Veteran actor Tim McInnerny delivers a masterly narration of Harris's novel. He truly inhabits the characters, his voice and manner finely tuned to the personality and convictions of each: Goffe, a fanatical, millenarian Puritan; Whalley, more practical and ultimately disillusioned; Nayler, smoothly menacing, but prey to depression ... this production is perfect. The best historical fiction combines a gripping plot with meticulous research - leaving the reader inspired to learn more about the real-life protagonists. And the latest release from Robert Harris once more proves his mastery of the genre Soldier Harris certainly seems to have done his research and he brings the time period to life convincingly enough with lots of detail. You know how sometimes people say they learn more about history through reading historical novels than actual history books? I can see people saying that about Harris’ historical novels like this one. So, is it historically on point? It is. And especially gives a more than average quality account for Boston, Cambridge etc. during this Puritan immigrant period. Is it 3 to 4 star in the ball park for the English and European continental ends of the pursuit for the regicides? Of course, this is Harris. Harris's books are always supremely readable - he has practically trademarked the term 'master storyteller' Alex Preston, Observer

Act of Oblivion: Robert Harris - AbeBooks Act of Oblivion: Robert Harris - AbeBooks

Harris displays an impressive grasp of the historical context without taxing his readers by showing his 'workings'. Church Times

Book Summary

Harris's cleverness, judgment and eye for detail are second to none Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times A disappointing one for me, then, though most people seem to be loving it, so as usual it clearly comes down to subjective taste. This book is a sweeping saga set in the 1600s about the hunt for two (real) men, William Goffe and Edward Whalley, who signed the death warrant of Charles I, and their life in hiding in America. Richard Nayler is the fictional hunter of the “regicides.” The hunt begins in 1660 upon restoration of Charles II, son of Charles I, to the throne of England after the ousting and death of Oliver Cromwell. The titular Act of Oblivion pardoned the past treasons committed against the Crown, with the exception of the regicides. The two fugitives are related by marriage – Whalley is the father-in-law of Goffe. Whalley is also cousin to Oliver Cromwell. The families are the two men also feature in the narrative. In this tense and beautifully written account of the ensuing manhunt, Harris brings sympathy to characters on either side of the civil war that divided a nation. Daily Mail The men being hunted are Edward Whalley and his son-in-law William Goffe, both of whom had been colonels in Oliver Cromwell’s New Model Army, fighting for the Parliamentarians against Charles I’s Royalists. When that war ended in a Parliamentarian victory, Whalley and Goffe, along with fifty-seven other men, signed the death warrant that led to the king’s execution. Oliver Cromwell then ruled as Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland until his death in 1658.

Act of Oblivion by Robert Harris - Penguin Books Australia Act of Oblivion by Robert Harris - Penguin Books Australia

Wow, this guy knows how to tell a story! Robert Harris is a master of his craft whatever genre he writes about. This is a wonderful story in the style of "The Fugitive" with a relentless pursuer determined to get his men. In the most part, Act of Oblivion features real characters and real events, with lots of fun to be had in the fiction Harris weaves into the gaps. Pacy and tense, and the pungently evoked past offers up some shrewd present-day parallels Mail on Sunday Harris, deft as ever, weaves a hefty amount of historical fact into the narrative, politics, religion, colonial life, family ties - as well as themes of forgiveness and reconciliation. Underneath it all though is the remorseless and building propulsion of hunter and prey New Statesman The book excels in its stunning recreation of the landscape of America... Harris proves himself to be masterful at this and it gives the book a vibrant memorability New Statesman

This was a very turbulent time in history, dominated as it was by religion and politics, vile atrocities on both sides, and Harris’s research brings it very much to life. This is a master storyteller at work. An exceptional, exciting, and suspenseful chase, a magnificent piece of historical fiction, very difficult to put down, and in my humble opinion, an absolute must read. Act of Oblivion is a fine novel about a divided nation, about invisible wounds that heal slower than visible ones . . . it feels like an important book for our particular historical moment, one that shows the power of forgiveness and the intolerable burden of long-held grudges Observer When it comes to the execution of English royalty, perhaps the most famous are the two wives of Henry VIII who met their ends at the Tower of London — Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard. The double execution of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette by guillotine in France is equally if not more famous, and countless other royals have been killed by their enemies. However, only one reigning King of England has ever been publicly executed for treason: Charles I, or Charles Stuart, in 1649. This crucial event precedes the main plot in Robert Harris's Act of Oblivion.

Act of Oblivion: The Thrilling new novel from the no. 1

The town’s unknown saviour became known as the Angel of Hadley. The mystery of his identity soon gained an extra frisson: it was rumoured that the Angel was the fugitive Major General William Goffe, a man with a huge reward on his head. Goffe was one of the regicides, the men who signed Charles I’s death warrant, whose lives had become forfeit after the Restoration of the monarchy. I seriously enjoyed listening to this book. My only negative comment is that it was perhaps a little too long, as I did find my interest and attention wane during the mid stages of the narration. A few days of listening to several other, less note-worthy titles, ensued and I was ready to resume listening to Act of Oblivion to the end. Over half the Regicides have since died but, of the remaining survivors, two names are highest on the most wanted list: Edward Whalley and William Goffe, who are suspected to have fled to the New England colonies across the Atlantic. Richard Nayler is appointed by the Crown to hunt down these men and bring them the King’s justice. And so the chase begins - will Whalley and Goffe get away with it?

Beyond the Book

Whalley is the only reflective character, confronting the possibility (in the memoir, though not to others) that perhaps God had not been on the side of the Parliamentarians. Goffe and Nayler remain rigid in their views to the end, starkly representing the opposing sides. He’s done a marvelous job of this. Whalley, Goffe and Nayler are vividly drawn, their decisions and actions consistent with the worldviews he has created for them. The arc of the story is well designed, with the focus shifting between New England and London, where Goffe’s wife (Whalley’s daughter) is the primary focus. A fictional memoir drafted by Whalley is an excellent device for filling in details about Cromwell’s rise - and fall. My knowledge of 17th century English history doesn't go much beyond the basics. Before reading this book I was unaware of the scope of the hunt for the "regicides", the men who were responsible for the beheading of Charles I as part of Cromwell's rise to power. Edward Whalley and his son-in-law William Goffe, officers in Cromwell's army, escaped from England to America, thus avoiding the ominous fate that awaited those who were captured in England or on the continent. Act of Oblivion: A Novel is a fictionalization of their lives, and those around them, after they landed in Boston.