A Conspiracy of Paper - David Liss

London, the year 1719
It should have been a simple matter. I dressed the part of a gentleman--ostentatious coat and sword, overflowing wig, gleaming silver buckles upon my shoes. I had learned to appear the perfect genteleman when, in my less scrupulous days, I had spent some time traveling about the country working as what we called a spurce prig. I would present myself to a landlord like a gentelman, rent a furnished lodging with no more security than my appearance, and then proceed to clean the place of everything of value. Now, with more honorable motives, my task was to imitate a man of means in the service of undoing theft, and this task called for a particular type of gentelman.

Thus begins an enjoyable adventure to unravel murders, deceit, and treachery in the emerging stock markets of London in 1719. The book is very smart and based on historical events from the period. The author is an expert on the time period but unlike other historical novels, he doesn't historical facts limit his story-telling to a reinactment of history.

The book places the reader in the streets of London during a fascinating time. Stock jobbers and competing financial organizations are coming into their own. With larges sums of money at stake, it will remind you of modern day fiascos like Enron, S&L crises, and the current home loan scandals. However, this is primarily a murder mystery that keeps you guessing until the last few pages. Every chapter brings several twists keeping the reader turning the pages.

This book is also lots of fun. The author is very smart in using a blend of old english and modern words and structures to make for a book that flows easily for a modern reader. I was very impressed with this skill. I look forward to reading more by this author.