28/25 (112%) 5 stars.Holy mother of pearl I did not see that coming. Best one in the series so far, mind-blowing ending.----Dialogue 5Setting 6Characters 5Writing Style 6Plot 6

This is the fourth book in the House of Niccolo. Having left Cyprus, Nicholas embarks on an expedition to Africa, his two aims being trade and exploration. In the late 15th century, this journey is arduous and risky. Nicholas and his companions (on odd mix of people from his present and his past,a s well as some new faces) endure extreme hardships and experience exotic wonders. Their trip culminates in their arrival at Timbuktu, a great Muslim center of trade and learning. The story finishes wit...

It is, as always, a crime to give Dunnett less than five stars, and I am not feeling in a criminal mind today. This one has the starting hints of what I recall annoying me about the later stages of this series -- constant allusions to grand plans without ever revealing what those are. Perhaps they become clear in future novels (I would assume that they do), but I don't need multiple references to Nicholas' 25 close-written pages of instructions to infuriate me. She wouldn't keep talking about it...

My favorite of the Niccolo books so far - couldn't put it down!

‘To those who remembered him, it was typical that Nicholas should sail into Venice just as the latest news reached the Rialto, causing the ducat to fall below fifty groats and dip against the écu.’In 1464, Nicholas vander Poele returns from Cyprus to Venice. His stay is brief: he has financial concerns and is under threat by several powerful business rivals. He sets sail for Africa:‘The country where there is gold in such abundance that men prefer to barter in shells.’ Nicholas is intent on trad...

This volume finds yet another hard-headed determined female in pursuit of Niccolo but Niccolo is definitely playing hard to get by embarking on a highly ambitious and secretive trip to Africa. Death appears to await him as he chooses to pursue his goal, but he survives and finds himself anew with a new-old friend. Returning home in a mix of relief and triumph...he is greeted with deserved happiness and an undeserved twist of a knife he thought had been sheathed with his surrender.

Dorothy Dunnett never fails to take my breath away with her historical fiction. In this, the fourth book of the House of Niccolo series, our hero travels to Portugal, Madeira, and Timbuktu. He is accompanied by his friend (who is also his conscience), Father Godscalc. Godscalc is on a mission to find the Kingdom of the famous Prester John in Ethiopia.Tagging along (and not entirely welcome) are his young cousin, Diniz Vasquez, and his ex's sister, Gelis van Borselen. Diniz now idolizes Nicholas

Wow, this one really packs a punch! Nicholas experiences extreme physical suffering, comes to a place of wholeness on multiple levels and is finally able and willing to let go of his possible connection to Simon but then Dunnett socks it to him in the last few pages.SPOILER ALERTI knew it was coming but got sucked in and didn't remember how tough it was. He and Gelis seemed like they were real on both sides and yet she still double-crossed him. My theory is that if he had told her first about Um...

I have thoroughly enjoyed the House of Niccolo series. I found this book (while still a good read) was not as strong or engaging as the previous three novels. I felt frustration at events skipped over (e.g. Nicolas & Godscalc's epic journey) while time was spent on more tedious and mundane events. There is, however, the satisfaction of travelling on a journey through these tales. Dunnett ensures the story is plausible and authentic for the era, while still being an exciting adventure where her c...

Found the first 350 pages stretched on for way too long, but, from there, the rest of the book was really interesting. The insights into the characters and the setting were back to Dunnett's form and I couldn't put it down. I just think it's a shame that those first 350 pages weren't edited down to around a hundred. If I could rate the book in halves, I'd give one star to the first and five stars to the second.One word to the wise, don't get to the end of this book without having book five, Unic...

Second time through, it's a 5. It's only a 5, though, if you read it slow enough to pick up the dozen nuances on each page that let you know what is really going on. Fascinating how Dunnett conveys character motives and feelings.

Dorothy Dunnett really is the master of genetic angst.

Painful, beautiful, exciting, intimate and easily my favourite book in the 'House of Niccolò' series so far. The thing to keep in mind with Dunnett novels, is that though her beautiful prose disguises it well, they are ridiculous. Gloriously, unabashedly ridiculous. They are James Bond style action and glamour, they are melodrama, they are Dumas-style adventure and wit, and they are absoultely addictive. Do not start reading Scales of Gold unless you have Unicorn Hunt at hand, because you're goi...

This feels like the turning point of the 'House of Niccolo' series, much as Checkmate was in the 'Lymond Chronicles.' There's the long, slow build-up of character development throughout the book—for all that much of it takes place in West Africa, in places where Europeans would so rarely have ventured in the fifteenth century, or even in the present day, there is relatively little description of the environment in which Nicholas and his group find themselves. It's much more introverted, about th...

