The Last Dickens

Feb 26, 2012 Keith rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As historical novels go I think this one was particularly fascinating in how intricately the events of the story’s fictional characters are interwoven with the actual historical events of Dickens life. James Ripley Osgood, the junior partner in the American publishing firm representing Charles Dickens, sets out in pursuit of clues to the conclusion of Dickens final novel which was left only half finished at the time of his death. The completion of the novel is of great import to his American pub...more

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Aug 23, 2012 Booklover, Indianapolis rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 1-and-2-star-books, chat-n-chapters, own-in-e-format, read-in-2012

(August) 1.5* I really didn't like this book at all! It was, IMO, a convoluted mess! There were parts that were pointless, parts that made no sense,and the ending - huh? I still am not sure I get the whys and wherefores of the mystery. I'm not a mystery reader as a general rule, but still -it was really confusing as to what exactly the "bad guys" wanted, why they did what they did. The entire parts that took place in India were poitless as was most of the storyline w/Dickens still alive. I found...more

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Apr 15, 2009 Tomw added it · review of another edition

"The Dante Club" was marvelous. "The Poe Shadow" was astounding. Now, Pearl tackles my favorite author. It has to be a blockbuster!I finished this book. Mr. Pearl has done it again!! I thought nothing could top his novel on Poe, but I was wrong: run to read this book!!!

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Mar 17, 2009 Charisse marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Recommended to Charisse by: Elmer

Shelves: fiction

My friend, who recommended Drood to me, told me about this new novel. Amazon gave it a good review - reading this after Drood I believe would be interesting.

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Mar 17, 2013 Annette Lyttle rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

From beginning to end, The Last Dickens, by Matthew Pearl, author of The Dante Club and The Poe Shadow, remains an idea with great potential that suffers in the execution. I found the structure of the story, which shifts from the story’s present in which Dickens has just died to a recent past in which he is touring America for the last time, difficult to follow (and what is the India thing with Dickens’s son doing popping in and out of the narrative?).

The book has lots of very promising element...more From beginning to end, The Last Dickens, by Matthew Pearl, author of The Dante Club and The Poe Shadow, remains an idea with great potential that suffers in the execution. I found the structure of the story, which shifts from the story’s present in which Dickens has just died to a recent past in which he is touring America for the last time, difficult to follow (and what is the India thing with Dickens’s son doing popping in and out of the narrative?).

The book has lots of very promising elements. I like literary mysteries, unlikely heroes, Charles Dickens, and stories filled with interesting historical details. London (my favorite city in the world) and Boston (right up there on my list of favorites) are perfect settings for such stories. The protagonist, Boston book publisher James Ripley Osgood, is a historical person and very unlikely hero who interacts with a mixed cast of historical and fictional characters in a story that mixes historical and fictional events. Perfect, right? But Pearl just doesn’t deliver the goods.

The story is a mystery about a mystery: it posits that Dickens’s last, unfinished novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, is a thinly-disguised fictionalization of the story of a young man from the neighborhood of Dickens’s country home. But Dickens has died with the novel only half-finished, and Osgood, partner in a struggling Boston publishing firm that is Dickens’s authorized American publisher, must try to find any additional manuscript pages Dickens might have finished before he died. He has to contend with dangers that range from annoying to life-threatening from other folks who want to beat him to the manuscript (which may or may not exist).

Osgood is a decent guy, if a bit stiff, but I didn’t find him believable as the semi-action hero Pearl tries to turn him into toward the end. The other characters should be interesting, but come off flat or exaggerated – and they all kinda talk the same. The insights into the cutthroat world of publishing in the latter half of the 19th century are interesting, but the main publisher-villain and the main opium-trade-villain both pretty much talk us to death. The prose is in need of an editor with a ruthless attitude toward adverbs and extraneous words, and who will whisper sweet nothings in the author’s ear like, “Show, don’t tell.”

It should have been a good story, but when I put it down it never drew me back to it with that irresistible desire to find out what happens next. By about the halfway point, I was reading to get it over with – while still hoping it might get better. It’s always disappointing to find a promising premise that doesn’t manage to deliver. Reading this book was like being a die-hard baseball fan whose team just can’t put together a win. I kept rooting for the story to make a base hit, even when all hope was lost.

Pearl does throw in a lot of Boston and London atmosphere and interesting historical details (like the description of the “moving parlor” elevator in a Boston building), but too often the detail interferes with the story. For instance, the murderous bad guy is literally on Osgood’s heels when Osgood enters the moving parlor in an effort to escape him. The action stops dead as we learn about the elevator; once it picks up again, the momentum is gone.

