résumé
<i>Quicksilver</i> is the story of Daniel Waterhouse, fearless thinker and conflicted Puritan, pursuing knowledge in the company of the greatest minds of Baroque-era Europe, in a chaotic world where reason wars with the bloody ambitions of the mighty, and where catastrophe, natural or otherwise, can alter the political landscape overnight.<br /><br />It is a chronicle of the breathtaking exploits of "Half-Cocked Jack" Shaftoe--London street urchin turned swashbuckling adventurer and legendary King of the Vagabonds--risking life and limb for fortune and love while slowly maddening from the pox.<br /><br />And it is the tale of Eliza, rescued by Jack from a Turkish harem to become spy, confidante, and pawn of royals in order to reinvent Europe through the newborn power of finance.<br /><br />A gloriously rich, entertaining, and endlessly inventive novel that brings a remarkable age and its momentous events to vivid life, <i>Quicksilver</i> is an extraordinary achievement from one of the most original and important literary talents of our time.<br /><br />And it's just the beginning...<br /><br />(back cover)<br /><br />This P.S. edition includes 16 pages of supplementary materials.<br /><br />Cover design by Richard L. Aquan<br />Cover illustration from the Mary Evans Picture Library; painting of Great Fire of London on stepback
