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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
While old, hideously fat and probably insane Henry VIII stalks another potential Queen (Katherine Parr), hunchback lawyer Matthew Shardlake investigates a killer who is inspired by the Book of Revelations to dispatch men he targets as religious hypocrites. With no social services (the monks have been dissolved, and the Protestant radicals are in no mood to wash lepers or care for the crazy poor) and a legal system waiting in terrified confusion for the death of the monarch, Tudor London is a great place to be a serial killer.
I always enjoy a good serial killer mystery and this was very well woven into the politics and religious upheaval of the Tudor age. I wouldn't rate this one as highly as Sovereign, perhaps because I do get tired of Shardlake yearning after every woman who gets involved in their cases.
Some think this is the best of the series, but I dislike serial murders as a plot device.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
More first-rate historical mystery fiction by unfortunately the now-late C.J. Sansom. This a dark turn for the series which some people may not like; there is a fair amount of gore in this one and deals with the dark sides of religious fervour and madness in the highly religious but fractious society that is 16th Century England. I often didn't want to put this one down, saying to myself "one more chapter!". Shardlake faces off against one of his most dangerous and capable targets yet: a serial killer whose murders are inspired by the Book of Revelation, in a kind of Tudor 'Se7en'.
Sansom's characters are well-drawn and I'm really coming to enjoy these characters, flaws and all. I'll be reading the next one before long, I just hope Sansom keeps the magic coming and I haven't just experienced 'the peak' of this series.
Sansom's characters are well-drawn and I'm really coming to enjoy these characters, flaws and all. I'll be reading the next one before long, I just hope Sansom keeps the magic coming and I haven't just experienced 'the peak' of this series.