Read the book for its interesting historical details about 19th century Boston, London, Kent, the publishing industry, and travel. But don’t expect a page-turner that will keep you up past your bedtime.
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Jan 01, 2013 Jeff Jellets rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

Matthew Pearl’s The Last Dickens is a double mystery connected to Charles Dickens’ great unfinished novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood. First, it’s an historical “whodunit,” which leads publisher James Osgood and his girl Friday, Rebecca Sand, on a hunt to find the missing pages of Charles Dickens’ last unfinished novel and to unravel the book’s connection to the murder of Rebecca’s brother. And second, The Last Dickens is also Pearl’s attempt to posit an ending The Mystery of Edwin Drood, a puzzl...more Matthew Pearl’s The Last Dickens is a double mystery connected to Charles Dickens’ great unfinished novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood. First, it’s an historical “whodunit,” which leads publisher James Osgood and his girl Friday, Rebecca Sand, on a hunt to find the missing pages of Charles Dickens’ last unfinished novel and to unravel the book’s connection to the murder of Rebecca’s brother. And second, The Last Dickens is also Pearl’s attempt to posit an ending The Mystery of Edwin Drood, a puzzle which has perplexed literary enthusiasts ever since Dickens died after finishing only six of the planned twelve chapters of the book. Pearl does a masterful job of weaving these two puzzles together and part of the fun is Pearl’s ability to twist together historical “reality”, such as Dickens last tour of America, with a gumshoe style mystery that also unravels the solution to Dickens’ last book – in a very satisfying fashion – with dire consequences for the characters in the novel. Pearl’s solution to Edwin Drood is both logical and natural, his characters (both real and fictional) are smart, well-developed, and engaging; and the book is chock full of historical details and the atmosphere of the age. I particularly liked Pearl’s take on the great rivalry between the publishing houses of America and England and the controversy over copyright laws and authors’ royalties – two topics which sound very dull – but which Pearl gives a pirate-feel – complete with cleverly crafted "bookaneers" who thieve recently published novels through shorthand. Its a nice touch that creates an interesting connection to today’s arguments over copyright law and piracy on the Internet. If I have a quibble with The Last Dickens, it’s that the secret identity of the main villain is bit too easy to figure out and, being more of a horror fan than mystery-lover, I was hoping for a little more of the macabre – especially given some of the bizarre circumstances Dickens found himself in toward the end of his life. From here, I’m on to Dan Simmons’ Drood, which tackles the same subject, and which I hope takes on a more supernatural bent. (Oh … and for the disaster geek in me … there’s a great passage, based on historical fact, where Dickens – recalling his own experiences as the survivor of train wreck – initiates the rescue of a number of drowning farm animals which were trapped by flooding in upstate New York).(less)

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Aug 06, 2012 Kristen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: best-historical-fiction

As any literature buff knows, Charles Dickens died with his last book "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" half finished. The book is still one of the most famous unfinished novels ever, and there have been any number of theories floated about what Dickens intended for the ending to be. Well Matthew Pearl offers his theory in this very entertaining and exciting story.

Boston, 1870 - word arrives at the offices of publishing house Fields and Osgood, that Dickens has unexpectedly died with Drood unfinished...more As any literature buff knows, Charles Dickens died with his last book "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" half finished. The book is still one of the most famous unfinished novels ever, and there have been any number of theories floated about what Dickens intended for the ending to be. Well Matthew Pearl offers his theory in this very entertaining and exciting story.

Boston, 1870 - word arrives at the offices of publishing house Fields and Osgood, that Dickens has unexpectedly died with Drood unfinished. As Dickens' American publisher, the firm has sent young runner Daniel Sand to the docks to await the last pages of the novel which were sent prior to Dickens' death.

Unfortunately, poor Daniel is killed in an Omnibus accident. But the pages of the book are not found with his body and it looks like Daniel had been under the influence of opium prior to his death - something his sister Rebecca, who also works for Fields & Osgoode vehemently denies.

James Osgoode decides to travel to England and see if he can discover what happened to the novel and if there are any other copies available, as well as find out what really happened to Daniel. He takes Rebecca with him and as the two embark on their transatlantic journey they are immediately enmeshed in danger and intrigue.

What I really love about Pearl's books is that he weaves real documented events and people into a fictional story. His books always have such a genuine feel of reality to them because at least some of the people and the things that happen to them are things you already know actually happened. But Pearl also writes great fiction and has a terrific imagination for what "could have happened" which he mixes with the real stuff so seamlessly you keep forgetting whether you're reading fiction or non-fiction.

