Exciting and elegantly written, Dissolution is an utterly compelling first novel and a riveting portrayal of Tudor England. The year is 1537, and the country is divided between those faithful to the Catholic Church and those loyal to the king and the newly established Church of England. When a royal commissioner is brutally murdered in a monastery on the south coast of England, Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s feared vicar general, summons fellow reformer Matthew Shardlake to lead the inquiry. Shardlake and his young protégé uncover evidence of sexual misconduct, embezzlement, and treason, and when two other murders are revealed, they must move quickly to prevent the killer from striking again.
Dissolution (Matthew Shardlake Mysteries)
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Murders on the grounds of a monastery, 16th-century intrigue, an unconventional sleuth-readers might wonder if this is a knock-off Name of the Rose set two centuries later, but Sansom's debut is a compelling historical mystery in its own right, with fewer pyrotechnics and plenty of period detail. It is 1537; the English Reformation is in full swing; and Lord Thomas Cromwell, King Henry VIII's vicar-general, is busy shutting down papist institutions. When one of his commissioners is beheaded at a remote Benedictine monastery, Cromwell dispatches a second emissary, hunchbacked lawyer Matthew Shardlake, to investigate the murder. What Shardlake and his companion, eager young Mark Poer, discover is a quietly bubbling cesspool of corruption, lust and avarice. The scope of the investigation quickly expands when a novice is poisoned and Shardlake finds the remains of a girl who served the monks in the monastery pond. Shardlake presses on by testing the alibis of the various corrupt monks, but Poer's objectivity is compromised when he becomes involved with the girl's successor, a bright, attractive woman named Alice Fewterer. As the investigation unfolds, Shardlake survives a murder attempt, and finally returns to London to tie his findings to higher-level intrigue. Sansom paints a vivid picture of the corruption that plagued England during the reign of Henry VIII, and the wry, rueful Shardlake is a memorable protagonist, a compassionate man committed to Cromwell's reforms, but increasingly doubtful of the motives of his fellow reformers. With this cunningly plotted and darkly atmospheric effort, Sansom proves himself to be a promising newcomer.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
It is 1537, and Thomas Cromwell is charged with protecting the newborn Church of England. So when one of his commissioners is murdered in a monastery, he sends his sharpest lawyer to investigate. A debut from (you guessed it) former lawyer Sansom.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
139 of 142 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The cover of Dissolution is festooned with glowing praise from writers such as P.D. James and Colin Dexter. This praise overcame my natural allergy to historical mysteries and led me to buy the book. I was not disappointed.
Dissolution is a surprisingly quick read for such a long book. It flows smoothly. The combination of skilled plotting and historical detail is a winning one. The length of the book is tricky to pull off. However, I believe that the complex nature of the subject would have been difficult to tackle in less time.
Dissolution is as much an investigation of personal faith as it is an investigation of a murder. Matthew Shardlake is not only uncovering who killed Robin Singleton, he is also finding some deep pools of unease within himself at the methods and motivations of his beloved Reformation. While a whodunnit could have been covered in half the time, the themes of history and faith would have been short-changed had Sansom skimped on the background.
Mystery writing at its best is often an exploration of cynicism and loss of innocence. Like any good Noir detective, Shardlake begins his career as an idealist. This book is his fall from belief into a bitter awareness of corruption. If Sansom picks up this thread and continues with it, then the readers should benefit from a very interesting series indeed.
Dissolution suffers from a few first novel flaws. For instance, Cromwell is awfully forthcoming about his scheming. It was not necessary for Shardlake to get a confession from him to believe that Shardlake could have his faith badly shaken. This and a few other minor missteps seem like artifacts of a writer who does not yet trust his own material. None of these things are flaws that should dissuade you from reading the book.
This book should appeal to fans of more literary mystery writers such as James, historical fiction fans, and armchair historians. Highly recommended.
Dissolution is a surprisingly quick read for such a long book. It flows smoothly. The combination of skilled plotting and historical detail is a winning one. The length of the book is tricky to pull off. However, I believe that the complex nature of the subject would have been difficult to tackle in less time.
Dissolution is as much an investigation of personal faith as it is an investigation of a murder. Matthew Shardlake is not only uncovering who killed Robin Singleton, he is also finding some deep pools of unease within himself at the methods and motivations of his beloved Reformation. While a whodunnit could have been covered in half the time, the themes of history and faith would have been short-changed had Sansom skimped on the background.
Mystery writing at its best is often an exploration of cynicism and loss of innocence. Like any good Noir detective, Shardlake begins his career as an idealist. This book is his fall from belief into a bitter awareness of corruption. If Sansom picks up this thread and continues with it, then the readers should benefit from a very interesting series indeed.
Dissolution suffers from a few first novel flaws. For instance, Cromwell is awfully forthcoming about his scheming. It was not necessary for Shardlake to get a confession from him to believe that Shardlake could have his faith badly shaken. This and a few other minor missteps seem like artifacts of a writer who does not yet trust his own material. None of these things are flaws that should dissuade you from reading the book.
This book should appeal to fans of more literary mystery writers such as James, historical fiction fans, and armchair historians. Highly recommended.
