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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: 127

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 16-20 of 36

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it does the job - and some May 30, 2007
9 out of 9 found this review helpful

Shardlake has got into his stride and has been allowed to break out of the confines of Scarnsea Abbey. Back in London, he has to contend with a handful of different cases, with various challenges to his ingenuity and safety. 3 years on from DISSOLUTION, a lot has changed, for Shardlake personally with his now cooled reformist zeal, and for the political climate. Yet again, Sansom manages to weave intricate details of national affairs with well-drawn bit parts and key characters' emotional credibility. Shardlake is a sympathetic hero who lives in a three-dimensional and almost tangibly vibrant Tudor London. The politics is lethal and even if you are vaguely familiar with the bullet points of the period, this brilliantly fills in the gaps of historical ignorance with plausible and gripping narrative. But it doesn't matter if Tudor history is a blank page for you - Sansom's research and eye for historical detail and nuance are remarkable - we can all learn something from this book about life 500 years ago.

This is what historical fiction should be like - yet again. Couldn't put it down and found myself thoroughly immersed in this world. Fantastic.

5 out of 5 stars

The Best Shardlake Book So Far April 29, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

Of the three Shardlake novels so far (there is another on its way), this is the most complete and successful. Here the world of Tudor London is brought vividly and compellingly to life: from King's ministers and court politics to a seedy underbelly of failed alchemists and prostitutes. The plot is multi-stranded - courtroom battles to save the life of a girl accused of murder and to stop merciless profiteering from the lands of dissolved religious houses, as well as the quest to find the titular Dark Fire - and each is handled with skill and dexterity. Best of all, it is a genuine page turner, spinning compelling drama from its ingredients.

Perhaps not perfect, but highly recommended.

4 out of 5 stars

Historical whodunnits win March 30, 2007
8 out of 9 found this review helpful

I bought this last out of the trilogy, Sovereign first, then Dissolution and finally this - Dark Fire. All have beautifully descriptive settings, distinctive characters and have for one got me back into decent novels. Cliche but really these are page turning books, perfect for the 30 min train ride into work, chapter or two a day. You can almost smell and touch the sights and sounds wrapped through the plot as it turns and unfolds. My only tiny negative is that the ending is quite abrupt with little to really tie it all together. All in all, a great read - even if not your usual stuff. Sovereign is the best but this runs it a close second.

3 out of 5 stars

Padded out February 26, 2007
5 out of 9 found this review helpful

Unfortunately C J Sansom decided to keep the series going after the success of the very good Dissolution. He was also presumably told how many pages to fill (several hundred) in order to stay in the blockbuster category with embossed gold on the front cover. Consequently, he pads the book out terribly. Why else does Shardlake spend so much time riding to and fro in London, visiting the same suspects over and over again, just to ask them another question or two? Admittedly there are a few incidents (and bodies) along the way, but all in all it is tedious, and the denouement is not a good enough payoff for wading through it all. My tip would be to wait for the Reader's Digest abridgment, if there ever is one - it could be pretty short.

5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding historical imagery February 15, 2007
11 out of 11 found this review helpful

There are three elements to this excellent book.

The title story is a vaguely credible political thriller about Cromwell's last days attempting to cling on to power.

The intrigue running in parallel with this is the investigation of a child's murder with a fascinating picture of the values that were held in the sixteenth century in relation to criminal law.

The background throughout is the stage itself - mid-Tudor London, with a focus on the Inns of Court, but a marvellous view of the commercial, residential, social and institutional elements of London at the time, with all the smells, contexts, sights and horrors that Sansom vividly portrays.

I rate each of these elements highly. The background is first rate - double-starred. As a barrister I was fascinated by the proceedings at both the civil and criminal courts in Westminster and London. The crime itself was not difficult to work out, but that's by the by in the context of how the authorities view it. The political background is great although the concept of "Dark Fire" itself was a bit daft. Without giving too much away, it seems inconceivable that the French or Spanish at the time hadn't already got it.

The history and the setting is six stars. Therefore an overall five.