Sovereign (Matthew Shardlake 3)

I've quickly become CJ Sansom's biggest fan and this is his best yet. The action in "Sovereign" takes place during the time of Henry VIII's fifth marriage to Katherine Howard, and it's a damned gripping read from cover to cover. Sansom's gift is his uncanny ability to conjour the world he writes about, its sounds, smells and social mores; into this heady brew he places Matthew Shardlake, one of the most humane and likeable detectives in fiction. Shardlake is uncommonly advanced and enlightened in his political and social views, and his reflections on what he witnesses around him are one of the highlights of the series. He is a deeply intelligent and rather modern guide to the splendour and brutality of the Tudor age. The plot itself is dramatic and complex, peopled with plenty of other colourful characters. Highly readable and very atmospheric, Sansom's fiction goes straight to the front rank.

A Well Structured Plot (2/2 people found this helpful)

This is another in the series of novels featuring Matthew Shardlake and to my own personal delight much of it is set in an around the area of York, where I myself was born and bred. It is always nice if you can associate with a place in a book.

Lawyer, Matthew Shardlake and Jack Barak his assistant are on their way to the city of York. Their business being to attend to the welfare of a prisoner who is to be returned to London to be interrogated. While there Shardlake is also to involve himself and assist where possible with legal partitions during the progress of King Henry VIII to the City of York, a beautiful and ancient city, surrounded by a wall of pale yellow stone. A city that has been home to the Roman's and the Viking's in its time.

When a local man, a glazier is found murdered, Matthew and Jack uncover a box, which among other things contains a genealogical chart. Before Shardlake has the chance to peruse the other papers in the box he is attacked and the box and its contents taken. Other attacks follow and it is up to Matthew to discover the truth, who is behind the attacks and what is the purpose of them . . .

An atmospheric read (1/1 people found this helpful)

I think this was my favourite book last year. It was such a pleasure to meet up again with Matthew Shardlake and Barak, characters I felt I knew well from the previous two novels "Dissolution" and "Dark Fire". I'd also enjoyed the little snippets of historical information about everyday life in Tudor times.What came as a total surprise to me was an absolutely perfect twist in the plot. I don't want to spoil this twist for anyone else but just like Matthew I was taken completely unawares and I shared his emotions as I turned the pages.It was a gripping read and the ending did not disappoint.

A mesmerizing accounting! (4/4 people found this helpful)

Of his first book "Dissolution" in this series Dame P.D. James writes, "The sights, the voices, the very smell of this turbulent age seem to rise from the page.... C.J. Sansom can lay claim to a place among the most distinguised of modern historical novelists." With such praise, of course, how could one miss. And this praise was for Sansom was for the first book! His following two certainly shouldn't disappoint Dame James (nor any other reader). In "Sovereign" Sansom extends the Henry VIII saga (in a much more detailed accounting. My copy has 660 pages!). In addition, he dedicates it to Dame James, herself a highly skilled and worthy author of British suspense.

In this episode we find our hunchbacked barrister, Matthew Shardlake and his trusty assistant Jack Barak, on a mission with the Great Progress, Henry VIII's foray into York with thousands in his retinue, including an army and its followers. Shardlake is on a secret mission under the auspices of Archbishop Cranmer (Cromwell has been deposed (actually beheaded) the year before. Henry and his minions are drastically trying to eliminate any and every one who oppose him, religiously or otherwise. By this time, Henry has established himself as the head of the Church of England, a protestant movement, one which sees Catholicism anathema to the crown "and to the future of England." At the heart of this secret mission is Shardlake's responsibilty to see that a key captive and conspirator, Sir Edward Broderick, is kept alive and safe for a trip to London, whereby he will be placed in the Tower and proper confessions will be extracted (the Tower has "means" for such activities, as one knows from history). But all is not so simple. Court intrigue, religious fanaticism, human cruelty and human weakness, fraud, deceit--you name it--enter the picture. Of great import is the existence of secret documents that question the legitimacy of Henry's crown. One can imagine how interested the king would be in this matter!

Early on, Shardlake is presented with a death he deems murder, and the novel picks up steam (and pace) from this point on. Of course, as this is a medieval murder mystery, it's not surprising that more deaths are discovered, more intrigues and court games are revealed, and the pieces of this literary puzzle begin to fall into place. Sansom is clearly in charge of the story and at no time does it get away from him.

Despite its length, "Sovereign" is spell-binding, even mesmerizing, and Sansom seems to have improved with age, as this third in the trilogy seems his best written; it is more carefully laid out with better characterizations. The author continues to lambast Henry's zeal and the ugliness of such zealousness. The reader has no difficulty seeing the metaphor extending throughout history. That said, of course, he does not shortchange his characters or their fictional input. One understands that this is a fictional take on what "might have been." Still, though, it's convincing and accurate enough. One can only hope for a fourth in the series.

A multi-layered plot of heresy, greed and fanaticism..... (5/5 people found this helpful)

The third Mathew Shardlake novel is excellent. The lawyer this time finds himself sent north to join with King Henry's Progress to the North in 1541. As well as helping with some legal petitions he is also required to oversee the welfare of a prisoner, Broderick, who is held in York before being sent to London for further questioning - and a certain death.

But nothing is as it seems and a multi-layered plot of heresy, greed and fanaticism ensues as Shardlake uncovers a conspiracy that could unseat the King. The Tudor England portrayed is not one of elegant court manners and devoted commoners. Instead he reveals a brutal and harsh regime with constantly changing mores - a regime in which just the knowledge of certain information could lead to execution.

The logistics of the Progress in the North are superbly well drawn, as are the scenes in the boat and in the Tower of London. His assistant Barak has developed well as a character and is a good counterweight to Shardlake. Although over 600 pages it is a very fast read - I found it hard to put down and it made a wonderful post-Christmas read.

Surely this can't be the last we will hear of Matthew Shardlake? He is young enough for more adventures - and lots more conspiracies and political chicanery to come with Edward VI, Lady Jane Grey and Mary Tudor.

Sovereign (Matthew Shardlake 3)

C.J. Sansom

Reader Reviews:

Top class historical fiction (3/3 people found this helpful)

A Well Structured Plot (2/2 people found this helpful)

An atmospheric read (1/1 people found this helpful)

A mesmerizing accounting! (4/4 people found this helpful)

A multi-layered plot of heresy, greed and fanaticism..... (5/5 people found this helpful)

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