Fiction / Historical
508 pages
5 Stars
DISCLAIMER: I received a free electronic copy of this book
in exchange for an honest review.
If you like historical fiction, sans romance and the
required rescuing of fair maidens, then this is the book for you! It's a murder
mystery about one of the more famous men of European history, the philosopher,
René Descartes.
For untold years, it has been accepted, more or less, that
Descartes did in fact die of pneumonia his first winter in Stockholm. Rumors
also have abounded that he was murdered.
Andrew Pessin has taken history, and rumors, and combined
them into a most enjoyable, and plausible, read. This is, primarily, a murder
mystery. It isn't an adrenaline gusher, though there are a couple of times it
comes close. It is the story of a young, sickly René, raised by the Jesuits who
has a penchant for mathematics and not much else. It is also the story of
another young boy who is the 'house boy' and René's "servant." Due to
his lack of money, this young boy is self-taught, and he is every bit as much
of a genius as René. Perhaps more so.
Sometimes the modern language in the dialog is a bit
jarring, but not much, and I'm pretty sure the locals of the time had
equivalent words. The flashbacks were superbly done, and the end of the book
nicely tied all the sub-plots and mini-mysteries together. One does not need to
be a student of philosophy to enjoy this book.
Well written with believable characters I would actually
enjoy meeting. I highly recommend The Irrationalist to anyone who enjoys
literary fiction, historical fiction, or murder mysteries.
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