![]() ![]() Billed as the Mechanical Turk, a dark master from the inscrutable East, the chess-playing automaton becomes the rage across Europe, though at least one rival for the queen’s favor suspects the subterfuge. Though the dwarf is also a devout Christian, uncomfortable with the deception that the baron’s scheme requires, the baron coerces him into secreting his tiny frame into the chess-playing machine that Kempelen is building. Instead, he happens upon an Italian dwarf who is a chess master (but whose size makes him vulnerable to attacks from those who play or bet against him). Such a thinking machine clearly presages the computer, but the baron has neither the ingenuity nor the intent to meet the challenge. A charlatan at heart, Kempelen promises that, within six months, he can construct an automaton that will play chess at the highest levels. A minor nobleman in the Viennese court, Baron Wolfgang von Kempelen witnesses the queen’s infatuation with automatons that can accomplish basic tasks. ![]() German journalist Löhr’s debut novel is based on a true story of deception, during a period when society was enamored with the previously unimagined possibilities of technology. ![]() Rich in detail and psychological depth, this historical novel of 18th-century Europe has plenty of contemporary resonance for American readers. ![]()
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