Set at the end of the reign of James VI and I, The Fortunes of Nigel is among Walter Scott's richest creations in its political insight, range of characterization, and linguistic virtuosity.
Well versed in the political literature of the period, Scott draws a detailed picture of London in the early seventeenth century while charting the effects of the Scottish influx into the English capital, the ambitions and fears of the newcomers, and the suspicion they aroused. The complex web of political (and sexual) intrigue and financial double-dealings are traced with a master's hand.
Steeped in Jacobean drama, this tale shows Scott revelling in the linguistic riches of the age. Previous editions have obscured his virtuosity (as seen in a dazzlingly proto-Joycean monologue by a Greenwich barber), but painstaking examination of the manuscript and proofs for this new edition allows the full vigor of Scott's achievement to be savored for the first time.