Heartstone

By: C. J. Sansom

Narrated by: Anton Lesser

Abridged edition.

Heartstone is C. J. Sansom's fifth spellbinding mystery in the Shardlake series.

Summer, 1545. England is at war. Henry VIII's invasion of France has gone badly wrong, and a massive French fleet is preparing to sail across the Channel. As the English fleet gathers at Portsmouth, the country raises the largest militia army it has ever seen. The King has debased the currency to pay for the war, and England is in the grip of soaring inflation and economic crisis.

Meanwhile Matthew Shardlake is given an intriguing legal case by an old servant of Queen Catherine Parr. Asked to investigate claims of "monstrous wrongs" committed against a young ward of the court, which have already involved one mysterious death, Shardlake and his assistant Barak journey to Portsmouth.

Once arrived, Shardlake and Barak find themselves in a city preparing to become a war zone; and Shardlake takes the opportunity to also investigate the mysterious past of Ellen Fettiplace, a young woman incarcerated in the Bedlam. The emerging mysteries around the young ward, and the events that destroyed Ellen's family nineteen years before, involve Shardlake in reunions both with an old friend and an old enemy close to the throne. Events will converge on board one of the King's great warships, primed for battle in Portsmouth harbour . . .

Continue the gripping historical series with Lamentation and Tombland.

Engaging story beautifully read

The Matthew Shardlake novels and characters become more engaging with each volume and, in this audio version, they are brought brilliantly to life by master narrator, Anton Lesser. The range of characters (both male and female) in Mr Lesser's repertoire is as astonishing as his range of emotions from fear and anger to deeply moving sadness and regret. in this volume, I especially enjoyed the development of the main characters, particularly Matthew's emerging awareness that parts of his life may need adjusting. Can't wait to see what happens next.

Excellent period mystery

Well written historical mystery and with the perfect narrator. What more can you ask for.