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Dark Fire (Matthew Shardlake 2)

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

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Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

36 reviews
Sales Rank: 185

Media: Paperback
Pages: 595
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5.1 x 1.7

ISBN: 0330450786
EAN: 9780330450782
ASIN: 0330450786

Publication Date: May 18, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand new copies, with fast U.K. delivery. Delivering to Europe in 3-7 workings days. Delivering to U.S.A. in 7-12 working days.

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 11-15 of 36

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Loved it! August 30, 2007
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

Having had a fascination for the Tudor period for some time, I found this to be an interesting and entirely captivating read. It brings to life the streets of London circa 1540 in a way that is entirely believable. Sansom brings to life characters of this period who are known in history only through dry accountings. His main character, Mather Shardlake, is not your typical hero. For one thing he is a hunchback, and is treated scathingly by many people, and secondly he is a lawyer. However, you find it very easy to bond with him and it is nice to see a lead character who is different from the norm.

I would most definitely recommend this book. Whilst the mysteries themselves are not all that hard to work out for yourself, it is more the fact that this book is different to most modern day crime novels that make this such an alluring read.

5 out of 5 stars

brilliant August 14, 2007
12 out of 12 found this review helpful

this is a fabulous book! i love the whole series! I am currently finishing soverign (the next one) which is even better, if that is possible. cant wait for the next book. brilliant author once you start you really cannot put it down!

4 out of 5 stars

Clever and atmospheric August 8, 2007
8 out of 8 found this review helpful

I really enjoyed this novel. It is a much better read than "Dissolution" (which I rate as a 3* book). The evocation of Henrician London is rather well done, as is the sense of corruption and double dealing amongst the various factions of the Reformation establishment. Even the religious debates are handled with a reasonably light touch.

Not as cerebral as Umberto Eco and much more of a whodunnit, it does have some of the qualities of the "Name of the Rose" to my mind. Overall, a clever book as well as a page turner.

Recommended.

4 out of 5 stars

A really great read.... July 11, 2007
15 out of 17 found this review helpful

A really great read. The story brings to life the sights, sounds and smells of Tudor London as Matthew Shardlake and his sidekick Barak tear round the city in an attempt to regain the secret of Greek Fire for Cromwell and the King while at the same time trying to save the hapless Elizabeth Wentworth from being wrongly condemned to a grisly death. The author doesn't shy away from the complex religious issues of the day and how small deviation in belief could lead to a hideous execution. Well paced, a cracking plot and good characterisations - what more could you ask for from a historical crime fiction? (Even better than Dissolution!)

4 out of 5 stars

Satisfying, intelligent, historically fascinating and well-written June 13, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

Having enjoyed Sansom's debut novel featuring Matthew Shardlake, 'Dissolution', I was delighted to find this sequel to be of the same quality. As you would expect from an author with a Ph.D in history, Dark Fire really brings the Tudor period to life. He is particularly effective in conveying the effect of this heatwave on London, recreating how the streets would have smelt (absolutely awful) and the impact on the day-to-day lives of people (and one particularly good example of this is a scene where a character mentions how he had to treat a man for poisoning after he drank untreated water).

The plot itself rattles along nicely. Whilst there is no doubting the innocence of Shardlake's client, Elizabeth Wentworth, the way he resolves that mystery nicely fits in with his main investigation into Greek Fire. If I had one criticism, it's the denouement to that plot strand - having worked out who the culprit is and why they did it, it seems a little out-of-character for the normally cautious Shardlake to accept wine from them and whilst Sansom gets his hero and forced sidekick, Barak, out of it with a neat tie-in to a previous conversation about emetics, I did find this to be a little too pat for my tastes.

The main investigation itself is satisfyingly complex and full of twists and turns. I was delighted to be thrown off with one of the culprits (although I guessed the other) and the way in which Sansom ties this plot strand in with the ultimate downfall of Cromwell is ingenious and (for a totally fictional work) actually quite plausible.

Shardlake has a sidekick, Barak, foisted on him by Cromwell in order to conduct his investigation. On the whole, I thought the character was well portrayed. He provides the muscle that the hunchback Shardlake lacks, but Sansom has been wise enough to give him wits of his own, thereby rising him above a convenient sounding board.

Shardlake himself remains consistent. Whereas Dissolution allowed us to see his doubts at the Reformation and his suspicions as to Cromwell's motivations, Dark Fire sees the lawyer having answered his own doubts and made the necessary adjustments to his career. I think that it's a good choice to have him so afraid of Cromwell (who was clearly a ruthless man) and Shardlake's moral dillemmas and subtle consideration of the current political climate makes him a well-rounded protagonist. I was a little disappointed to see more angst on his part concerning his looks. Whilst it is in keeping with the historic times for Shardlake to not be seen as a catch and for him to be aware of the fact, I am so fond of him as a character that I find it frustrating to see him kept single.

Sansom uses real people from history to flesh out his world. His Thomas Cromwell is well drawn and credible - ruthless, efficient and devoted to the Protestant cause - but the way Sansom portrays his desperation at the knowledge that his choice of Anne of Cleves for Henry VIII's fourth wife has been an absolute disaster is superb and this is why the Greek Fire plot is so effective - Cromwell knows that to regain the King's good favour he needs to play to his passion and Henry has a passion for warfare. Telling him of Greek Fire and promising him a demonstration is an excellent way of regaining his favour whilst he finds a solution to the Anne of Cleves problem and you can see him willing this last throw of the dice to work, thereby making you feel peculiarly sorry for him when it all comes to naught.

By contrast, I found the Duke of Northumberland to be something of a cartoon. Sansom does not seem to view him as deserving a person in history as Cromwell, or at least, Northumberland does not inspire him to the same degree. This is disappointing. Whilst I do not doubt that Northumberland was a religious fanatic and a bully, it would have been nice to have some hint of his political brain and the calculating way that he sought to exploit Cromwell's weakness and shore up his own favour with the King.