Somehow not the most poetic of Dunnett's House of Niccolo volumes but still full of the author's characteristic plot intricacies and rich cast of characters.An adjustment required in accepting this book being set primarily in Africa rather than Europe. So chunks of the narrative became more a physical adventure than the usual strategical minefield that a Dunnett novel entails.The ending of the novel has reverberated throughout Dunnett fandom over the years.This has never been my favourite Niccol...

Our tireless merchant adventurer seeks to salvage his bank's liquidity and hamper his rivals by going to Africa and cornering the Guinea gold trade. Nice character-building volume in the series, or at least it was until the last page (yes, the last page), which veered more than 90 degrees from what I'd been reading before that. Which left a very sour feeling in my mouth. hopefully it will be explained in the later volumes. Rated MA for violence, nudity, sexual references and moderate coarse lang...

What a diabolical mind had the author, Dorothy Dunnett. All I can say about the ending of this book. Is YIKES!And once again our hero, the cat with nine lives, has lost life number four in this book four of the series. Four more books to go and five lives.Truly amazing how Dunnett was able to capture 15th Century Africa and a trek from south to north across the Sahara Desert, among other things.

The fourth book in the intriguing House of Niccolo series and to my mind the most bittersweet to date. Again rich in historical detail, intricacy and wonderful characterisation these books can not be rushed they have to be savoured. Masterful storytelling.

Onto Africa. Only Niccolo could get himself into so much trouble with so much charm.

Complicated to keep track of. Didn't expect the events of the last 2 pages.Edit 12/6/20 Some of the comments about race, slavery and the politics of Timbuktu was a different perspective.

Nicholas is in Africa, 15th C Africa, seeking the fabled lands of Prester John / heathens for Godscalc to convert / riches - ( prioritise as you see fit). probably one of the strongest books in the series but also the saddest.

holy shit

I don't know how fair this rating is but this is how I feel right now.

What can i say. No book has taken my breath away like the ending of this one. I literally broke down and cried. Can't wait to move on to the next.

My rating for this book wavers between 1 and 4 stars and that is why I give it no rating. It deserves 4 stars because it made me ponder about my own choices, about the power of faith, about ambiguity of altruism, it reminded me of my own time spent in the wilderness and how cathartic it can be. It also clarified one major flaw I saw in these books, the walking breathing Adonis (Nicholas) irresistible to women, men, young and old. If he was not served to us as master of seduction then the end of

This is the 4th book in the series. I have read the House of Niccolo Series of eight books, and I have found her characters to be deep and rich. They are not without flaws and make mistakes and suffer from the consequences. They are, most of them “bigger than life” in the sense they are so intelligent, learn languages and foresee events and plan for all the possibilities. She visits several settings in each book, each with it’s own set of characters, and great attention to detail in describing w...

http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2469592.htmlFourth in the series of the adventures of Niccolò, the smart young Flemish merchant who travels fifteenth century in search of wealth and its inevitable political entanglements. This time, a cunning plan to penetrate deep into Africa becomes complicated by a new wrinkle in a long-standing family feud, and extraordinary dynastic and legal manœuvres from Vanice to Madeira to Timbuktu. The ground has been well laid, as one of the supporting cast from the fi...

Loved it, devoured it, being an expat at heart the places, the history, the curtain drawn back, how Niccoló Loppe/Lopez/Umar and assorted companions took it, and the continuing intrigue and besting the treacherous enemy--all delicious and rich and detailed and hard to put down. Was happy it was only #4.....Until -- SPOILER ALERT: The Ending: though shocked, I wasn't nearly as horrified as I was at the ending of Gone Girl, its twin. Gelis is a twisted piece of evil, and her Rosemary's Baby surpri...

I love Dunnett's historical fiction partly because the mystery of the machivellian plotting but also because of her descriptions of places and times usually overlooked. As such, one of favorites is the second book in the Niccolo series set in 15th century Trebizond. Scales of Gold is equally wonderful for the same reason; her descriptions of the difficulties of travel in 15th century Africa are simply fascinating and her version of life in Timbuktu is very convincing. Dunnett can be hard to read...

I was briefly on the fence about this re-read - 8 dense books while I have another 30 items on the To Read shelf... but then the novel unfolded and I once again got swept up. The development of Gelis and partner or opponent, the stretching of the scene to Africa and Nicholas' finding of wisdom... I now desperately want to remember what happens next.The writing remains fabulous (even though it takes a little longer to read) and the moving of the scene to Africa adds real breadth - the acknowledge...