69 of 73 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Since Ellis Peters' passing, I didn't expect to read any new good murder mysteries set in English monasteries. Thankfully, I was wrong, as I thoroughly enjoyed this work by a new author. This book takes place centuries after Brother Cadfael's time, when the British monasteries were falling into the corrupt lifestyle of the pre-Reformation Catholic Church. Of course, Henry VIII's dispute over his wished for divorce sped things along, and the new officials who arose in their master's wake were for Reform, and wished to close the monasteries, as symbols of the "papist" devils. Our intrepid hero goes to a large monastery on the coast to strong arm the abbott into surrendering his monastery to the crown, after his predecessor was murdered there. The plot deepens when two other murders occur, and our hero and his assistant must work diligently to discover "whodunnit", from a list of several likely suspects. There are religious discussions, traces of disillusionment in some of the characters, and all in all quite an exciting tale from beginning to end. I look forward quite eagerly to further books from this author.
37 of 37 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
In 1537, having divorced his first wife and marrying a second, Henry VIII proceeded to close down the monasteries, which were a symbol of the power of the Catholic Church. This move was instrumental in the shaping of English society and politics during the 16th century. Although Henry had caused the Reformation in England to take place merely because he wanted an heir, he soon found that, like Martin Luther, there were problems with Catholicism- not the least of which was that the clergy were living much better than they ought to have. Their standard of living was so much higher than the average laypersons' that monks and their servants were living very long lives- sometimes into their eighties and nineties, uncommonly long for anyone to live in the 16th century. Dissolution refers to not only the process by which the monasteries were dissolved, but the process by which lives in England were irrevocably changed by the reformation. The dissolution of the monasteries left monks without a home, severed from the life most had known their entire lives.
A commissioner working in the name of Thomas Cromwell goes to oversee the closing of the monastery at Scarnsea- and is mysteriously murdered, his head cleanly sliced off with a sword. Matthew Shardlake, hunchback lawyer at Chancery in London and deputy to Cromwell, is sent to investigate the murder. He believes that the murderer is someone within the monastic community. Before leaving London, however, Shardlake encounters someone selling parrots, those bird which repeat things that are told to them. They are not unlike the political situation in England: people repeat back what the king wants to hear. Anything that is "wrong," however, can be viewed as treasonous.
Shardlake soon becomes involved in the various politics that shape up the monastery, and learns some very interesting pieces of information about the monks who live there. A young, attractive female servant, a homosexual, a stuttering monk, a converted Moor, and a mad Carthusian are some of the most interesting characters, all of which have a motive for murdering the commissioner. At the end of the day, however, three more people are dead, victims of an inevitable tragedy for the monastery.
This is an excellent, well-written book. If you enjoyed this, also try Dark Fire, the second book featuring the adventures of Matthew Shardlake.
A commissioner working in the name of Thomas Cromwell goes to oversee the closing of the monastery at Scarnsea- and is mysteriously murdered, his head cleanly sliced off with a sword. Matthew Shardlake, hunchback lawyer at Chancery in London and deputy to Cromwell, is sent to investigate the murder. He believes that the murderer is someone within the monastic community. Before leaving London, however, Shardlake encounters someone selling parrots, those bird which repeat things that are told to them. They are not unlike the political situation in England: people repeat back what the king wants to hear. Anything that is "wrong," however, can be viewed as treasonous.
Shardlake soon becomes involved in the various politics that shape up the monastery, and learns some very interesting pieces of information about the monks who live there. A young, attractive female servant, a homosexual, a stuttering monk, a converted Moor, and a mad Carthusian are some of the most interesting characters, all of which have a motive for murdering the commissioner. At the end of the day, however, three more people are dead, victims of an inevitable tragedy for the monastery.
This is an excellent, well-written book. If you enjoyed this, also try Dark Fire, the second book featuring the adventures of Matthew Shardlake.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Storytelling at its very best
Sansom delivers a gripping story set in what must be the greatest period of vandalism ever to be visited on the British Isles and Ireland. Read more
Published 2 days ago by Mr. Brian Mc Cabe
5.0 out of 5 stars
Almost history
Well developed characters in a complex winding plot. The accurately portrayed historic backgrounds add tremendous depth. Read more
Published 11 days ago by barbara carrier
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Historical Novel
Historically accurate as well and very entertaining. Story of a murder coverup and investigation during the time of Henry VI. Great discussion points for book club.
Published 11 days ago by Kathryn Marler
5.0 out of 5 stars
Favorite author
I purchased it to send to my granddaughter who is a soldier in Israel and English books are not easy to come by. I love this series so much that I thought she would too.
Published 15 days ago by Susan B. Frost
5.0 out of 5 stars
Medieval tale
Learned a great deal about conditions at the time of the story. Suspenseful to the end! Will read more of Sansoms books.
Published 22 days ago by Gretchen K. Cacciotti
4.0 out of 5 stars
Enthralling
An excellent read. A graphic tale where one is absorbed into the tensions and hardships of the times of Henry.
Published 22 days ago by Denis Brooks
3.0 out of 5 stars
Nice.
As someone who's spent her childhood reading murder mysteries and historical fiction, I was very happy to discover a series of books that combine the two. Read more
Published 1 month ago by ereini0n
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poor little monasteries
My book club has been concentrating on books from the period of Henry Tudor and his many wives and much chicanery. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Wisdom & Wit
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great book
Little bit of history, human ways and murder mystery woven into the decline of the Catholic Church in England under Henry the VIII.
Published 1 month ago by Horacio G. Lardo
4.0 out of 5 stars
Dissolution
I am still reading it and enjoying it, but it's a bit too long. By that I mean that it's a bit long drawn out and could have been concluded a bit sooner. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ethel Gallagher
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