Book SynopsisThe second book in the Shardlake series.
It is 1540 and the hottest summer of the sixteenth century. Matthew Shardlake, believing himself out of favour with Thomas Cromwell, is busy trying to maintain his legal practice and keep a low profile. But his involvement with a murder case, defending a girl accused of brutally murdering her young cousin, brings him once again into contact with the king’s chief minister – and a new assignment . . . The secret of Greek Fire, the legendary substance with which the Byzantines destroyed the Arab navies, has been lost for centuries. Now an official of the Court of Augmentations has discovered the formula in the library of a dissolved London monastery. When Shardlake is sent to recover it, he finds the official and his alchemist brother brutally murdered – the formula has disappeared. Now Shardlake must follow the trail of Greek Fire across Tudor London, while trying at the same time to prove his young client’s innocence. But very soon he discovers nothing is as it seems . . .
Ups
As engaging and compelling as the first book in the series. The period detail is superb - London in the 16th century really comes to life. Although the author has clearly done a lot of research on historical facts of the time, he has cleverly woven these into the story, so the book does not read like a dissertation on layout of and life in 16th century London. Highly readable, and I will definitely been reading the next one in the series.
Downs
The whodunit element of this book was somewhat disappointing, as it was quite easy to guess who was behind the disappearance of Greek Fire. Perhaps my expectations were too high, given the standard Sansom set in the first Shardlake mystery.
Rating
Language & Style - 9 / 10
Memorability - 4 / 10
Re-readability - 3 / 10
Pageturner factor - 8 / 10
Overall - 7 / 10
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