...the ending is particularly satisfying: guilt is unmasked, but at the same time, as in life, unfinished business remains.

At the monastery of Scarnsea, events have spiralled out of control. Cromwell's Commissioner Robin Singleton, has been found dead, his head severed from his body. His horrific murder is accompanied by equally sinister acts of sacrilege. Dr Matthew Shardlake, is sent to uncover the truth behind what has happened at Scarnsea.

2008-08-30 Tudor Thriller

This book is not as dry as it sounds in the product description! You'd have to be a pretty bad writer to make anything to do with Henry VIII boring but this book adds a new twist.

Our "hero", Matthew Shardlake, is a hunchback lawyer that works for Cromwell around the time that Henry's third wife, Jane Seymour, died in childbirth. But Henry's problems are merely a background, the novel is concerned with the murder of one of Cromwell's officers in a monastery which Shardlake is sent to investigate. The description of life in the monastery and the life of the lay people that live in the nearby village is fascinating and just as interesting as the mystery itself. The characters are developed with the story and there's even a little romance.

This book is perfect for anyone remotely interested in this period in history. I shall be buying the second novel and look forward to learning more about Mr Shardlake.