The Romantic: A novel
Description
From the award-winning, internationally best-selling author, a beguiling romp of a novel, at once intimate and panoramic, about the adventures and misadventures of a nineteenth-century everyman
"Picaresque, big-hearted and moving, this is Boyd at the top of his game." —The Guardian
One man, many lives . . . Cashel Greville Ross experiences more of everything than most, from the rapturous to the devastating, from surprising good luck to unexpected loss. Born in 1799, Cashel seeks his fortune across the turbulence of multiple continents, from County Cork to rural Massachusetts, from Waterloo to Zanzibar, embedded with the East Indian Army in Sri Lanka, sunning himself alongside the Romantic poets in Pisa. He travels the world as a soldier, a farmer, a felon, a writer, even a father. And he experiences all the vicissitudes of existence, including a once-in-a-lifetime love that will haunt the rest of his days. In the end, his great accomplishment is to discover who he truly is—which is the romance of life itself, and the beating heart of The Romantic.
Praise for The Romantic: A novel
“An absorbing tale . . . Panoramic, transporting . . . Engrossing . . . Cashel Greville Ross [is] another of Boyd’s marvelous ‘whole life’ creations . . . Throughout the book, Boyd is superb at integrating period detail.” —Charles Finch, New York Times Book Review
“A rambunctious, swashbuckling tale, told with panache by a master storyteller . . . Surrender to this fine novel’s spell . . . it will vicariously supply more than enough thrills for anyone.” —The Observer
“Boyd’s back, baby . . . Pure, joyful escapism.” ―The Times
“A wild ride across the 19th century . . . Irresistible.” —Financial Times
“The rollicking work of a masterful storyteller, The Romantic is both a vivid portrait of a life and a sweeping panorama of an age . . . Packed with passion, adventure, suspense, comic interludes and a range of colourful characters.” —The Economist
“Inventively charts the highs and lows of a life extravagantly lived. Once again, Boyd holds the reader spellbound.” —Publishers Weekly (starred)
“Boyd is as magically readable as ever.” —The Daily Telegraph
“If it’s true escapism you’re after, William Boyd can always be relied upon to transport the reader . . . A wonderful literary getaway.” —Vogue
“A crowd-pleaser . . . Boyd knows how to time the highs and lows, how to blend triumphs and tragedies, personal and historical . . . Genuinely poignant and wise.” —The Sunday Times
“The Romantic by William Boyd was the novel I enjoyed most this year. It’s incredibly ambitious . . . but it was such an easy, indulgent read.” —Sathnam Sanghera, The Times
“A smart, colorful entertainment . . . [Cashel Greville Ross] is an always engaging character . . . Boyd continues to enrich his legacy.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred)
“Hugely satisfying . . . What is often lost behind the sheer pleasure brought by his books is their layered Chekhovian subtleties . . . It is intoxicating to be in the company of a writer who seems to be having such fun peeling away the skin of history and inserting his characters underneath . . . In The Romantic, as in all of Boyd’s best books, life is always breaking in. The sentences—even the death sentences—thrum with life.” —Jonathan Lee, The Guardian
“A sweeping adventure . . . A popular hero’s tale, a picaresque novel with a touch of Fielding, and a 19th-century history of highlights for the armchair historian.” —Christina Nellas Acosta, Historical Novels Review
“A ripping yarn . . . Pretty much faultless: as more-ish as good chocolate, terrifically entertaining, and deeply humane.” —i newspaper
“A panoramic and deeply satisfying narrative from an author on top form.” —Mail on Sunday
“An utterly engrossing adventure story.” —Antonia Fraser, Tablet
“William Boyd’s new novel is one of his best.” ―The Scotsman
“It’s a pleasure to be immersed in Boyd’s wry prose . . . [Cashel is] compellingly and endearingly human.” —Alexander Moran, Booklist
“As we have come to expect, here is exceptional storytelling—pristine, immersive, and intoxicating . . . As informative as it is entertaining . . . There’s a Dickensian warmth and verve, an epic scale, a spirited sense of chance and adventure . . . Bravura, high octane stuff.” ―Irish Examiner
“A highly entertaining, engrossing page-turner.” —Irish Independent
“A narrative that Charles Dickens or Jane Austen would surely have been happy to claim as their own . . . There’s a joy to Boyd’s storytelling throughout and his hero is one to cheer for.” ―Business Post (Ireland)
