⋙ Download Free The Bookman Tale A Novel of Obsession Charlie Lovett 9780670026470 Books

The Bookman Tale A Novel of Obsession Charlie Lovett 9780670026470 Books

Download As PDF : The Bookman Tale A Novel of Obsession Charlie Lovett 9780670026470 Books

The Bookman Tale A Novel of Obsession Charlie Lovett 9780670026470 Books

Peter Byerly is an impassioned bookseller and collector in 1995 who is living in the northern countryside of England while he mourns the death of his beloved wife, Amanda. They were perfect together, complementing the love each had for old books about literature and art. In fact they found each other and their career enchanting. Now, Peter is under the advice of his physician to do certain things to recover from his grief; he has a list he must accomplish. This includes staying in touch with old friends, making new friends, and more. But Peter was never one for all of these items in the first place, even though he has many, many acquaintances and the care of his wife's family still. So one day he forces himself to wander into town, the famous Hay-on-Wye, known as a book collector and book lover's delight and that is the day his lately sedate, mundane life begins spinning into a mysterious whirlwind!
There he opens a book about whether Shakespeare's plays were written by the master or by someone else and out falls a paper that is a perfect portrait of his Amanda. How could this be, a watercolor that is such a perfect image of her? This is the day Peter's obsession begins and he must find out who this woman was and who painted this watercolor that has so deeply shocked Peter.
The novel then moves in three time periods, the first that of Shakespeare and his colleagues whom others insist might have been the true authors of the plays we read as authored by William Shakespeare. A play called Pandosta written by Robert Greene is passed from person to person to person over hundreds of years, a wealthy artifact that just might be the answer to a riddle that has tormented many literary scholars.
It also turns out that the appearance and disappearance of this book has caused grief, rivalry, hatred, and murder between two rival families in Peter's time. So the plot moves back and forth through the 1600s and 1900s until the mystery is traced with twists and turns that are totally unpredictable and fascinating. One also gets a fine, albeit surface, education about book binding and selling antiquarian books. Whether you are a fellow bibliophile, antiquarian, romantic, mystery or historical fiction fan, this is a notable book to relish page by intricate, complex and enigmatic page. Very literate historical fiction and highly recommended!


Tags : The Bookman's Tale: A Novel of Obsession [Charlie Lovett] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <b>A mysterious portrait ignites an antiquarian bookseller’s search through time and the works of Shakespeare for his lost love</b> Guaranteed to capture the hearts of everyone who truly loves books,Charlie Lovett,The Bookman's Tale: A Novel of Obsession,Viking,0670026476,Mystery & Detective - Historical,Americans;England;Fiction.,Booksellers and bookselling;Fiction.,Widowers;Fiction.,AMERICAN HISTORICAL FICTION,AMERICAN MYSTERY & SUSPENSE FICTION,Americans,Booksellers and bookselling,England,FICTION Mystery & Detective Historical,Fiction,Fiction - Historical,Fiction Historical,Fiction Mystery & Detective General,Fiction Romance Historical General,Fiction-Mystery & Detective,GENERAL,General Adult,Historical - General,Mystery & Detective - General,MysterySuspense,Romance - Historical - General,United States,Widowers

