Iain Pears Books

When art dealer Jonathan Argyll arrives in Los Angeles to drop off a painting, he discovers that there are a few devils loose in the City of Angels

"When an important, politically sensitive painting is kidnapped in Rome, life takes a downward turn for Flavia di Stefano, acting head of the Italian Art Theft Squad." "Things start badly when Flavia is told to get the painting back at all costs without causing any embarassment to the country and without paying a ransom. Put in an impossible position, she turns for help to her old mentor General Taddeo Bottando, who is able to cast a wholly unexpected light on the crime. Flavia herself wonders if the subject of the painting, a classical landscape by Claude Lorraine, might be significant." "In the meantime, her husband, the English art historian Jonathan Argyll, embarks on an investigation of his own. As a gift to Bottando, he decides to establish the provenance of a small Renaissance painting, an Immaculate Conception, currently hanging on the wall of the general's apartment." "For both Argyll and Flavia, the search for the truth reveals shocking secrets from the past and leads them straight into the path of some very dangerous enemies indeed."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

An intellectual thriller set in Oxford in the 1660s, this novel is centred on a suspicious death, that of Robert Grove, fellow of New College. We hear from four witnesses: a Venetian Catholic; the son of a supposed traitor; the chief cryptographer to Cromwell; and Anthony Wood, the antiquary

A novel set in Provence at three different critical moments of Western Civilisation - the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fifth century, the Black Death in the fourteenth, and the Second World War in the twentieth. It follows the fortunes of three men, and each man's story is linked by the classical text that gives the book its title. schovat popis

A captivating adventure story with huge heart and dazzling imaginative power, from the bestselling author of An Instance of the Fingerpost. Three interlocking worlds. Four people looking for answers. But who controls the future - or the past? In the basement of a professor's house in 1960s Oxford, fifteen-year-old Rosie goes in search of a missing cat - and instead finds herself in a different world. Anterwold is a sun-drenched land of storytellers, prophecies and ritual. But is this world real - and what happens if she decides to stay? Meanwhile, in a sterile laboratory, a rebellious scientist is trying to prove that time does not even exist - with potentially devastating consequences.

Set against a rich historical backdrop, this novel weaves a vast and intricate mystery that showcases the author's ambition and complexity. Following the success of "An Instance of the Fingerpost," the narrative promises to engage readers with its dazzling storytelling and multifaceted plot, inviting exploration into a world filled with intrigue and depth.

Three men confront despair and seek solace in love and intellect against the backdrop of historical turmoil. Set during the fall of the Roman Empire, the Black Death, and World War II, their stories are intricately linked by a classical text, "The Dream of Scipio." As they navigate the darkest moments in history, themes of resilience and the quest for meaning emerge, showcasing the enduring power of human connection amidst chaos.

Witty Italian art-history crime series featuring English dealer Jonathan Argyll, from the author of the best-selling literary masterpiece, 'An Instance of the Fingerpost'.

A novel about an Italian general who tries to prevent the theft of a painting being restored in a monastery.

Flavia di Stefano of Rome's Art Theft Squad and art historian Jonathan Argyll have charmed mystery readers around the world. Their latest case is baffling to the extreme, when clues from a Titian researcher's death by mugging point to murder -- and a criminal conspiracy...