The Earth Will Shake (Historical Illuminatus Chronicles, Vol 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

by Robert Anton Wilson (Author)
Key Phrases: Uncle Pietro, Mother Ursula, Sigismundo Celine (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Devilish... I loved it! -- Greil Marcus, Rolling Stone

More important than Ulysses or Finnegans Wake. -- Timothy Leary

When it comes to intelligent dissent, Wilson is the motherload. -- RU Sirius, Editor, Mondo 2000 --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description
They have been with us all through history: The "Invisible College" of wisdom, and their adversaries---the destroyers---who rise from the flames to burn again. The history of the world is their story: a conspiracy as vast and all-encompassing as the riddle of time itself.

In Naples, Italy, in 1764, a young aristocrat is about to stumble onto one piece of the great pattern. Through a heartless murder and his passion for the beautiful daughter of his enemy, young Sigismundo Celine uncovers the mystery of the Rossi brigade, former M.A.F.I.A. assassins, and the secret agenda of the dreaded Inquisition.

In the wind of the raging social storm that will soon tear through Europe and America with the flame of revolution, Sigismundo begins his journey of discovery, joined by the boy Mozart, Dr. Frankenstein, Casanova the spy, lover and magician...and a mysterious violet-eyed assassin who calls him "brother." --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 385 pages
• Publisher: Lynx Books (July 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558021760
• ISBN-13: 978-1558021761
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,063,403 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What more could one possibly look for in a great novel?, May 2, 2004

By	Psyche (spiralnature.com) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Earth Will Shake: The History of the Early Illuminati (The Historical Illuminatus Chronicles) (Paperback)

In Naples, Italy, in 1764, fourteen year old Sigismundo Celine witnesses the murder of his Uncle Leonardo, on Easter, while he's about to perform the mass. This begins the coming of age story of young Sigismundo, in wanting to prove his manhood, discovering the world is far more sinister than he was lead to believe.

Sigismundo adventures into the world of music from unknown Johann Sebastian Bach, befriends the Monster, the wunderkind Wolfgang Mozart, he even meets the hermetically inclined Dr. Frankenstein - or one of them. All the while, everyone from the Freemasons, the Rossi, Alumbrados, the Carboni, and even the MAFIA want seem to want him to 'learn their secret handgrips and join their very own special conspiracy' (pg. 134).

The characters are brilliantly entertaining, from Sigismundo himself who is 'the most brilliant young musician in all Italy since Antonio Vivaldi, in the estimation of only the two people whose opinions mattered, himself and Uncle Pietro' (pg. 14), to clever Uncle Pietro who spares him time and time again, naïve Maria whom Sigismundo is hopelessly in love with - and terrified of, to Sir John ('"Yes," Sir John said wearily, with a strange, crooked grin. "I do not know what to believe. I have read too much and traveled too far. Certitude belongs to those who have only lived in a place where everybody believes the same thing"' (pg 315).

The chapter headings loosely follow cards of the Tarot (the Fool, the Empress, the Magician, the Priestess, the World, the Hanged Man, the Devil), but out of order. Obviously influenced by Aleister Crowley, Masonic ritual and occult thought with Wilson's characteristic 'maybe logic' philosophy evident even in this early work.

Any fan of the any branch of Illuminati or secret society lore will immediately find this book appealing. Brilliantly written, clever, funny, and with more than a hint of intrigue, what more could one possible look for in a great novel.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Earth Still Shaking , December 28, 2005

By	RC "The Barbarian" (New York, New York United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Earth Will Shake: The History of the Early Illuminati (The Historical Illuminatus Chronicles) (Paperback)

I read this book back in the late 80's when it was printed by a mass-market publisher (Signet, I think) containing two abridged volumes; The Earth Will Shake and The Widow's Son. I loved it then and was never able to find Nature's God. Now I have all 3 books. After re-reading this edition, I've enjoyed it twice as much!! There is still yet an unpublished forth book, "The World Turned Upside Down" and we're all awaiting this gem to be published. Earth Will Shake is a coming of Age novel set in the enlightenment era where a murder happens in church during an Easter mass. From that point on it's a roller coster ride of wicked but serious fun. You are enlightened by the sheer weight of the subject matter that continues to this day. In these works you meet diverse characters who are historically real. I.e., the young Mozart, Count Cagliostro and Casanova, just to name a few. Dan Brown though entertaining, is comparatively an amateur hack when writing about the Illumniati (see for yourself and read this. You won't be disappointed). When the Da Vinci Code got ALL the attention, there was no mention of this work and I find that a sad reality though parr for the course in these "shaky" times. Remember, "reality is what you can get away with"...

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Illuminatii illuminated, February 18, 2000

By	lazy_atom (Ireland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Earth Will Shake (Historical Illuminatus Chronicles Volume One) (Mass Market Paperback)

The Historical Illuminatus Trilogy is Robert Anton Wilson at his most poetic. Combining the essential elements of his other works, (religion, politics, intrigue, mind-control, and the supposed differences between them) he weaves a tale of dashing and daring adventure, describing the growing pains of a young man destined to change the world, mostly against his own desires. Set amidst a vast backdrop of historical events, such as the French, Irish & American revolutions, scientific progress & religious intolerence, with a delightful dollop of sex 'n' drugs 'n' classical music, it's a wonderful series that beautifully suggests, if not illustrate clearly, how we have come to live in the world we see around us. The eternal question of what is good and evil is eloquently dealt with in these glorious books. Read, enjoy, devour the wisdom of R. A. Wilson, and he WILL change your life. Forever. And that is a very long time!