The only caveat I might mention is that Pearls books are always very complex, involved plots, with lots of characters and usually at least three inter-connected story-lines so you do have to pay attention as things happen because the events of one chapter may not become clear as to how they connect to the activities of another character in a parallel plot line until later in the book. For me that's a plus, but if you're looking for a fluffy, mindless story, Pearl isn't that.

The story Pearl imagines for what's behind "The Last Dickens" is a very exciting, well-thought out and clever plot. If you enjoy historical fiction - even if you weren't a fan of Dickens' books - you may enjoy this one. It's a page-turner for sure!!(less)

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Jan 02, 2012 Sarahbm rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I thought it was a very good read with an intricate plot. There are times when I don't enjoy historical figures as characters; however, in this case, once I finished the book, I was glad that the characters had been real people. Pearl does a great job of crafting an exciting story around a historical mystery.

I do have several points of criticism. I felt that there were times when the actions of the characters weren't explained or that comments didn't fit in with the moment, particularly with Osg...more

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Sep 11, 2011 Wendall Paul Sexton rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What I enjoyed most about this story was the historical fiction aspect of it. Historical fiction novels give a person the opportunity to not merely be entertained by a good tale, but also learn something in regards to the past of which one may have not been aware. I knew Charles Dickens as one of the greatest authors in literature's history; I had no idea he was such a international star as Matthew Pearl demonstrates here.

The thrust of the plot is Charles Dickens is dead. He has not finished his...more

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Sep 10, 2011 Tim Pendry rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: crime, literature-general, north-american, nineteenth-century, thriller

This another of Matthew Pearl’s impeccably plausible historical settings for a thoroughly implausible plot – an easy and entertaining read that staggers between apparent documentary effects and much less reliable literary effects, sometimes straight out of Sax Rohmer and Dickens himself.

Apart from the leaden first chapter (which seems to have been tacked on, paradoxically, as an afterthought or perhaps, more cynically, to hook weaker readers into a purchase at the bookshop shelves), it is well w...more

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Jun 14, 2011 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In 1870, the world is rocked with the news of the sudden death of literary genius Charles Dickens. The publishing house of Fields & Osgood is particularly shaken, their exclusive publishing rights to Dickens’ newest book, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood”, is their strongest chance to survive as a company, and now it looks like the rest of the story will not be forthcoming unless Dickens has miraculously written 2/3 of a book before his death. When they send a young intern, Daniel Sand, to Englan...more In 1870, the world is rocked with the news of the sudden death of literary genius Charles Dickens. The publishing house of Fields & Osgood is particularly shaken, their exclusive publishing rights to Dickens’ newest book, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood”, is their strongest chance to survive as a company, and now it looks like the rest of the story will not be forthcoming unless Dickens has miraculously written 2/3 of a book before his death. When they send a young intern, Daniel Sand, to England to pick up the remaining installments, he is brutally murdered in the streets mere blocks from the publishing house on his return. The manuscripts disappear into the crowd of onlookers. Daniel’s sister, Rebecca, and one of the partners of the publishing house, James Osgood, are sent to England themselves to search for any clues to the possible ending to Dickens’ last novel. But along the way, they are attacked and soon realize there is much more to the story of Edwin Drood than any of the world know, and they are in the thick of a scramble for what could be a priceless story, fighting alongside opium dealers, rival publishing house hired thugs, murderers, greedy business men, and even characters from Dickens’ story itself.

I always have a hard time getting in to Pearl’s novels. They tend to start a little slow, setting building blocks throughout several story lines which will inevitably converge before the end. This novel is no exception, jumping back and forth in time and between England, India, and Boston. I never feel like I’m quite smart enough to grasp what Pearl is trying to entertain me with, but the stories are still intriguing and the literary aspect is more than enough to keep me reading. Unlike “The Dante Club”, the characters in this novel actually made me feel empathy towards their plight, I found myself rooting for them rather than apathetic towards the conclusion of the story. This might be simply because there were far less of them to keep track of than in “The Dante Club”.

I may go back and read this story again in a few years, because it feels like the sort of book that you would benefit from reading a few times – picking up more the second time through when you’re not merely plugging through to find out the ending. I still have trouble understanding the reason behind the inclusion of some of the minor story lines. They weren’t hindering the main story, but I felt at a loss as to why we were being told about these happenings. They felt relevant but unnecessary.

