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Dissolution (Matthew Shardlake 1)

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

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Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

59 reviews
Sales Rank: 67

Media: Paperback
Pages: 463
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 4.9 x 1.4

ISBN: 0330450794
EAN: 9780330450799
ASIN: 0330450794

Publication Date: May 18, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand new, in stock. Shipped from the UK by First Class Royal Mail service in eco-friendly packaging.

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 21-25 of 59

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DISAPPOINTMENT!!! November 15, 2007
4 out of 8 found this review helpful

The above would serve well as an alternative title for this historical whodunnit. "The best crime novel I have read all year" is a notice from Colin Dexter, author of the Morse stories, which appears on the book's rear cover. Well all I can say Colin is that you must have been sent some stinkers for review!

The book is competently written and from an historical point of view, gives us a general insight into the mood of the country during an especially infamous period of an infamous reign; that of the dissolution of the monasteries and Henry VIII.

As a crime thriller the book fails quite dismally. The plot is plodding and predictable. The characters are extremely superficial and the lead character, who would normally be given the title 'hero', is not even particularly likeable! One has some sympathy for him as he has a humped back, but whilst fully comprehending the horrors and atrocities being committed against the people by the crown and it's officers, he chooses to turn a blind eye to them, in an effort not to jeapordise his own career opportunities; an attitude all too prevailent in today's society.

Not in the same league as similar books in this genre by P C Doherty and Ellis Peters and nowhere near as intellectually stimulating or exceptional a thriller as 'The Name of the Rose' by Umberto Eco, to which some reviewers have misguidedly compared 'Dissolution'.

3 out of 5 stars

Dissolution or perhaps Disillusion? September 19, 2007
1 out of 8 found this review helpful

Looking forward to a good old yarn with plenty of thud and blunder, I bought my first Matthew Shardlake novel. Perhaps inevitably I became underwhelmed by the narrative. Interesting idea to have a "crookback" for an antihero but in the end I was more interested in what happened to the sidekick and his girl friend than in the murders and our hero. A Far fetched and laboured plot. Pity.

5 out of 5 stars

Marvellous historical tale September 4, 2007
3 out of 4 found this review helpful

A marvellous historical tale, this is a rich tapestry of a book and part of the enjoyment is in the richness of the detail and the period evoked - that of Henry V111's key confrontation against the Catholic church. This is probably one of the most enjoyable cloak and dagger medieval thriller-sagas I've read since Eco's Name of the Rose. But like Eco, this is a thoughtful, detailed study rather than a frivolent candyfloss-spun page-turner. Makes it to number 7 in my season's favourites (full list below):

1. A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khalid Hosseini. 2. Ascension Day - John Matthews. 3. Friend of the Devil - Peter Robinson. 4. Savage Garden - Mark Mills. 5. Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. 6. Tenderness of Wolves - Stef Penney. 7. Dissolution - C.J. Sansom. 8.Darkest Fear - Harlan Coben. 9. The Accident Man - Tom Caine. 10. Skin Privilege - Karin Slaughter.

5 out of 5 stars

Another majestic history tale August 30, 2007
5 out of 6 found this review helpful

This is the third book I have read by CJ Sansom and it is probably the best yet. I started with Sovereign, the third in the (detective) Shardlake series, which impressed me enormously and then enjoyed Madrid, although I felt it didn't quite have the authenticity of the Middle Ages material. So, it was back to Shardlake again for this, his debut tale, and very enjoyable it was too. As with Sovereign I felt I was learning things about the period without ever being lectured to or patronised and I liked the Monty Python and the Holy Grail style 'don't spare their blushes, tell it like it is' approach to the smells and sights of this pretty grotty time (I felt as though I could actually whiff those monks on occasions). So, a good, strong whodunit, a great piece of historical fiction and a great insight into the religion, politics, corruption and general evil at hand during Henry's reign. Best of all though is the character of the main man himself - Shardlake. At times I really didn't like him and I admire the way the author has refused to make this basically decent, but flawed, man someone who is far from being a saint. Good stuff.

5 out of 5 stars

Great read August 17, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

I think I am now addicted to Shardlake's novels, having read Dark Fire first, then Dissolution and looking forward to reading the third book soon. Commissioner Shardlake is an interesting persona, thorn between his loyalty to the reformists and his loved/hated master, Crowell. Not everything Shardlake does or think we would agree with, and that's probably why it's interesting that in the end, i still feel sympathising with him. The misteries and the murders he is called to investigate upon make for some great reading, interspersed with political intrigue and religious issues. Couldnt put the book down!