That it's excellent is not a Revelation (Revelation - C.J. Sansom)

Member Name: mogdred

Product:	Revelation - C.J. Sansom
Date:	28/05/09 (223 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Engaging characters, interesting plot

Disadvantages: A bit unrealistic at times

"Revelation" is the fourth book in the Matthew Shardlake series by C. J Sansom. The Shardlake series is set in 16th century England in the reign of Henry VIII and follows the adventures of Matthew Shardlake, a hunchback lawyer.

So far there are four books in the Shardlake series, "Dissolution", "Dark Fire", "Sovereign" and "Revelation". Shardlake works on commissions from Thomas Cromwell in the first two books and then for Thomas Cranmer in the following two. This change of masters shows some of the precarious political and religious situation at the time.

As Henry VIII aged he began to move away from religious reform and back towards a kind of Catholicism without the Pope. The reformers and radicals of both the court and the populace were engaged in a furious struggle with the more conservative parties who were happy to see the King moving back towards a type of Catholicism.

Each side of the argument accused heretics and many were burned at the stake and/or persecuted for their religious beliefs.

In this book, Shardlake becomes involved with Cranmer again when one of his old friends is found murdered and he swears to track down the killer. However the death is covered up by the court as there are political implications and previous similar killings. Shardlake is also working on a case involving a young man who is suffering from a religious mania and has been accused of heresy.

Meanwhile Henry VIII is courting Catherine Parr after her husband's death and Bishop Bonner of London is searching for heretics amongst the radical Protestants of London (and trying to implicate Cranmer at the same time). Society is shaky and the people have no idea what is going to change next. It has barely been a year since the execution of Catherine Howard, Henry's fifth wife.

As this is the fourth book in the Shardlake series, many readers will be familiar with the principal characters - Matthew Shardlake, Jack Barak and Guy Malton.

Shardlake is a very humane and principled lawyer who happens to have a hunchback. Many of the people he deals with look down on him and insult him because of his infirmity. Indeed, even the King made a mockery of him in "Sovereign", the third book in the series. Shardlake's insecurity and loneliness are running themes throughout the series and this is brought up again in "Revelation" through his feelings for his dead friend's widow.
Matthew is a very sympathetic character and as his thoughts and feelings are quite liberal, he is easy to like and agree with. He is also suffering a crisis of faith after the things he has seen and the changing nature of society.

Jack Barak is Shardlake's assistant and used to work for Cromwell as a spy under his regime. Barak was at first forced on Shardlake to keep an eye on him but they have become friends throughout the series. His father was Jewish, which he is very sensitive about as Jews were not well regarded.
Barak is quite an arrogant character but has a soft side to him. In "Revelation" we see his marriage going through a rocky patch due to his baby being born dead. Jack is very stubborn and drives his young wife away with his refusal to talk to her.

Guy Malton is a doctor and a good friend of Matthew's. He is an ex-monk who found himself with nothing after the dissolution of the monasteries. He is also somewhat of a fellow social outcast as he is a black man in medieval England. Guy has enlightened ideas about medicine and is often consulted by Matthew on cases.

Shardlake likes to collect waifs and strays, as he says himself in the book. He often helps orphan children by finding them jobs or taking them in to work in his own household. Although this may not be very realistic it makes him a very appealing character in the brutal Tudor setting.

The hunt for a serial killer is perplexing for the men on this case, as the concept of a serial killer is not one they are familiar with. The assistant coroner who works with Shardlake on the case is a reformer who is convinced that the man must be possessed to do the things he does.

I enjoyed this book a lot and found that Sansom is very good at involving you in the character's lives - you care what happens to them. I also didn't work out who the killer was, which is quite unusual as I can normally figure the plot out in these types of books.

I also found that I enjoyed the historical detail as it's not too heavy and the story is never bogged down by unimportant details. There is a sense of immediacy in the book which keeps you interested as a reader.

This was an engaging read and I would definitely recommend it. You can read it as a stand alone novel but it is easier if you read the series from the beginning. I started the series from book number three, then read two and then read four - I still haven't read the first book in the series. So, take it from me, it's easier to read them in order!

According to Wikipedia the BBC have commissioned an adaptation of "Dissolution" with Kenneth Branagh as Shardlake, with the other books expected to follow. I really need to read "Dissolution"!

You can find "Revelation" on Amazon from £3.68 new and even cheaper used.

This review is also posted on ciao.co.uk

Summary: A hunchbacked lawyer searching for a serial killer in Tudor England