I still have one more Matthew Pearl book to read, and while I’m looking forward to it, I’m not planning on picking it up anytime soon. However, I do recommend this novel if you like a meaty literary mystery – deeper than a Grisham or Cornwall etc. It involves real aspects of the death of Dickens and the unfinished “Drood” which you may find interesting if you are a Dickens’ fan. Be sure to set aside plenty of time to read it – it isn’t long, but it’s the sort of novel you want to take your time with.(less)

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Feb 07, 2011 Alcornell rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

this was quite a lot harder to get into than the Dante Club...but I remain a fan of this author. Pearl always educates, and this book is no exception. The mystery of Edwin Drood remains a mystery, and yet The Last Dickens proposes a tale so believable one thinks it must be true. But so much of Dickens remains a mystery in this tale. And the book did not flow as well as I expected. I did not fully understand the purpose of telling a story about Dickens' son in India, except to transition the read...more this was quite a lot harder to get into than the Dante Club...but I remain a fan of this author. Pearl always educates, and this book is no exception. The mystery of Edwin Drood remains a mystery, and yet The Last Dickens proposes a tale so believable one thinks it must be true. But so much of Dickens remains a mystery in this tale. And the book did not flow as well as I expected. I did not fully understand the purpose of telling a story about Dickens' son in India, except to transition the reader to India in some related way? What was all that about Dickens' son? and what became of him? I thought the Indian parts set a tone, uncovering the shame of the British opium trade. It gave ground to Dickens' images of the opium-eaters in London society, and the devastation caused by opium-heroin on both sides of the pond and in Asia--but mostly it gave the reader the image of Dickens and son sharing family intimacy...then shows us the loss of that magic. Edwin Drood's tale might have been a portent of Dickens' own end, the conclusion to Dickens' multi-volume serial on Dickens--the famed writer who kept so many secrets, whose life took so many turns (if you see him in his books) that the "last" Dickens was lost -- another casualty of Victorian hypocrisy. References to women's lack of rights form an incomplete theme; the character of Rebecca, like Dickens' son, goes undeveloped beyond an emblematic presence, a marker on a continuum. She is set exactly between those women who successfully married, and those who didn't survive Victorian social conventions, like the crazy Bostonian lady (based on fact like many of the characters here). Rebecca was incomplete, which was disappointing. There is also a layer of publishing-house history woven in but finally, hard to follow. The Last Dickens resurrects The Mystery of Edwin Drood, making it as timely as ever -signified by the likenesses between Dickens' era & our own social problems. Dickens' books raised human folly to an art form; this book follows Dickens' footsteps and gives us more than a slightly flawed, colorful history; it is a wonderfully inventive eulogy.(less)

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Feb 07, 2011 Laura Droege rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, historical, mysteries

1870. Charles Dickens is dead. He leaves behind a struggling publisher, a bereaved public, and an unfinished novel. The Mystery of Edwin Drood promised to be Dickens' masterpiece, equally adored and misunderstood, and revolved around the question of whether the young hero was murdered or in hiding. Now the mystery will never be solved; the novel is only half written.

Or is it?

It falls to James Osgood, Dickens' American publisher, to find out the truth. Along the way, he must fight opiate dealers,...more 1870. Charles Dickens is dead. He leaves behind a struggling publisher, a bereaved public, and an unfinished novel. The Mystery of Edwin Drood promised to be Dickens' masterpiece, equally adored and misunderstood, and revolved around the question of whether the young hero was murdered or in hiding. Now the mystery will never be solved; the novel is only half written.

Or is it?

It falls to James Osgood, Dickens' American publisher, to find out the truth. Along the way, he must fight opiate dealers, cutthroat publishers, and Dickens' close friends' diverging opinions about the possible endings to Drood. What he discovers is intriguing: could Drood's missing ending hold the key to a real-life murder mystery?

The novel is intriguing, a literary thriller written by a master of suspense. Pearl does an excellent job of incorporating period details without ever slowing the pace. There were facts that I didn't know. Did you know that Dickens offered to tell Queen Victoria the ending of Drood? Or that Dickens was stalked by a female admirer? Or that an American tax collector blackmailed the Dickens staff?

The book is divided into six installments (the same number of installments as Drood had at the time of Dickens' death) and they flip from the present (after his death) and past (while Dickens is on a book tour in America). At times, the structure can be confusing; after one or two of the flashbacks, I had difficulty remembering exactly what had happened in the previous section regarding the present day action. Overall, though, that structure heightened the suspense and revealed Dickens the man and how much the public craved his writings.

