Sovereign: A Shardlake Novel

By C. J. Sansom

The third novel in the Matthew Shardlake Tudor Mystery series—the inspiration for the Disney+ original series Shardlake!

C. J . Sansom has garnered a wider audience and increased critical praise with each new novel published. His first book in the Matthew Shardlake series, Dissolution, was selected by P. D. James in The Wall Street Journal as one of her top five all-time favorite books. Now in Sovereign, Shardlake faces the most terrifying threat in the age of Tudor England: imprisonment in the Tower of London.

Shardlake and his loyal assistant, Jack Barak, find themselves embroiled in royal intrigue when a plot against King Henry VIII is uncovered in York and a dangerous conspirator they've been charged with transporting to London is connected to the death of a local glazer.

Awarded the CWA Diamond Dagger – the highest honour in British crime writing.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Jun 26, 2012
• ISBN: 9780307362414

C. J. Sansom

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 acclaimed Shardlake series, the Spanish Civil War thriller Winter in Madrid and the number one bestseller Dominion. in 2023, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Edinburgh. He lives in Sussex.

Reviews for Sovereign

[eadieb-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the 3rd book of the Shardlake series and my favorite so far. King Henry VIII and his 5th wife, Catherine Howard progress from London to York. Shardlake and Barak are transporting a conspirator from York to London and come across a secret concerning the monarchy. Someone is attempting to kill Shardlake to protect the secret. This was a very hard to put down book with excellent plot, characters and intrigue. I would highly recommend this series to those who love to read about 16th century Tudor England.

[ariadnearanea · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Historical fiction is my guilty pleasure - this one does not disappoint.

[gypsysmom_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I've never been to York but thanks to the maps at the front of the book and Nu-Knees' apropos postcard of the streets of York I could really visualize the streets (gates as they are called in York) as I read this book. I really like books that have maps and family trees and this book has both. The family tree forms an integral part of the mystery so that is even more interesting. It was also interesting to see Jack Barak smitten with a woman because in Dark Fire he was such a rogue and womanizer. Tamasin Reedbourne is a good match for Jack in that it was she who set the trap to catch Jack's attention while making it seem like he was rescuing her. I was suspicious of her motives throughout the book as a result. Tamasin probably picked up a few tricks as a member of the Queen's household. It seemed like everyone was using intrigue and deceit at every turn. One of the ways Sansom makes the Shardlake books real is his description of the weather. In Dissolution it was the harsh winter weather, in Dark Fire the heat and stink of a London summer permeated the story and in this latest installment the cold rains and strong winds of fall dominate. Since that is precisely what the weather is like as I read this book I almost felt like I was inhabiting a spot in the book. I am even more thankful for central heating after reading this book. I'm delighted to know there is another book in this series. At the end of the book when Shardlake tells Archbishop Cranmer that he doesn't want to have any more involvement with politics I was afraid that maybe Sansom was leaving the series as a trilogy. I'm glad to know that isn't so. I think Brother Shardlake has a lot more Tudor history to explore.

[t_k_elliott · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It's taken me years to get around to reading this, and having finished, I'm left with one inescapable thought: Why did it take me so long?

Matthew Shardlake and his trusty sidekick Jack Barak are off to York with the Royal Progress. King Henry is intending to to prod some serious Yorkshire buttock, and Shardlake is along to help with the legal petitions. He has also been given the task of ensuring the health and welfare of an accused traitor, who is being brought back to London for "questioning".

Pretty soon, it's clear that something is rotten in the county of Yorkshire (other than the King's ulcerated leg, and the bits of traitor still nailed up over the gates), and before the tale is done, there are murders, attempted murders, lies, betrayals, seductions, narrow escapes, and celebrity gossip.

Shardlake and Barak make a good team, even though they don't always see eye to eye, and Sansom is obviously moving their story on: this is a good thing, as it's always vaguely unsatisfactory when the main characters' lives never change, despite what's happening around them.

Sansom also manages to get the paranoid atmosphere of Tudor England under the latter part of Henry VIII's reign: an increasingly tyrannical and unstable king with nearly absolute power. Religion and politics inextricably linked. The danger that a wrong word or look to the wrong person in the wrong place, and someone might end up in the Tower of London however innocent they might be.

This series is going from strength to strength, and I will definitely be reading the rest of it.

[theidlewoman · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another Shardlake mystery, this time set in York during the time of Henry VIII's great progress there. Once again the plot strands straggle a bit: and the character of Broderick, initially apparently so important, fades out disconcertingly at the end. But Sansom is always an engaging and enjoyable writer. His books are hard to put down and full of historical detail.

[marthahuntley · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent read!

[cbl_tn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

C.J. Sansom overlays Henry VIII's 1541 progress to the North with a conspiracy that endangers the life of lawyer Matthew Shardlake. Once again, Shardlake reluctantly accepts a commission on behalf of his country. Shardlake and his assistant, Jack Barak, are to meet the progress in York, where Shardlake will help to process petitions to the King from those with grievances against local officials. Shardlake is also charged with ensuring the safety of a prisoner in York, a suspected conspirator against the King. Shardlake must see that the prisoner survives the trip from York to London, where inquisitors at the Tower will press him for details of the conspiracy and the names of his co-conspirators. Shardlake soon learns secrets so dangerous that their knowledge may cost him his life.I loved Dissolution, the first book in the series, but was a little disappointed with the second book, Dark Fire. Sovereign is every bit as good as the first book in the series. The plot is tighter and better paced than that of the second book. Sansom's descriptive storytelling pulls me completely into the world of Henry VIII. It's one of my favorite eras of English history, and one reason I like this series so much. I love the way Shardlake's character has developed across the series. In a way, he's like a sheep among wolves. He isn't naive about the evils of Tudor society. It's just that, because of his physical deformity, he clings to his integrity as his only source of dignity.I highly recommend this series for all historical fiction fans.

