Book description
A cold October night, 1854. In a dark passageway, an innocent man is
stabbed to death. So begins the extraordinary story of Edward Glyver,
book lover, scholar and murderer. As a young boy, Glyver always believed
he was destined for greatness. This seems the stuff of dreams, until a
chance discovery convinces Glyver that he was right: greatness does
await him, along with immense wealth and influence. And he will stop at
nothing to win back a prize that he now knows is rightfully his.
Glyver's path leads him from the depths of Victorian London, with its
foggy streets, brothels and opium dens, to Evenwood, one of England's
most enchanting country houses. His is a story of betrayal and
treachery, of death and delusion, of ruthless obsession and ambition.
And at every turn, driving Glyver irresistibly onwards, is his deadly
rival: the poet-criminal Phoebus Rainsford Daunt. Thirty years in the
writing, The Meaning of Night is a stunning achievement. Full of drama
and passion, it is an enthralling novel that will captivate readers
right up to its final thrilling revelation.
'Unusual and remarkable... Key to the convincing nature of this
confession is Cox's grasp of the minutiae of the times and the
language of the period, so that the reader at times forgets this isn't
a contemporary of Dickens'
Michael Cox has been planning and drafting 'The Meaning of Night' for
thirty years. He is a former editor at Oxford University Press and
biographer of the ghost story writer M. R. James. His lifelong passion
for Victorian literature led him to edit a number of collections of
short fiction from the period, including 'The Oxford Book of Victorian
Detective Stories'. He lives in rural Northamptonshire - where 'The
Meaning of Night' is partly set - with his wife. This is his first
novel. Michael Cox has been planning and drafting 'The Meaning of Night'
for thirty years. He is a former editor at Oxford University Press and
biographer of the ghost story writer M. R. James. His lifelong passion
for Victorian literature led him to edit a number of collections of
short fiction from the period, including 'The Oxford Book of Victorian
Detective Stories'. He lives in rural Northamptonshire - where 'The
Meaning of Night' is partly set - with his wife. This is his first
novel.
