Mr. Newton is certainly known for the dark aspects of his personality, and this book is able to describe them in detail. The language however is dry, and the reading is less enjoyable than I expected. Alighter treatment would have greatly benefitted

So…far from being the genius I’ve always been led to believe, Isaac Newton was apparently “devious, deceptive and duplicitous.” Or as Leibniz put it “neither fair nor honest.” Or Hooke “the veriest knave in all the house.” No wonder he didn’t have any friends. This book sets out to debunk everything I thought I knew about Newton and he certainly doesn’t come out well from the attempt. I don’t have the knowledge to judge whether Newton actually was as bad as this biography paints him, but the account certainly makes for some interesting reading – at times. It also makes for some tedious reading at times, especially as I couldn’t make head or tail of the maths and science. I enjoyed the more personal aspects but not the scientific ones. My fault rather than the book’s perhaps, but it meant the book was only a partial success for me. But it succeeded in making me question Newton’s fame, and that surely was the intention.

A well researched though I feel somewhat mean spirited biography of Isaac Newton there is obviously a lot about the man we are not taught in school and this is a must read for any history fan

This biography was well researched and contained a lot of information that I hadn’t previously read in other books. The author’s attention to detail is evident in the writing. Highly recommend!

Disappointing look at an interesting subject

I found this book to be more of a character assassination than informative. I also found the language overly scholarly with the exception of some petty swipes and some admittedly well-placed sarcasm. The science wasn’t well-explained and I didn’t feel much effort was made to engage me. I had previously read “Out of the Shadow of a Giant: Hooke, Halley, and the Birth of Science” by John Gribbin and Mary Gribbin, that broadly covered the same information, and I enjoyed that book tremendously. Based on how good that book was, I stopped reading “The dark side of Isaac Newton” about halfway through, knowing that a much more enjoyable book on the subject had already been written. Indeed, if you are interested in this subject area I strongly recommend the book by Gribbin and Gribbin.

Isaac Newton was accorded a semi divine status in the 18th and 19th centuries, whereby his image linked together religion and science. The real human being behind the demi -god image has tended to be lost. He was a person who took credit from others, and crushed the reputations of those to whom he owed the most. This most brilliant of mathematicians could alas be devious, deceptive and duplicitous. This work doesn’t go looking at unpublished alchemical musings as is nowadays fashionable, rather it sticks to the historical record. At the time when the new science was born, we scrutinize the ways in which he failed to discover the law of gravity or invent calculus. What exactly Leibniz mean by describing him as a mind neither fair nor honest. This book redefines the genius of Isaac Newton, but without the heavily mythologized baggage of a bygone era. He believed in one God, one law and one bank.

Sometimes the writing is a bit dense, but the story is fascinating. HIstory is a wiggly thing, and shifts over time. It has been a tradition to glorify the achievements of someone over some of their less wonderful qualities. This is very much the case with Newton; he is been credited with all sorts of things that may, in fact, have not been his at all. And worse, he manipulated many situations to his benefit, and not the benefit of science. Kind of the JR Ewing of 17th century science.

While there is no denying his influence and impact, it is truly humanizing to see how devious, dishonest and venal he could be at the same time. As despicable as he could be, his ambition being his primary driver, his drive no doubt dragged science along with him, inspiring energetic progress.

The history of science is so much richer with the added dimensions of personality and moral corruption, this book adds quite a bit to this.

I read only several chapters in this book. It was very dull reading. Unstructured and difficult to follow. I gave it one star but even that is one star to much.

As someone who is unlikely to just accept what I'm told I often seek out different points-of-view on a topic and research quite extensively before making a decision as to where I stand on a particular issue, so when I came across this alternative history of one of the most revered individuals showing a darker, less pleasant side I know that I'm going to enjoy it!

Widely regarded as one of the most influential scientists of all time, Sir Isaac Newton appears to have been very modest about his discoveries and his advancement of mathematics, science and theology as illustrated by a comment contained in a letter he wrote to Robert Hooke in February 1676 - "If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." There is no doubt that Newton contributed to many different fields and whether the accusations contained in this book are accurate or not he was clearly a knowledgeable person. We must also consider the possibility that people wish to discredit him for their own personal gain which would sadden me if true. However, as far as I can see the contents of the book have come from information already established as genuine and it doesn't come across as though the author just holds a grudge as is so often the case in these types of books. That said, the author is known for conspiracism on a variety of topics - something which very much fascinates me.

All in all, this comes across as a relatively reliable study of the life of Newton and is well written, intriguing and solidly structured.

Many thanks to Pen & Sword History for an ARC.