, Greenbill Billie decides that Weaver ... Read More
Rating: - A wild ride!
And it's in 1722. Thank goodness we got a sequel to the wonderful "A Conspiracy of Paper". It has been awhile that we've had to wait, and I for one was very happy to see the return of Benjamin Weaver. This is gritty historical fiction that touches on the thriller genre. And we learn a lot about 18 century politics in England as well. What I really like about Liss's writing is that he places his readers right in the centre of his books, and in the middle of the action. This book starts with Benjamin ... Read More
Rating:  - Great Commentary on 18th Century English Politics
For those of us who love a story with an historical setting, this is a wonderfully informative book. Set in the turbulence of 18th century England shortly after the burst of the South Sea Company bubble, Liss's antihero, Benjamin Weaver gives us a glimpse into the political scene of the day. Weaver, having escaped the horrors of Newgate Prison after being sentenced to death for a murder he never committed, lands himself in one dangerous situation after another trying to vindicate his name and prove his ... Read More
Rating: - Benjamin Weaver does it again...
Another fine book from Mr.David Liss with his pugilist hero Benjamin Weaver barely cheating death at the end of the rope in 18th cent. London, investigating his own case of mistaken death sentence amidst one of the firt political corruption scandals in England. Weaver, a famous London's "thief-taker", escapes death-cell, tries to solve the murder case`he is accused of, having mind games with the lost love interest, playing double-games during elections and attempting to get untangled from political mess. ... Read More
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