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FINNEY**, PATRICIA: : FIREDRAKE'S EYE. [Author SIGNED copy.]

LONDON.SINCLAIR-STEVENSON LIMITED,1992.

ISBN 1856191230.

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,SIGNED,1st edn.NFINE/NFINE.No owner inscrptn,but author's neat,handwritten, black ink,warm dedication and her expansive signature: 'To my old friend,Charles,much love, Patricia Finney.' to recto of half-title page,and no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright,crisp, clean,glossy laminated,wrap-around colour pictorial artwork,by Robert Mason,illustrated dw/dj with black+red lettering; with minimal shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no major nicks or tears.Upper board's lower corner of dw/dj minimally creased with a small nick/closed tear; lower rear corner similarly affected but with some minimal loss and both head+foot of spine/backstrip minimally bumped with reciprocal creasing.Top+fore-edges generally bright and clean with merest hint of slight,light stain to a couple of pages' edges - more noticeable when the book is opened.Contents bright,tight,clean,solid and sound.Publisher's bright,crisp,clean,generally sharp-cornered (rear,lower corner minimally bumped/creased), original plain maroon cloth boards with bright, crisp,blocked gilt letters to spine/backstrip,a red+grey striped headband and immaculate maroon+ white publisher's logo/colophon illustrated endpapers.UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,author SIGNED,1st edn, vii-viiipp+1-263pp [paginated] includes author's note,Tom O'Bedlam's (novel's character) Song,56 chapters,historical note,cast of characters,and a glossary.Plus [unpaginated] SIGNED+dedicated half-title page,title page,and dedication page. In the autumn of 1583,in the fetid alleyways of Whitefriars,the loyal courtier Simon Ames is viciously beaten.The random prey of footpads - or victim of a subtly treasonous act? A nonsense poem once written by the lunatic Tom O'Bedlam has become the favourite of London's balladsellers. Who has taken the wild maunderings of a madman with such seriousness - and why? Following a trail of murder,treason and terror, encountering thick plot and thin allegiance,Ames and his dubious friend Becket set out to uncover the truth.But,as they dig deep into the human midden that is Elizabethan London,puzzle becomes enigma and then riddle. What is the secret at the heart of the pageantry to be paraded before the Queen at the Accession Day Tilts? Who is Tom and what does his ballad mean? Couched in innovative prose,employing a plot that is itself a riddle,'Firedrake's Eye' combines high literary style with the narrative force of a thriller and takes you unforgettably into the dark streets and complex minds of the extraordinary Elizabethans. Patricia Finney's remarkable debut novel 'A Shadow of Gulls' (see rja1819),so detailed in its background,so talented in its recreation of character and event,would be a noteworthy publishing occasion in any circumstances.That its author was seventeen when she wrote it, singles it out as one of the most memorable literary debuts in the twentieth century.And as such,was the winner of the David Higham Award for Best First Novel of the Year.She has written a second novel,the continuation of Lugh the Harper in 'The Crow Goddess' (see rja1820).This novel was written and published whilst she was at Wadham College,Oxford,studying Modern History and writing occasional freelance features in the national press.Her research for this novel took five years. Please contact seller,because of the value of this item,for correct,insured shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! N.B. ALL buyers please note,stocks' actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order's receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if the item(s) are offered either P+p included/FREE. ** N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: Standard AIRMAIL postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of the book! If speed is not of the essence, then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. anything from a 1/3rd to 1/2 of the standard US AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving sooner than the 42 days - but not always. **

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,SIGNED,1st edn.
'To my old friend,Charles,much love,Patricia Finney.'

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