Heartstone

C. J. Sansom has created a convincingly realistic Tudor detective in Matthew Shardlake. He lives and breathes in an utterly convincing world, drawing the reader into the darker corners of history – Philippa Gregory, author of The Other Boleyn GirlA triumph of Tudor history and mystery … Heartstone is a rousing tour de force of period re-creation, testifying to Samson’s fascination with history * Sunday Times Culture *The best novel in this richly entertaining series … History never seemed so real * New York Times *Fans will need no introduction to Matthew Shardlake, the lawyer embroiled in dark secrets during the reign of Henry VIII. Newcomers can discover why Sansom’s Tudor mysteries exert such a pull * Independent *The pace and tension hot up splendidly as Shardlake’s inquiries take him to the Hampshire home of a family with a great deal to hide. A wholly unexpected twist takes us to a superb denouement aboard the doomed warship Mary Rose – terrific stuff, for both fans and newcomers to the series * Guardian *In my review of the previous Shardlake novel, Revelation, in these pages I described it as the best yet. Well, Heartstone is better … Sansom is now so settled in his milieu and at home with his characters that the story canters along effortlessly, while Tudor England is recreated with such attention to detail the reader feels propelled back in time * Tribune *

C. J. Sansom was educated at Birmingham University, where he took a BA and then a PhD in history. After working in a variety of jobs, he retrained as a solicitor and practised in Sussex until becoming a full-time writer. Sansom is the bestselling author of the critically acclaimed Shardlake series, as well as Winter in Madrid and Dominion. C.J. Sansom died in April 2024.