I enjoyed the characters, especially Dickens' publisher James Osgood (a historical figure) and Tom Branagan (a fictional character) who acts as Dickens porter on his last American tour. Most of all, I enjoyed learning more about the time period and exploring the possibility of what might have been the ending of the author's last novel. Edwin Drood may be an unsolved mystery, but The Last Dickens' ending is satisfying.
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Jan 16, 2011 Pattyrflg rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I listened to this on CD. I have been a Dickens fan for many years, but have never read his last novel "The Mystery of Edwin Drood." This book centers around Dickens' American publisher and the search for the possible ending of the novel after his death. The book moves back and forth between the time after the death of Dickens and his last tour of the United States. It was interesting to learn that writers during that period were paid very little for their books and English authors had no protec...more

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Jan 05, 2011 ruzmarì rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I wanted to like this novel, really I did. I love Dickens's novels and pretty much anything to do with Dickens, and I have an especial soft spot for Drood. But Pearl's novel left me cold. I kept trying to get more involved in the plot's nefarious twists and turns, and to appreciate his trademark authorial touches, including the subtle nod at recent Dickens scholars with a postcolonial lens ... but the novel kept rejecting my attempts at affection. It begins with a premise familiar to anyone who...more

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Feb 13, 2010 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: recommended

The Last Dickens engulfs readers and transports us to times and methods gone by in the writing and publishing world and the rather seedy opium business. Who knew that there were Bookaneers [scrappy people who stop at nothing to access unpublished works by various authors:] and such vengeful publishers about? Today of course there are bidding wars between publishing houses for someone’s memoir or novel but it is not the pirate-like business in which author Matthew Pearl describes in The Last Dick...more

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Dec 29, 2009 Literary Feline rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Starting a review is always a difficult task for me. I come up with ideas and end up dismissing them on second or third thought. In regards to this review, should I begin with the fact that this is my first Matthew Pearl novel? I have wanted to read his books for some time now but it took a book tour for me to finally pick one up and give it a try. This seems to be something I have been doing quite a bit--joining a book tour as an excuse to read a book I’ve wanted to read but haven’t managed to...more Starting a review is always a difficult task for me. I come up with ideas and end up dismissing them on second or third thought. In regards to this review, should I begin with the fact that this is my first Matthew Pearl novel? I have wanted to read his books for some time now but it took a book tour for me to finally pick one up and give it a try. This seems to be something I have been doing quite a bit--joining a book tour as an excuse to read a book I’ve wanted to read but haven’t managed to yet. I very nearly passed this one by. I wasn’t sure I should take on another tour so soon after the last one. And I figured The Poe Shadow would be more up my alley. I have a thing for Edgar Allan Poe.

Charles Dickens is fine and all. I have only read one of his books (as if I have read all that much by Poe!). I read Oliver Twist years ago and loved every word of it. I fell quite hard for dear Oliver. I confess to being a fan of the musical too. Don’t get me started! Whenever I hear someone say “I’ll do anything,” I break out in song. Let’s not get started on picking pockets. I have seen a million different versions of A Christmas Carol, but I know that doesn’t really count as reading the book.

Charles Dickens is one of those authors whose writing I want to explore more. I bought a huge omnibus a couple years back of some of his work, but, like so many other books I own, it is still waiting its turn. I haven’t managed to get to many of the classics this year, unfortunately. I do love a good classic. Matthew Pearl’s The Last Dickens appealed to me on many levels. Its tie to Charles Dickens certainly played a part in that as did the fact that it is a mystery set in the nineteenth century that takes the reader into the bowels of the cutthroat publishing world.

The novel is divided into three narratives. Upon his death in 1870, Charles Dickens appeared to only have completed half of his tale, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, which was being published in serial format by American publisher Fields, Osgood & Company in The Atlantic Monthly. Daniel Sand, a clerk with the publishing company, is killed in a bus accident while on assignment to secure the last installments of Charles Dickens’ novel. His death is just the first in a string of unexplained incidents that raise questions for Publisher James Ripley Osgood. With the security of his firm hanging over his head, Osgood sets out to uncover the ending Dickens had planned for his last novel. Perhaps he’d written more than was known. Finding it would be a coup that could save his career. Osgood travels to England in search of answers, taking along his book keeper, Rebecca Sands, Daniel’s sister.

Meanwhile, in India, a major shipment of opium has gone missing. Superintendent Frank Dickens, son of Charles, has his hands full investigating the theft and possible corruption in his police force. He is dedicated to his job and determined to get to the bottom of the crime.

The novel also takes the reader back in time to 1867 during Charles Dickens’ second book tour on American soil. His experience is fraught with illness, rabid fans, speculators, tax collectors, and Bookaneers. Charles captivates those around him. Imagine hearing him speak in person! Those traveling with Charles are loyal to him, including the Irish Tom Branagan who keeps an eye out for the trouble he suspects is right around the corner.

All three narratives come together nicely as the book draws to a close. The novel is not short of thrills. Murder, spies, the drug trade and the underhanded practices of certain publishers make sure of that. The book had a few slow moments but it was never dull.

