NOTICE: (Updated March 5, 2010)

Beginning December 19, 2009, Books 'N Border Collies will be posting but only intermittently while I pursue personal goals. I plan to share some reading I'm doing, but there will be no reviews. I will, however, be sharing my exploration of vegetarian cooking and the cookbooks and websites I use to educate myself. I hope you enjoy it!

Lezlie



Friday, April 10, 2009

REVELATION

by C.J. Sansom



When Matthew Shardlake's good friend is murdered, Matthew is pulled into a serial killer's web of religious fanaticism. Using passages from the Book of Revelation, he must find a way to find the killer and stop his madness before the consequences reach even King Henry VIII.

When it comes to historical mysteries, it's hard to beat C.J. Sansom's Matthew Shardlake series. Matthew is a humble and philosophical hunchbacked lawyer living in Tudor England who brushes elbows with the likes of Thomas Cromwell, Archbishop Cranmer, and even King Henry himself on occasion. The supporting cast is fabulous, and I find myself caught up not only in Matthew and his cases but also in the private lives of Guy, former monk turned physician and one of Matthews oldest friends, and Jack Barak, former employee of Thomas Cromwell and Matthew's assistant.

Revelation is a chunkster, but the pages fly by as Sansom draws you into the sights and sounds of the weeks just before Henry's marriage to Catherine Parr, his sixth wife. You'll feel the tension of religious conflict. You'll see the inner workings of Bedlam and explore the path to madness.

If you haven't already been introduced to Matthew Shardlake and his friends, start with Dissolution, then come back here and yell at me for making your TBR list/pile/mountain even larger. :-)



11 comments:

Gilion at Rose City Reader said...

Darn it! Just when I thought I had given up on historical mysteries for good (after some book about QE I's lady-in-waiting who solved mysteries -- I can't even remember the name).

This one sounds great!

Veronica said...

I'm so glad after reading this review that I remember I have read this author before! I read "Dark Fire" probably three years ago and LOVED it, but had forgotten all about it. Now I need to go back and rediscover this series.

Lezlie said...

Rose City Reader ~ I think this series is worth giving historical mysteries one more shot. I hope you like them!

Veronica ~ You will not be disappointed going back to Dissolution. While I enjoyed all four in the series, the first is still my favorite.

Lezlie

Marg said...

I have been meaning to try this author for a long time now!

Ladytink_534 said...

Haven't heard of these. Interesting! I recently picked up a few historical mysteries so I expect those to keep me quite busy for awhile :)

Lezlie said...

Marge ~ I don't think you'll be disappointed when you do!

Ladytink ~ Which ones did you get? I'm nosey. :-)

Lezlie

Literary Feline said...

I have Winter in Madrid on my shelf to read. I haven't ever read a Sansom book, but I've heard such great things about him. I am glad you enjoyed this one, Lezlie.

Amy said...

I really loved Winter in Madrid and want to try one of these books at some point. Thanks for the review!

Lezlie said...

Literary Feline & Amy ~ I've read all four Matthew Shardlake mysteries, but I have not read Winter in Madred yet. I'll have to remedy that. :-)

Lezlie

Ladytink_534 said...

Oh they went straight to storage until we move :(

Lezlie said...

Ladytink ~ Bummer. Hopefully you have other stuff to keep you entertained. I hope the move goes smoothly!

Lezlie