The Gunpowder Plot: Terror And Faith In 1605

Description

With a narrative that grips the reader like a detective story, Antonia Fraser brings the characters and events of the Gunpowder Plot to life. Dramatically recreating the conditions and motives that surrounded the fateful night of 5 November 1605, she unravels the tangled web of religion and politics that spawned the plot. 'Told with impressive scholarship and panache...The result is a narrative that is clear, balanced, and builds to its denouement with a sense of pace and tension worthy of a John le Carre novel' John Adamson, Sunday Telegraph

Since 1969, Antonia Fraser has written many acclaimed historical works which have been international bestsellers, including Marie Antoinette, Mary Queen of Scots (James Tait Black Memorial Prize), Cromwell: Our Chief of Men, The Six Wives of Henry VIII and The Gunpowder Plot: Terror and Faith in 1605 (St Louis Literary Award; CWA Non-Fiction Gold Dagger). Antonia Fraser was made CBE in 1999, and awarded the Norton Medlicott Medal by the Historical Association in 2000. She is married to the playwright Harold Pinter and lives in London.

Antonia Fraser has written an excellent book which unravels the whole story of the plot, exploring the background, keeping close to the evidence, and, above all, bringing the characters to life ... a judicious and very readable account -- Hugh Trevor-Roper * Literary Review * Told with impressive scholarship and panache. The result is a narrative that is clear, balanced, and builds to its denouement with a sense of pace and tension worthy of a John le Carre novel -- John Adamson * Sunday Telegraph * Every few years a work of history appears that succeeds in connecting its subject to the deeper questions troubling modern society. This is one such book -- Amanda Foreman * Independent * It has a fine narrative flow, for Antonia Fraser recognises that history is essentially a story, and a gripping one at that. She writes with verve and imagination -- Kenneth Baker * Daily Telegraph * Fraser's meticulously researched book is an excellent read ... Antonia Fraser has shed much light on one of the most controversial episodes in English history -- Martin Jacques * Observer * An awe-inspiring tale ... It makes superb armchair entertainment -- Paul Johnson * Daily Express * Eloquent and moving -- Jonathan Clark * The Times * History as it should be written -- Roy Strong