I wish I could have spent more time with Frank Dickens. His portion of the book was much shorter than the rest. His story was minor though in comparison to Osgood and Charles Dickens, so it is understandable why. Still, he is a character I wouldn’t have minded exploring further. My favorite character of all, however, was Rebecca. She reminded me of the librarian from The Mummy. Rebecca was strong and capable, intelligent and independent. I really enjoyed getting to know Charles Dickens as well. He could be charming and charismatic, but was not without his own peccadilloes too.

Matthew Pearl’s writing definitely sets the tone of the novel, taking me back to the nineteenth century. He paid close attention to historical details and facts. He captured the historical period quite well, including the shifts in the opium trade and the influence the drug had on society, both where it was being grown and in the market where it was sold and used.

The publishing industry in the 1800’s was still evolving. International copyright laws were nonexistent, and so after a book was published in Britain, it was a free for all for American publishers. Competition was steep, the publishers trying to get their hands on the books so they could be the first to publish books by foreign authors, like Dickens. Much to the dismay of the competition, Charles Dickens entered into an agreement with Fields, Osgood & Company, and it was by professional courtesy that the other American publishers kept their hands off his books. At least until Dickens’ death and all that was left was an incomplete novel. The lengths that the publishers would go to sabotage each other and get their hands on those books are downright wild.

Another aspect of the book that fascinated me was the antics of the public, including the fans. I shouldn’t be surprised. Look at how people react to movie and television stars today. So why wouldn’t people be taking an imprint of Dickens’ foot as a souvenir or stealing his pillow in the night? Haven’t I stood in line to get an author’s autograph, stammering unintelligibly how much I like that author’s work, or still hold dear the first response letter I ever received from an author?

I thoroughly enjoyed The Last Dickens and look forward to reading the author’s other books. Maybe I’ll even pick up another Dickens novel to read soon. Christmas is coming up . . .
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Oct 03, 2009 Nicola rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arc, own

Reason for Reading: I'm always interested in Victorian historical fiction plus I've read two other books this year that concerned Charles Dickens: 'Drood' by Dan Simmons and 'Wanting' by Richard Flanagan. Therefore I thought why not add a third to the mix especially since this concentrated on Dickens last novel as did 'Drood'.

Comments: Dickens has just died leaving his last book "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" only half-finished. But one of the partners of his American publishing house James Osgoo...more Reason for Reading: I'm always interested in Victorian historical fiction plus I've read two other books this year that concerned Charles Dickens: 'Drood' by Dan Simmons and 'Wanting' by Richard Flanagan. Therefore I thought why not add a third to the mix especially since this concentrated on Dickens last novel as did 'Drood'.

Comments: Dickens has just died leaving his last book "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" only half-finished. But one of the partners of his American publishing house James Osgood is certain he may be able to find clues to Dickens' intentions for the story's ending if he travels to England which leads him into a much deeper, darker and dangerous mystery than he had counted on. The book also flashes back a few years to a plot line that follows Dickens' final book tour of America and the trials and tribulations that accompanied him on that last trip. And finally, the book follows a third less frequent plot line of Frank Dickens, Charles' son, who is an officer stationed in India. The time period being consistent with the recent death of his father.

This is a much researched and historically accurate tale as far as Dickens and his family and acquaintances go. Many small real life incidents of his life are included which adds authenticity to the period. I found the characters and the setting to be spot on with regards to Victorian attitudes and ambiance. While the book is populated fiercely with a motley crew of characters, two do stand out as the main characters and I found both James and Rebecca to be both truly believable and completely compelling. Rebecca never stepped out of her place as a woman of her times but as a divorced woman working as a bookkeeper she took no nonsense from anyone as regards her sex. I loved her stinging, yet witty remarks, that kept her completely within her confines as a Victorian woman.

The plot follows many clues and red herrings sending James and (sometimes) Rebecca all over London's shadier sides and to the East End and finally to the dregs of opium dens and thieves quarters. While certainly an interesting read that did keep me reading, I found the pacing slow. It was a book I could put down and not be in a hurry to pick up again. Not because I wasn't liking it but just that it didn't have that certain intensity to it. The ending does increase in pace and there is a typical high energy rush in the final chapters as the mystery is solved, which is all rather cleverly done on the author's part.

One thing I did find fascinating was the description of the the cut-throat world of American publishing at the time. The underhanded dealings, the nefarious goings on, the blatant disregard for international copyright, and in particular the way in which the Harper Brothers were portrayed. If the beginnings of Harper & Bros. and the characters of the brothers themselves have been portrayed realistically here an historical fiction on their family would be an amazing read.

