Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson

This book presents a complex and intriguing portrait of the Royal Society around the time of its founding, mixed with adventures in European politics and espionage. Some of the characters (particularly Eliza) are really compelling, and it's a treat to see the great minds of the Royal Society in action. There's a lot of attention to cryptography, mathematics, and science in this book, which I enjoy. If anything, it's lacking a clear plot: there are elements to various stories that play out very clearly, but overall, I'm not quite sure where this story is headed. I'm willing to give the second and third books a chance, though.