The Luminaries - Eleanor Catton

WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE

'A breathtakingly ambitious mystery... As beautiful as it is triumphant' Daily Mail

An astonishing, epic story of promise, deceit and desperation in New Zealand's gold rush.

'What brings a fellow down here, you know, to the ends of the earth - what sparks a man?'

It is 1866, and Walter Moody has come to make his fortune upon the New Zealand goldfields. On arrival, he stumbles across a tense gathering of twelve local men, who have met in secret to discuss a series of unsolved crimes. A wealthy man has vanished, a pr0stitute has tried to end her life, and an enormous fortune has been discovered in the home of a luckless drunk. Moody is soon drawn into the mystery: a network of fates and fortunes that is as complex and exquisitely patterned as the night sky.

The Luminaries is an extraordinary piece of fiction, both a ghost story and a gripping mystery. Set amidst the promise, deceit and desperation of the mid-19th century goldrush, the lives of its rich, complex cast unspool through a labyrinthine, celestial pattern. Fiendishly clever, vividly rendered and made into a major BBC TV series, The Luminaries established Catton as one of the brightest stars in the firmament.

ISBN: 9781847084323

Pages: 832

Paperback

Granta, 2014

Good condition; cover has some small creases; ink ownership inscription inside; gilt lettering on front cover slightly faded in places

B145