This book would be enjoyed by anyone who enjoys a good literary mystery but I also think it will satisfy all the people who did not like 'Drood' by Dan Simmons very much because of the supernatural elements. Now I loved that other book, but for those of you who didn't, I think you'll love 'The Last Dickens' more than I did.(less)

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Sep 02, 2009 Linda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The first Matthew Pearl novel I read was THE POE SHADOW, which was a fascinating concept --- allowing the reader to experience such a famous (and mysterious) writer as a real person. I felt that the idea was not equaled by the execution in that book. I thought I would try one more time, however, so I just finished reading THE LAST DICKENS, obviously a novel featuring Charles Dickens. Once again, the concept was great. In both cases the author based his characters and events on true stories and r...more

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Jun 18, 2009 Judy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I enjoyed this story about Charles Dickens’s last novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, which was only half-finished when Dickens died. Many scenes in the story are drawn from actual events, like Dickens’ book-signing tour in the U.S. two years before his death, his friendship with American authors Bryant, Irving, Longfellow, and others, a train wreck he was in when he heroically rescued passengers from a railcar dangling off a bridge, his life at his estate Gadshill Place, his public readings of h...more

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May 20, 2009 Gail rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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May 12, 2009 Mark rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

With a turban-headed fellow later identified as a Parsee in pursuit, poor Daniel Sand, employee of the Boston Publisher Fields and Osgood, is killed by a trolley. Sand had gone out to fetch the last available parts of Charles Dickens’s latest novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood. The publisher needed this manuscript badly for Dickens had died unexpectedly earlier in the year (1870) and now the Fields and Osgood had to publish fast before rival publishing houses beat them to it. (With no internation...more With a turban-headed fellow later identified as a Parsee in pursuit, poor Daniel Sand, employee of the Boston Publisher Fields and Osgood, is killed by a trolley. Sand had gone out to fetch the last available parts of Charles Dickens’s latest novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood. The publisher needed this manuscript badly for Dickens had died unexpectedly earlier in the year (1870) and now the Fields and Osgood had to publish fast before rival publishing houses beat them to it. (With no international copyright laws protecting Dickens’ work, they could do so legally). To deal with this problem, Fields comes up with a plan: go to England and see if he can ferret out how Dickens intended to end the book. If he can get that, then his firm will have something to offer that the pirates don’t. Fields, whose health isn’t the best, decides at the last minute to send his much younger partner, James Osgood, in his stead. Osgood in turn takes Daniel’s older sister, the lovely divorcee Rebecca Sand (a bookkeeper who also works for Fields and Osgood), on his trip.

Osgood and Rebecca (mainly the former) get involved with all sorts of troubles and adventures, including involvement with the opium trade as well as people who aren’t who they seem. All this leads to a fairly satisfying ending to the book. The writer of this work, Matthew Pearl, also included two subplots the give a fuller back story to his main plot. One takes place in India and is contemporary with the story’s main events. The second is an account of Dickens’ 1867 tour of America. The plot in India, which involves Dickens’ son Frank, drags the book down and contributes little to the its conclusion; it could’ve been jettisoned and no reader would feel that something is missing. The account of Dicken’s time in America is more interesting and contributes more significantly to the main plot’s climax.

Although I recommend this book and I plan to try some more Matthew Pearl books (this was my first of his), I can’t imagine every ranking him among my favorite authors. While he writes well enough to keep my attention, his characters lack the sort of development to make them either sympathetic, cruel or hated. Because of this limitation, his romantic subplot fell flat as well. Still, if you have any interest in Dickens, the publishing world of America in 1870, or 1870’s London, you may well enjoy this tale.(less)

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May 05, 2009 Michelle rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction

Pearl plunges into the world of 1870, skillfully blending historical fact and literary fiction into a riveting tale about Charles Dickens’ unfinished last novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood.
Drawing on original letters and newspapers, Pearl recounts the extraordinary celebrity of Dickens during his speaking tour of America, where hundreds would line up overnight, enduring freezing temperatures in the hopes of obtaining tickets to his sold out shows.
The seedy underworld of the opium trade washes...more

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Apr 18, 2009 Tony rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-crime-detection

Pearl, Matthew. THE LAST DICKENS. (2009). *****. Pearl manages to provide us with an intelligent – but rip-roaring adventure at the same time – mystery story surrounding Charles Dickens’ last novel, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood.” The plot involves the American publishing house of Fields & Osgood, formerly Ticknor & Fields, the only authorized publishing house in America for Dickens’ novels. These were the days of no international copyright laws, and English books were most often pirated b...more

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May 02, 2011 La Stamberga dei Lettori added it · review of another edition

