Just Finished the BEST Historical Mystery!

I have been just blown away by C.J. Sansom’s first historical mystery: Dissolution. For the past few weeks I’ve been transported to 1537 where King Henry VIII is shutting down the monasteries throughout England. However, one of the King’s commissioners is found beheaded at the monastery at Scarnsea. Lord Thomas Cromwell has ordered Matthew Shardlake, a hunchbacked lawyer, to investigate the murder and negotiate the surrender of the monastery. But the plot thickens! A young servant is poisoned and then the body of a servant girl emerges from the monastery pond. Shardlake has a great puzzle to solve, if he is to survive the killer and London politics! The writing in this historical novel was seamless that I easily felt immersed in the time period. However, it is Sansom’s effective use of the religious tension in the atmosphere that truly captivated me. As soon as I finished the last page, I bought the next book Dark Fire.

In Love with Lehane

If you love hard-boiled mysteries, you need to pick up a book from Dennis Lehane’s Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro mystery series. Ever since I finished Gone Baby Gone (probably my favorite mystery novel ever!), I’ve been reading Dennis Lehane non-stop. Years ago I read Mystic River and Shutter Island – both great stand-alones – but I truly love the series. Although my personal preference is for first person narratives, it’s much more than that. When you read Lehane, you know you’re reading a master crime writer. Subjects, which are glossed over in other books, are front and center in Lehane’s novels, like the struggle to maintain morals in a world that’s falling apart. His characters have tremendous depth, and they often have to make tough choices. However, the most important reason to read a Lehane novel is that his endings are so deliciously satisfying, you just want more.

Please read these books BEFORE watching Ben Affleck’s new movie Gone, Baby, Gone. There is NO WAY the movie will be as satisfying.