The catholic church in 1536 is being eradicated in britain and the dissolution of the monasteries has begun by 1540 no monasteries would be left. It is sansoms first published novel, and the first in the matthew shardlake series. Sansom has the trick of writing an enthralling narrative. A brilliant lawyer investigates murder in a monastery thats under attack by henry viiis greedy forces of secularism. Sansom came to prominence with the shardlake series, his historical mystery series set in the reign of henry viii in the 16th century. Using historical facts and real persona from the period of dissolution of the english monasteries 15361540, c. Dissolution dissolution is the first book from cj sansom in the matthew shardlake series, set during the reign of king henry viii and his chief minister, thomas cromwell. The books have been compared to umberto ecos in the name of the rose and i can see why. Shardlake works on commission initially from thomas cromwell in. The novel is set in 1537, a year where england saw many changes. We personally assess every books quality and offer rare, outofprint treasures. Follow shardlake into the dark heart of tudor england with the bestselling dark fire, sovereign, revelation, heartstone, lamentation and tombland. Apart from the investigation dissolution is interesting because it deals with the sacking of the great monasteries, the willingness to sacrifice innocents for the greater good of henry viii and the decay of society.
A friend put me onto c j sansoms books and loaned me 2 and 3 in the shardlake series. A matthew shardlake tudor mystery penguin random house. Sansom rewrites history in a thrilling novel that dares to imagine britain under the thumb of nazi germany. After working in a variety of jobs, he decided to retrain as a solicitor. A shardlake novel 1 the shardlake series kindle edition. As with all the shardlake books there is an admirable dedication to historical accuracy in terms of known details though it is a fictional story so dont take anything too seriously. Queen anne boleyn has been beheaded and the monasteries are. Twelve years have passed since churchill lost to the appeasers and britain surrendered to nazi germany. A red herring is a device used in mysteries to throw the reader off the track of the true perpetrator. Shop amongst our popular books, including 31, dissolution, revelation and more from c.
Sansom began his matthew shardlake series in 2003 with the novel dissolution. Sansoms number one bestselling shardlake series, for fans of hilary mantel and philippa gregory. This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and if not signed in for advertising. Dissolution the shardlake series kindle edition by c. Sansom came to prominence with the shardlake series, his historical mystery series set in the. Id always thought the dissolution of the monasteries would make a. Sansom, a former solicitor who lives in sussex, is working on a fourth shardlake story and has been consulted on the tv series. After working in a variety of jobs, he retrained as a solicitor and practised in sussex, until becoming a fulltime writer. In september 1940, the spanish civil war is over and madrid. It is 1537, a time of revolution that sees the greatest changes in england since 1066.
Murders on the grounds of a monastery, 16thcentury intrigue, an unconventional sleuthreaders might wonder if this is a knockoff name of the rose set two centuries later, but sansoms debut is. But on the sussex coast, at the monastery of scarnsea, events have spiralled out of control. Set in the 16th century during the dissolution of the monasteries, the book follows the lawyer shardlake in his attempts to solve the. Christopher john sansom is a british writer of historical crime novels. Thriftbooks sells millions of used books at the lowest everyday prices. Free shipping and pickup in store on eligible orders. Unfortunately though, the name of the rose was a lot better.
Sansom creates both a stunning portrait of tudor england, and an unforgettable character in matthew shardlake. The country is waking up to savage new laws, rigged trials and the greatest network of informers it has ever seen. Cj sansom gives a vivid description of the lives and working conditions of the poor and the daily insults and humiliations they suffer under the. Sansom was educated at birmingham university, where he took a ba and then a ph. This book involves a mystery with the kings last wife, catherine parr. Sarah crown talks to cj sansom, the creator of matthew shardlake. Dissolution is the first in the phenomenal shardlake series by bestselling author, c. Possible ex library copy, will have the markings and stickers associated from the library.
King henry viii has proclaimed himself as the supreme head of the church. The series main character is the hunchbacked lawyer matthew shardlake, who is assisted in his adventures by mark poer, then jack barak and also nicholas overton. Sansom, followed by dark fire, sovereign, revelation. I refuse to pay more for an ebook than what i will pay for the actual book. The epic fifth novel in the matthew shardlake tudor mystery series by the bestselling. May contain limited notes, underlining or highlighting that does affect the text.
