Product Description: Winner of the Man Booker Prize 2009 'Lock Cromwell in a deep dungeon in the morning,' says Thomas More, 'and when you come back that night he'll be sitting on a plush cushion eating larks' tongues, and all the gaolers will owe him money.'
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - So informative:so hard to read
I really love the Tudor era, and from Mantel's writing I am much better informed regarding Thomas Cromwell. She gets into the soul of the man and although fictitious I can well believe the man. It was unnecessary, I thought, to make the reading so difficult, and this made it uninviting to read, however I could see this was not to be the life story of Cromwell, and in some ways this was another disappointing aspect of the book. Glad I read it through but am now looking forward to the latest Shardlow ... Read More
Rating: - Superb
The characters are wonderfully immediate and real. Cannot wait to see the moral and emotional place this Cromwell character takes us to in the subsequent books.
Rating: - Stick with it for fascinating read if you enjoy this period
I read the first chapter twice as like some others, I didn't always find it easy to understand to whom 'he' referred in dialogue patches - at first I thought the book was going to be a slog, but once over the initial confusion, I loved it. Best read I've had this year and felt it made the Tudor world come alive. Possibly, the last 50 pages or so seemed to lose a bit of momentum for me, but I'm still keenly anticipating the sequel. I would have given it 5 stars without the 'he' issue.
Rating: - Pointless rubbish
I read all 650 pages of this book so as to be able to make a fair judgement. All this dialogue is supposedly between real people who lived in Tudor England. Not one word was ever uttered by those people. To those who say it showed them what Tudor England was like, try reading some history. It told us nothing about the characters. It is only Hilary Mantel's imaginary musings. The book is utterly pointless and totally unconvincing. I will run a million miles before wasting any more of my life reading ... Read More
Rating: - One of the best books I've read
I bought this as a 'duty' (must read Booker Prize novel) and started with some apprehension. I thought it would be worthy but dull and historically intricate given my patchy knowledge of the time. I'd also read Hilary Mantel's Beyond Black which, admirably written though it is, I couldn't warm to. However this novel is amazing: very easy to read and the characters are brilliantly drawn so that you really care / dislike them as appropriate. I haven't finished yet but am really loath for it to end.
Some ... Read More
- So informative:so hard to read
- Superb
- Pointless rubbish