Of course this is historical fiction, so I really appreciate C.J. Sansom's Historical Note at the end of the book, which provides some helpful information.

Radwinter, for all his cruel madness, proves to be a rather interesting character. While Maleverer is cold and calculating, Radwinter is full of hot-blooded passion and zealotry. How do these two characters illustrate the zeitgeist of Henrician England? How do they represent the religious and political poles of the time? Sansom has said that he plans to write further Shardlake novels taking the lawyer into the reign of Elizabeth I. [1] Description [ edit ] Craig, Amanda (20 August 2006). "Sovereign by C J Sansom". The Independent . Retrieved 13 October 2023.A. Sadly I think all religions go through periods of expansionist, fundamentalist brutality and this age is one when currents of dangerous fundamentalism seem to be expanding in all religions—Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, and not least Christianity. In Tudor times the conflict was between religious factions. Today it is between those who believe in an absolutist interpretation of the scriptures of the various religions and those who do not. I was enthralled by Sovereign by C. J. Sansom, a novel combining detection with a brilliant description of Henry VIII's spectacular Progress to the North and its terrifying aftermath. -- P.D. James * Sunday Telegraph Books of the Year *

SOVEREIGN was published in 2006 and was clearly influenced by the media attention and political conversation devoted to torture and its efficacy that was ubiquitous at the time. It fits in the context of the novel, but just occasionally a very modern sounding comment would be made that was jarring and yanked me from the world of 1541 England. Matthew Sharlake comes face to face with Henry's reign of terror (and the machinations of his henchman such as the conniving Sir Richard Rich) the book revealing Henry as a cruel tyrant , while discovering embaraasing facts that put his life in danger , and keep us speculating in an excellent cross between historical and detective novel. Tercer libro de la saga y aunque ya venía avisado, me ha sorprendido de forma grata saber que mantiene el nivel con respecto al anterior. Cierto es que la quinta estrella es raspada, pero no menos cierto es que lo he disfrutado mucho y se las merece. Obvia decir que ninguna de las dos tareas serán sencillas para Shardlake, de hecho su vida correrá peligro en más de una ocasión y llegará a ganarse la enemistad de gente poderosa que le harán la vida imposible debido a su rectitud.Sansom brings the colours, sights and sounds of Tudor England brilliantly into the imagination in this gripping historical novel. * Choice magazine * Like I did with Dark Fire, I listened to portions of this via the audiobook. The audiobooks for this series are really well narrated and I loved that the narrator puts on different accents. It was nice hearing a Yorkshire/Northern accent and reminded me of home, as I was born in Yorkshire. Even in the physical copy of the book the accent came through in the way the words were written. So props to the author. England, 1543: King Henry VIII is wooing Lady Catherine Parr, whom he wants for his sixth wife. But this time the object of his affections is resisting. Archbishop Cranmer and the embattled Protestant faction at court are watching keenly, for Lady Catherine is known to have reformist sympathies. Antonia Fraser, Sunday Telegraph Books of the Year Even if heart-pounding suspense and stomach-tightening tension were all Sansom’s writing brought to the table, few would feel short-changed. Added to these gifts is a superb approximation of the crucible of fear, treachery and mistrust that was Tudor England, and a memorably blood-swollen portrait of the ogreish Henry’s inhumane kingship. A parchment-turner, and a regal one at that.