Exciting and elegantly written, dissolution is an utterly compelling first novel and a riveting portrayal of tudor england. The novel sparked the bestselling shardlake series, following the sixteenthcentury lawyerdetective matthew shardlake and his assistant. That said, dissolution reminded me an awful lot of the name of the rose. That, combined with new laws, rigged trials and general distrust is tearing the nation apart. By purchasing this title, you may be eligible to receive an ebook credit toward. Id always thought the dissolution of the monasteries would make a great setting for a murder mystery. It is the winter of 1537, and england is divided into those faithful to the catholic church and those loyal to the king and the newly established church of england. Sansom was educated at birmingham university, where he took a ba and then a. Henry viii has proclaimed himself supreme head of the church. Dissolution could be described as a medieval detective story with a solid story line, good pace and dialogue appropriate to the. He was educated at ludgrove school 19791984, eton college 19851989 and the university of edinburgh 19901994, where he graduated with 1st class honours in english. Fans of cj sansom will love this new story which continues to play to his strengths of taking often overlooked historical events and bringing them to a wider audience. Sansom can lay claim to a place among the most distinguished of modern historical novelists.
Dissolution is the first book in this bestselling phenomenon, where c. Sansoms matthew shardlake books in order of when they were first released which is also their chronological order. He practised for a while in sussex as a lawyer for the disadvantaged, before quitting. The 1st instalment in the wildly popular matthew shardlake mystery series, now available from vintage canada. Open library is an initiative of the internet archive, a 501c3 nonprofit, building a digital library of internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. J download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Synopsis perfect for fans of hilary mantels the mirror and the light, matthew shardlake is back in the sixth book in the shardlake series, from number one bestselling author c. Lamentation is the sixth book in the wonderful matthew shardlake series written by the excellent author c. From the bestselling author of winter in madrid and dominion comes the exciting and elegantly written first novel in the matthew shardlake tudor mystery series dissolution is an utterly riveting portrayal of tudor england. One of britains bestselling historical novelists, c.
Sansoms writing style or narrative, but it pales in comparison to this classic. Sansom worked first as a historian and then as a lawyer before combining both in his darkly fascinating novel of monastic murder and politics in his first novel dissolution. With the dissolution currently taking place though, he finds theres more to the death than first meets the eye. Shardlake is a hunchbacked lawyer in the time of henry viii. However, the books starting with dissolution are set in the time of henry viii and the reform. He was born in 1952 and was educated at the university of birmingham, where he took a ba and then a phd in history.
A matthew shardlake tudor mystery matthew shardlake mysteries book 1. The background is so descriptive it overwhelms the prime theme of a wellwritten whodoneit in spite of interweaving tidbits into the plot. Buy a discounted paperback of dissolution online from australias leading online. Click the link below and if you buy a book i get a small commissi. A matthew shardlake tudor mystery matthew shardlake mysteries book 1 kindle edition by sansom, c. A shardlake novel matthew shardlake series book 1 ebook. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading dissolution.
Accessories such as cd, codes, toys, may not be included. When it comes to intriguing tudorbased narratives, hilary mantel has a serious rival sunday times sansom has the trick of writing an enthralling narrative. Thomas cromwell, henry viiis feared vicar general, crusades against the old church with savage new laws, rigged trials, and a vast network of informers. Sansom provides readers with a vivid tudor historical mystery. Dissolution is an utterly riveting portrayal of tudor england. The year is 1537, and the country is divided between those faithful to the catholic church and those loyal to the king and the. It seems that cj sansom remembers this about 50 pages from the end too as theres some pretty hasty backtracking and flimsy excuses put forward to. I like to read things in order, so bought the 1st one, dissolution. It is 1537, and thomas cromwell is charged with protecting the newborn church of england.
What characters from dissolution would you be interested in seeing again in future matthew shardlake mysteries. In dissolution, shardlake, who supports religious reform, witnesses the viciousness. Sansom ebooks to read online or download in pdf or epub on your pc, tablet or mobile device. A bbc commission of an adaptation of the first sansom novel, dissolution, is expected to be followed by more of the shardlake books. Sansom was educated at birmingham university, where he took a ba and then a phd in history. Dissolution is the first in the phenomenal shardlake series by bestselling author c. Dissolution 2003 is a historical mystery novel by british author c.
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