Shelves: valetta97

Questo è il terzo libro di Matthew Pearl che leggo. O meglio tento di leggere nel senso che, mentre il primo libro Il Circolo Dante mi era sembrato interessante e originale per quanto un po' noiosetto, ero stata "costretta" ad abbandonare a meno della metà la seconda opera di Pearl, L'Ombra di Edgar,perchè più soporifera di un container di camomilla. Nonostante queste poco incoraggianti premesse mi sono lasciata tentare da questo nuovo romanzo, attirata soprattutto dal titolo originale (The Last...more

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Nov 17, 2010 Valetta rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: literaly, fiction, english, gialli

Forse due stelline è un po' poco per un libro che ha una trama originale e ben congeniata, personaggi interessanti e descrizioni attente e accurate...Eppure ilromanzo, nonostante tutte queste qualità risulta spesso lento e noioso!
L'idea di base è potenzialmente molto interessante in quanto parte da uno dei più grossi misteri della letteratura mondiale: qual'è la sorte del giovane Edwin Drood, protagonista dell'omonimo romanzo di Dickens, rimasto a metà a causa della morte del suo autore? E se la...more

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Nov 20, 2009 Amanda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book wasn't as exciting for me as Pearl's first novel, The Dante Club, but I did enjoy it more than The Poe Shadow. Pearl created a few very interesting characters and it was fun to get to know the real Dickens through his portrayal which, though fictional, was based as much as possible on historical accounts of things he said and did, and places he visited. The mystery itself wasn't incredibly exciting- more interesting was the unraveling of different relationships between characters and t...more

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May 17, 2009 Dee rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A mystery with two lovely main characters -- the American publisher of Charles Dickesn and his lovely divorced bookkeeper. The story bounces back between narrators and between England and America, following the last years of Dickens life, and the time just after his death when everyone was looking for the rest of the novel of Drood. Opium and mesmerism and the underbelly of London again figure into the story. This one is more elegantly plotted than "Drood," with a happy ending including the gett...more

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Jan 02, 2012 Ellie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical

Matthew Pearl's third historical literary thriller turns its sights onto the mystery of Dickens' final unfinished work. Shortly after his death, Dickens' American publisher embarks on a search to find out the true ending of The Mystery of Edwin Drood before his rivals can release a fake.

One of the most interesting parts for me was that around the history of American publishing. Even in the late 17th Century Harper & Brothers (to later become the modern day HarperCollins) were considered the...more Matthew Pearl's third historical literary thriller turns its sights onto the mystery of Dickens' final unfinished work. Shortly after his death, Dickens' American publisher embarks on a search to find out the true ending of The Mystery of Edwin Drood before his rivals can release a fake.

One of the most interesting parts for me was that around the history of American publishing. Even in the late 17th Century Harper & Brothers (to later become the modern day HarperCollins) were considered the evil publisher trying to usurp independents. Whilst the Bookaneers were by today's standards criminals, it's good to think that literature was exciting enough to elicit such a response that today would be limited to film and music.

As always, Pearl's historical research is interesting reading and most of the stories revolving around Charles Dickens himself are considered fact. The book depicts that beginnings of celebrity culture, with crazed fans and people camping out overnight to purchase tickets. Not to mention those who buy up tickets and sell them for a profit. I bet you thought all these things were modern!

The fiction itself focuses on publisher James Osgood who was indeed Dickens' representative in America, where at the time international copyright laws didn't apply. The plot isn't particularly strong and probably not helped by the fact that we know Drood remains incomplete to this day. Dickens' son, Francis was also featured, in his role as police in India and involvement with the opium trade. I didn't quite see the relevance of this, despite opium being widely used throughout the story, and it was somewhat distracting.

I would like to see Pearl tackle something without Boston connections. Granted, Boston was the sensible location for The Dante Club and Poe was at least born there but Dickens' only connection is that his American publisher resided there. He does take his hero out of America and into England but it does seem that Boston is the centre of his universe.

If you're interested in the historical aspect, it's a worthwhile read but if you're after a fast paced thriller, you would do better elsewhere.(less)

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Dec 14, 2011 Linda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Matthew Pearl has a winning adventure of the highest literary calibur. He attended Harvard and also has taught literature at Harvard. I will be checking out his book on Lonfellow, and Edgar Allen Poe with several cups of hot chocolate to help through the mystery of his well written books. 'The Last Dickens' comes close to the truth as most of the characters were real people and Matthew has kept to historic acuracy. Yet the book grips you with the mystery of Dickens last book.
James Osgood is the...more

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Hampden B.A.G.: Questions	1	10	Dec 07, 2011 01:25pm
Hampden B.A.G.: Thoughts while reading (NO SPOILERS!)	1	9	Dec 07, 2011 01:23pm

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