The Bookman Tale A Novel of Obsession Charlie Lovett 9780670026470 Books Reviews

I was ready to quit halfway through this book, but then I thought of all the good reviews, and I kept going. At 80%, I'm giving up. It is rare that I don't finish a book, but I just couldn't take it anymore.
The characters in this book are completely unbelievable. Actually, the characters in the flashbacks, the historical characters, are pretty good. The modern characters, however, are ridiculous.
Case in point We have a female character who, at the beginning of the book, is portrayed as confident, independent, good-natured, and social. And yet she WEEPS (literally) with gratitude whenever her boyfriend does something nice, even if that something nice is completely self-serving (which it always is). She also cries every time her boyfriend expresses happiness. She cries when he enjoys sex. They go to a show, which was half his idea, and she cries because he enjoyed it. Oh, please.
And all the characters are oblivious. The author finds it necessary to spell out every joke for every character. Every hint must be expanded upon before the other person gets it. The conversations include way too much exposition. Real conversations don't happen like this.
The story is decent, but I found myself rolling my eyes every few pages because of something the characters said or did. It was too frustrating to continue.
When I purchase a book I try to select something that will both engage as well as entertain me. When a book meets that expectation I give it 4 stars. To get 5 stars a book must do more than simply exceed my expectations; it must also make an impact; it must have a WOW quality. Charlie Lovett's "The Bookman's Tale" is getting 5 stars from me. This book is a multi-faceted gem that will charm the reader, especially if the reader is a serious bibliophile.

So what are the facets of this gem? Well there's first love, there's shared heartbreak, there's true love and then tragic loss, despair follows and then there's reawakening, soon there's discovery along with a quest, then a long storied family feud colored with intrigue and if that isn't enough there is a murder all to be capped off with new love. Is that enough? It was for me. I found this author a few months ago when I read his most recent book, "The Lost Book of the Grail". I gave that book 5 stars as well and it prompted me to look for other books by this new author. I found two previous works and ordered them both. One more sits on my TR shelf and I look forward to reading that soon. So what really is this book about?

The book's protagonist is Peter Byerly an antiquarian bookseller. The story arcs through three time lines Peter's college years and early marriage, his present day life which is in the mid '90's, and the backstory and of the artifact that Peter discovers which begins in the English Elizabethan Era. Peter suffers a tragic loss and leaves his home in North Carolina for a cottage in the English countryside. While there he is engaged to evaluate and sell some books for a local country squire and his sister. In the course of this evaluation he finds an artifact that could have major historic significance if it can be authenticated. Peter sets off on an attempt to verify this authenticity and a thus begins a tale that spans back to the late 16th century up to the present. This book covers a lot of ground and dazzles the reader with both its adventurous quality as well as its heart-tugging moments. There is definitely something for everybody in this story. Charlie Lovett is an author I intend to keep track of and you might want to do the same. (le
Peter Byerly is an impassioned bookseller and collector in 1995 who is living in the northern countryside of England while he mourns the death of his beloved wife, Amanda. They were perfect together, complementing the love each had for old books about literature and art. In fact they found each other and their career enchanting. Now, Peter is under the advice of his physician to do certain things to recover from his grief; he has a list he must accomplish. This includes staying in touch with old friends, making new friends, and more. But Peter was never one for all of these items in the first place, even though he has many, many acquaintances and the care of his wife's family still. So one day he forces himself to wander into town, the famous Hay-on-Wye, known as a book collector and book lover's delight and that is the day his lately sedate, mundane life begins spinning into a mysterious whirlwind!
There he opens a book about whether Shakespeare's plays were written by the master or by someone else and out falls a paper that is a perfect portrait of his Amanda. How could this be, a watercolor that is such a perfect image of her? This is the day Peter's obsession begins and he must find out who this woman was and who painted this watercolor that has so deeply shocked Peter.
The novel then moves in three time periods, the first that of Shakespeare and his colleagues whom others insist might have been the true authors of the plays we read as authored by William Shakespeare. A play called Pandosta written by Robert Greene is passed from person to person to person over hundreds of years, a wealthy artifact that just might be the answer to a riddle that has tormented many literary scholars.
It also turns out that the appearance and disappearance of this book has caused grief, rivalry, hatred, and murder between two rival families in Peter's time. So the plot moves back and forth through the 1600s and 1900s until the mystery is traced with twists and turns that are totally unpredictable and fascinating. One also gets a fine, albeit surface, education about book binding and selling antiquarian books. Whether you are a fellow bibliophile, antiquarian, romantic, mystery or historical fiction fan, this is a notable book to relish page by intricate, complex and enigmatic page. Very literate historical fiction and highly recommended!