From the bestselling author of Fatherland, The Ghostwriter, Munich, and Conclave comes this spellbinding historical novel that brilliant imagines one of the greatest manhunts in history: the search for two Englishmen involved in the killing of King Charles I and the implacable foe on their trail—an epic journey into the wilds of seventeeth-century New England, and a chase like no other 'From what is it they flee?' He took a while to reply. By the time he spoke the men had gone inside. He said quietly, “They killed the King.” 1660 England. General Edward Whalley and his son-in law Colonel William Goffe board a ship bound for the New World. They are on the run, wanted for the murder of King Charles I—a brazen execution that marked the culmination of the English Civil War, in which parliamentarians successfully battled royalists for control. But now, ten years after Charles’ beheading, the royalists have returned to power. Under the provisions of the Act of Oblivion, the fifty-nine men who signed the king’s death warrant and participated in his execution have been found guilty in absentia of high treason. Some of the Roundheads, including Oliver Cromwell, are already dead. Others have been captured, hung, drawn, and quartered. A few are imprisoned for life. But two have escaped to America by boat. In London, Richard Nayler, secretary of the regicide committee of the Privy Council, is charged with bringing the traitors to justice and he will stop at nothing to find them. A substantial bounty hangs over their heads for their capture—dead or alive. . . . Robert Harris’s first historical novel set predominantly in America, Act of Oblivion is a novel with an urgent narrative, remarkable characters, and an epic true story to tell of religion, vengeance, and power—and the costs to those who wield it.
Publication Year: 2022
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With 'Act of Oblivion,' Robert Harris draws a thriller from the English Civil War.
Here's the setup: the civil war is over. King Charles I and Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell are dead, and Charles II sits upon the throne. The Indemnity and Oblivion Act, a general pardon for all who committed crimes related to the civil war, is the law of the land. Everyone wants to forget and get back to normal, but the Indemnity and Oblivion Act does not extend to those directly involved in the trial and execution of Charles I.
Fictional character Richard Naylor, agent of the Privy Council (and the only fictional character in the book), is tasked with hunting down the fugitives on Charles II's list of regicides. Laser-focused and coldly efficient, a sort of English Javert, he'll stop at nothing to capture or kill his men. Two of the men, New Republican army Colonels Edward Whalley and William Goffe, have escaped to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Will an ocean be enough to help them evade Naylor's justice?
And we're off, with Harris constructing a cat-and-mouse chase across Europe and the Colonies. Harris, an experienced and respected writer of historical thrillers, know how to craft a captivating plot. The real draw of the novel, however, is his reconstruction of Colonial New England. Ever wonder why New Haven is part of Connecticut, and not the other way around? Harris is here to tell you. Ever wonder how New Amsterdam became New York (not technically New England, but close enough)? Harris has you covered. As someone who lives in New England, and who commute to work takes him through many of the locations mentioned in this narrative, I found 'Act of Oblivion' to be particularly interesting. This is carefully researched and reconstructed history, with a spoonful of thriller to make the medicine go down.
In short, 'Act of Oblivion' is entertaining and educational. It shows its readers a good time, gives them a real sense of the people, places, and belief systems of its world, and brings the story home in a satisfying manner. This is the third of Harris's books that I've enjoyed. I'm certain it won't be the last.
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