Author | C. J. Sansom |
---|---|
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Series | Matthew Shardlake Series |
Genre | Historical mystery |
Publisher | Viking Books |
Publication date | April 2003 |
Media type | Print (Hardcover) |
Pages | 400 pp (first edition, hardback) |
ISBN | 978-0-670-03203-7 (first edition, hardback) |
OCLC | 52041174 |
823/.92 21 | |
LC Class | PR6119.A57 D57 2003 |
Followed by | Dark Fire |
Dissolution (2003) is a historical mystery novel by British author C. J. Sansom. It is Sansom's first published novel, and the first in the Matthew Shardlake Series. It was dramatised by BBC Radio 4 in 2012. [1]
A television series, Shardlake, starring Arthur Hughes in the title role, was released on Disney+ in 2024. Its first season is based on the events of this book.
Set in 1537 during the dissolution of the monasteries, the book follows the lawyer Shardlake in his attempts to solve the murder of one of Thomas Cromwell's commissioners in the monastery at the fictional town of Scarnsea on the south coast of England.
Dissolution has been well received by critics, although there has been some criticism of the language and detail in the writing. [2] "The best crime novel I have read this year" – Colin Dexter; [3] "Remarkable...the sights, the voices, the very smell of this turbulent age seem to rise from the page" – P. D. James; [4] "This is a humdinger of a whodunnit. Read it!" – Colin Dexter; [4] "This is historical fiction at its finest." – Peter Robinson. [5] The US Library Journal review is more critical, commenting: "His novel is unrelentingly grim in tone, as the reader is forced to plod along with Shardlake and the other mostly unlikable characters." [6]
Dissolution was nominated for the 2003 Crime Writers' Association (CWA) John Creasey Memorial Dagger, for first books by previously unpublished writers. It was also nominated for the CWA Ellis Peters Historical Dagger in the same year. [7]
The Red House Mystery is a whodunnit by A. A. Milne, published in 1922. It was Milne's only mystery novel.
Christopher John Sansom was a British writer of historical crime novels, best known for his Matthew Shardlake series. He also wrote the spy novel Winter in Madrid and the alternate history novel Dominion. He won numerous book awards, including the 2005 Ellis Peters Historical Dagger, the Sidewise Award for Alternate History in 2013 and the Cartier Diamond Dagger in 2022. Shardlake, a television series based on Sansom's novel Dissolution, started streaming on Disney+ less than a week after his death.
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Margaret Murphy is a British crime writer.
Dark Fire is a historical mystery novel by British author C. J. Sansom. It is Sansom's second novel, released in 2004, and also the second in the Matthew Shardlake Series. Set in the 16th century during the reign of Tudor King Henry VIII, it follows hunchbacked lawyer Shardlake's search to recover the long-lost formula for Greek fire.
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The False Inspector Dew is a humorous crime novel by Peter Lovesey. It won the Gold Dagger award by the Crime Writers' Association in 1982 and has featured on many "Best of" lists since.
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Set in 1970s London, Legacy is a spy novel by English author Alan Judd. Published in 2001 it continues the story of Charles Thoroughgood, first introduced in his debut novel, A Breed of Heroes, published 20 years earlier. British historian Peter Hennessy described it as 'one of the best spy novels ever'.
The Shardlake series is a series of historical mystery novels by C. J. Sansom, set in 16th century Tudor England. The series features barrister Matthew Shardlake, who, while navigating the religious reforms of Henry VIII, solves crime and tries to avoid getting caught up in political intrigue.
Don’t Want to Miss a Thing is the 24th novel by British author Jill Mansell.
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Shardlake is a four-part television series on Disney+ based on the Shardlake series of historical mystery novels by C. J. Sansom set in the reign of Henry VIII in the 16th century. The series is adapted by Stephen Butchard and directed by Justin Chadwick and produced by The Forge. Arthur Hughes stars as the eponymous Matthew Shardlake, alongside Sean Bean as Thomas Cromwell. C. J. Sansom died on 27 April 2024, just four days before the series premiere.