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Sovereign (Matthew Shardlake 3)

Author: C.j. Sansom
Publisher: Pan Books
Category: Book

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Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

66 reviews
Sales Rank: 211

Media: Paperback
Edition: New Ed
Pages: 400
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5.1 x 1.8

ISBN: 0330436082
EAN: 9780330436083
ASIN: 0330436082

Publication Date: March 16, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 6-10 of 66

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Fantastic - a must read July 6, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

It is a true delight to discover a book like this - I was unable to stop reading whilst nagging away at the back of my mind was the worry that I would finish it too soon. The sights and sounds of Tudor England come to life with historical accuracy of the times, and it is great thriller.

5 out of 5 stars

Another Excellent Shardlake Mystery!! July 2, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Sovereign is set in 1541, during the King Henry VIII Progress to the North, an area of the country where his reign and religous reforms are unpopular, and its immediate aftermath.

Travelling in the Progress, is lawyer, Matthew Shardlake, under instructions from Archbishop Cranmer,to see that a prisoner is brought safely from York to the Tower of London for interrogation. Travelling with Shardlake, is his assistant, Jack Barak.

Upon his arrival in York, a glazier is murdered, and as Shardlake is near the scene of the crime, and hears the glazier's dying words, he becomes embroiled in a deep mystery. It soon becomes apparent that someone wants the Lawyer dead, before he can investigate any further into the glazier's last bizarre utterings.

I found this book a fantastic read. The attention to detail, and characterisation is second to none. You feel as if you are right there amongst the people of this turbulent era. The mixture of fictional and real characters in the storyline is very well done, also. As the story progresses you think one person is the murderer, then another. It was one of those rare books that I did not want to end. I would highly recommend this book.

3 out of 5 stars

Predictable July 1, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

I had figured the plot out from about half way through, it's a blindingly obvious whodunnit and I'm not sure I have the patience to read the other two from this series that I have sat on my shelf - I'll probably take them on a plane or train journey.

Having said all of that there are some lovely historical nuggets in there, attention to detail of the places, people, language and so forth is wonderful and the characters are also likeable and believable.

If you are not into history, and you like a challenging murder mystery then I wouldn't bother.

3 out of 5 stars

could have been much better June 15, 2008
0 out of 6 found this review helpful

immediate thoughts on ploughing through this epic, not very entertaining, book, was - I won't bother with any more by this author, thank you. His editor should have suggested drastic pruning to make it a thriller, a whodunnit, not a day by day itinerary of the King's Great Progress. My biggest complaint though is that the book does not feature Henry VIII at all. He is incidental to the 'plot' even though it is his time, his Progress, his wife, his country. Somehow he has managed to be sidelined and this detracts from the book. Over written, desperately in need of pruning and a better 'whodunnit' story would have improved it no end. I have to assume that the reviewers who are quoted on the cover read a different version to me.

5 out of 5 stars

A racking tale June 12, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

This is every bit as good as the previous two Shardlake novels. I've no idea if it's historically accurate, because I don't much care for history. But it certainly felt authentic, and the sense of abiding terror is palpable and rather appropriate for our age, as we move towards a police state similar to that of Henry VIII.