The Weight of the Evidence (2012)
“The only bright thing about him now was his eyes, which were of a startling blue and deep-sunken in massive but finely chiselled bone. An odd fact about Henry VIII’s upstart nobility, thought Appleby, is that in under a mere four centuries they have come to approximate so closely to the old Norman type. The Duke of Nesfield looked every inch a duke, and he contrived to suggest that this feat in itself was one man’s sufficient achievement. But that might be a trick, a sort of hereditary pose of ...proved utility. There was a cold glitter in those eyes which spoke of other things.
‘Conferring degrees.’ The Duke moved across the room and without facetiousness clapped his academic cap on the bald head of a conveniently offering bust. ‘I always do it myself when I’m about. It’s what a Chancellor is for. That and putting his hand in his pocket. If he has one left. Horrible room.’ He paused, and his eye was still the dominant thing; it was searching and utterly remote from the inconsequence of his speech.MoreLess
‘Conferring degrees.’ The Duke moved across the room and without facetiousness clapped his academic cap on the bald head of a conveniently offering bust. ‘I always do it myself when I’m about. It’s what a Chancellor is for. That and putting his hand in his pocket. If he has one left. Horrible room.’ He paused, and his eye was still the dominant thing; it was searching and utterly remote from the inconsequence of his speech.MoreLess
Read book The Weight of the Evidence for free
Write Review:
User Reviews: