Back Bay [Import] [Hardcover]

William Martin (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 544 pages
• Publisher: Macdonald; n.e. edition (August 22, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0356109038
• ISBN-13: 978-0356109039
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,402,709 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

In his boyhood, William Martin loved what he later called "big stories on broad canvases." He read the novels of C.S. Forester, Dickens, and western author Will Henry. He sat transfixed by the big movies of the early sixties. So after college he went to Hollywood to try his hand at screenwritng but quickly found that his instincts were better suited to novels. His first, "Back Bay," introduced treasure hunter Peter Fallon in a new kind of adventure that joined the contemporary mystery-thriller to the historical novel. In his nine novels (including four best selling Peter Fallon adventures), Martin has tracked national treasures across the landscape of the American imagination, chronicled the lives of the great and the anonymous in American history, and brought to life legendary American locations, from "Cape Cod" to "Annapolis" to the "City of Dreams." He has also written an award-winning PBS documentary on the life of Washington and a cult-classic horror movie, has contributed book reviews to the Boston Globe, and has taught writing across the country, from the Harvard Extension School to the famous Maui Writers Conference. He lives near Boston with his wife and has three grown children. His work has established him as a "storyteller whose smoothness matches his ambition."(Publisher's Weekly) And he was the recipient of the 2005 New England Book Award, given to "an author whose body of work stands as a significant contribution to the culture of the region."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The test of time, June 7, 2000

By 

Mardy Mancini (Boston) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Back Bay (Mass Market Paperback)

I read this gripping saga when it was first published some 20 years ago. Since then, I've recommended it to friends and to newcomers to Boston. Recently, I bought a copy at a local library sale and began to re-read it. I am as caught up in it now as I was all those years ago when I first read it. Martin's "Back Bay" does withstand the test of time. The story is cleverly told by the use of flashback. The reader learns the secret and the mystery of the Pratt family early in the book but must wait for the revelation and solution along with the characters who live in the 20th century. The story is a marvelous blend of fact and fiction and is a must read for anyone who loves Boston, history, and mystery. I would also recommend, as a companion book, Walter Muir Whitehill's topographical history of Boston.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From Southie to Brahman, September 8, 1999

By 

Charles Andrews (Fort Worth, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Back Bay (Mass Market Paperback)

William Martin takes his place as the premier historical novelist of our generation. He capably wears the mantle passed down from Michener as story telling historian. He makes us want to learn history. His stories are living entities not a collection of memorized dates. Back Bay carries on the tradition of Cape Cod in both educating and entertaining the reader. This is an art he has refined in Annnapolis and Citizen Washington. While I loved Michener, I often found his introduction a bit laborious. Martin immediately immerses the reader in the story and pulls you along with such compelling force that one rarely knows when to one can take a break. Having live in Boston, I learned more intwo days of reading than in the 3 years of living. From South Boston to the Commons and Beacon Hill, this story brings one of America's first cities alive. The city is the main character.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars gripping...couldn't put it down!, December 31, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Back Bay (Mass Market Paperback)

I am not always much of a reader, but this book caught me from the first pages. It is a MUST for anyone who knows and/or loves the city of Boston and the history that goes along with it. I found myself visualizing the streets and areas of Boston as I read each chapter. My only disappointment was the ending...I could not believe that I was on the last page! I wanted it to end differently for the characters (thus, only 4 stars), but overall I was quite satisfied with the book. I am now going to dig into Cape Cod, but the same author.