<p><b>Nominated, 2010 McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award and Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction</b></p><p>Two French explorers arrive in Court to charm two ships from the English King. The rest, as they say, is history...` Or perhaps not. Set in the libertine era of Restoration England, <i>The Players</i> embarks on a voyage of discovery with compelling characters, a magical plot, and stunning imagery.</p> <p>A tale of beginnings and of invention, this remarkable novel takes on the 17th century with a contemporary sensibility. Here, the ability to perform — in Court, on stage, in private quarters, and in the brutal cold of James Bay — might save your life... and Lilly Cole must play along with the best of them.</p> <p>Sly, provocative, and ingeniously funny, Sweatman&#39;s prose explores the deep well of human motivation, how instinct trumps reason when survival is in question.</p>