|
Heartstone (Matthew Shardlake 5)  |  | Author: C. J. Sansom
Publisher: Mantle
List Price: £18.99
Buy New: £9.49
as of 9/9/2010 05:00 BST details
You Save: £9.50 (50%)
New (8) Used (3) Collectible (1) from £7.25
Rating:  4 reviews
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 450
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.4 x 2.4
ISBN: 1405092734
EAN: 9781405092739
Publication Date: September 3, 2010 (New: This Week)
Shipping: Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
| | |
| Customer Reviews:
Outstanding Shardlake September 7, 2010
J. Cooper (Sheffield, England)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
Well after the last book `Revelation', I thought we had seen the end of Shardlake and Barak and therefore sadly resigned myself to the fact that there may only ever be four books in this fantastic series. I am sure I do not need to tell you how excited I was to see `Heartstone' advertised earlier on in the year! I could not wait to get my hands on a copy of this book and ensured I was able to buy a copy on its publication date.
The book itself is aesthetically beautiful. The dust jacket, colour maps on front and back covers and the red ribbon have helped to create a book which demands centre stage on your bookshelf. The book is slightly heavy, which can be problematic when reading the book in bed at the end of the day when your aching limbs are succumbing to the effects of gravity! Yet that is the only negative point for a book which definitely stands out from the rest.
Aesthetics aside, the content is typical Shardlake with the story plodding along quite nicely until the final third when revelation after revelation is thrown at our indomitable lawyer in true, plot twisting style! This time Shardlake is away from London and thus the story focuses mainly on his adventures in Hampshire. We have a new setting with a different story, but one which contains just enough familiar elements from the previous book to sustain the flow from `Revelation' into `Heartstone'.
In Heartstone, you will see a slightly different Shardlake and in some ways he appears to be more vulnerable to his enemies. I experienced a greater range of emotions when reading this book than I have done with the previous instalments, which ranged from anger to sorrow, empathy to disgust. All in all, key ingredients for a dangerously addictive read. I would certainly advise that you have a clear week or two before beginning this book as you will not be able to set it down once you have begun.
I sincerely hope that this is not the end of Shardlake and if I have to wait another year or two for a new book - I'm quite happy to do so! Some people may say that with any lengthy series, the commercial/financial aspects overshadow the quality of the books and the series' `sell-by date' is prolonged to exploit the success. That is definitely not the case with this book; it feels fresher than ever and leaves you wanting more.
Highly recommended reading.
Heartstone September 4, 2010
Mrs. M. Lowry (Isle of Man UK)
4 out of 9 found this review helpful
Another great book from CJ Sansom. Great value for such a great author. Have read all previous books in the series and could not get better value for the new edition.
Red Ribbon September 4, 2010
Badger's Mum (Dorking)
2 out of 15 found this review helpful
Haven't started it yet (I know it's going to be great) - but am seriously impressed by the bound-in ribbon bookmark. All publishers of hardbacks please take note! This is a fantastic idea which should never have been dropped.
More of the same in this excellent series September 2, 2010
Big Jim (London, UK)
69 out of 72 found this review helpful
Heartstone continues the story of Matthew Shardlake and co, and weaves together at least 3 different strands of plot to reach a satisfying conclusion. There are no major departures from type to be fair but I like the fact that CJ Sansom has chosen once again to move the story out of London and in so doing can further describe the countryside, the town of Portsmouth, and the early days of the navy. There are some engaging characters to be met as well, some more integral to the plot than others, and to be fair some of them are a tad stereotypical, but maybe that's because the stereotypes are true. One thing that does grate though is the use of modern idiom such as "mad as a box of frogs". I know we don't want the dialogue to be all "yea verily" and the like but the use of such idiom does seem a bit incongruous. Of course someone will now tell me that the phrase was first coined in Tudor times in which case I withdraw my complaint.
But seriously, this will please fans of the series, and although new readers could start with this book they would be advised to start at book 1 to see how the relationships develop through the series as that does have some significance in this book.
|
|
|
CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON EU S.à.r.l. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED ‘AS IS’ AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME. Telford Web Design | |