[thornton37814 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Matthew Shardlake and his assistant Barak are sent by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer to see to it that a prisoner in York who is destined for the Tower in London and eventually will face hanging will be treated well. It is at a time when King Henry VIII's Progress is visiting the area with the anticipation of a visit by the Scottish king. A man is killed who is in possession of a box of important papers needed by those who wish to dethrone Henry VIII. It is stolen from Shardlake's hands. Soon attempts are made on his life. There are plenty of officials. Which ones are corrupt and which are not? How do certain events fit together? Which are important in the puzzle and which are not? These are all questions the reader ponders. With that said, I had figured out the solutions to both the murderer and thief aspects of the novel fairly early on. I still enjoyed the historical context and Sansom's writing tremendously. I suspect about 50 pages could have been trimmed in all from this novel (which would have still made it long in comparison to many) by tightening the action and getting rid of some of the slow action that had little bearing on the outcome. It's still an excellent read in a great series.

[smiler69 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Once again, at the beginning of the novel we find Matthew Shardlake contentedly living a quieter life, away from the dangerous court machinations. The year is now 1541, and once again, he is pulled into a case which will turn out to have huge political implications. Following an uprising in the North which was put down, and now hearing of another plot in the works, King Henry VIII and his courtiers have set out on a grand Progress to the North, which is to end with a spectacular pageant in the city of York, where the political leaders are to make a formal apology to the King by abasing themselves and giving him a huge sum of reparation money while pledging their everlasting loyalty and devotion to him. An important prisoner who refuses to divulge precious information about the plot is held in in the local prison and is to be brought back to the London Tower for questioning under the attentions of the skilled torturers there. Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury calls in Matthew Shardlake and asks him to make his way to York and ensure the prisoner survives the journey and is healthy enough to withstand torture once in the tower, a favour which Matthew is not in a position to refuse. Much against his will, he makes his way North ahead of the King's progress with his new sidekick, Barak, one of Cromwell's former men whom he worked with on the Greek Fire case and has since hire on as his assistant. Most of the action takes place in York, where documents putting in question Henry VIII's legitimacy to the throne are found. As the carpenters and workmen are in a frenzy to finish preparations for the King's arrival, one man dies in suspicious circumstances, while it seems someone is trying very hard to use any occasion to cause Matthew to have an accidental death. We get to meet the King through Matthew's eyes and as can be expected, he proves to be cruel and despicable. Meanwhile, Barak has gotten involved with Tamasin, a beautiful young wench in the Queen's employ and may have truly fallen in love for the first time in his life, but one night as they are having an illicit encounter, they witness the young Queen, Catherine Howard taking her departure from a young courtier who is just leaving her building. Is this why Matthew ends up being tortured in the Tower for information once he arrives in London, or is his enemy after him because of something else?I just had to continue after this thrilling entry in the series, and immediately moved on to book #4.

[barlow304 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In the midst of all the Tudor history, a mix of intrigue and murder surround lawyer Matthew Shardlake. While there is some distance in any historical mystery, as the book continues and the lawyer lands in the Tower, the tension becomes almost unbearable. An excellent addition to a solid series.

[fglass_5 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This, the third of Sansom's books "Sovereign: A Shardlake Mystery", isn't quite as compelling as the the first two in the series. Still, it keeps you wanting to undo the tangle of the mysteries until the last.

[sylvia_massara · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I love CJ Sansom's character Matthew Shardlake. So far have read all his books in this series.

[ilurvebooks_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another book on the Shardlake series just as good as the previous two books this author just gets better.

[angelcake_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Fantastic book and a great medieval who dun it,a must read

[everfresh1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I loved C.J. Sanson's first novel 'Dissolution'. The second one, 'Dark Fire' was also very good although not as good as first. It's getting weaker though. I would probably like 'Sovereign' much more if it was the first book by this author I read - I guess I had my expectations set too high by his previous work. Interestingly, each of his first three books is larger than previous. And this is my main complaint about this novel- it's bloated. The subject is again fascinating, the characters are interesting, the historical environment, background and atmosphere are authentically reproduced, the plot is good. If only it wasn't so unnecessarily large and repetitive.

[ahs7wolfy · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

With the death of Cromwell, London lawyer Matthew Shardlake has fallen out of favour. Many of his clients have taken their business elsewhere. So it's a bit of a surprise when he's offered a job by none other than Archbishop Cranmer. He's to go to York and meet the Royal Progress and help prepare the petitions that will be handed to the King. Needing the money to pay off his late father's debts, Shardlake has no option but to accept and is far from delighted when Cranmer adds another task to his duties, the welfare of a prisoner that will need to be returned to the Tower of London for questioning. So it's off to York for Shardlake and his assistant Jack Barak. The death of a glazier and the attempted poisoning of the prisoner set off a chain of events that may lead to another rebellion that threatens to overthrow the Tudor reign. As well as being caught up in the middle of these events, Shardlake also has to deal with Sir Richard Rich who wants to get Shardlake to drop a case that they are on opposing ends of. How far is he willing to go to get Shardlake out of his hair?This mystery is woven into a well researched historical account and the author spills the beans at the close of the book as to what he's embellished or where he's taken certain things from. It's a fairly thick book but as it reads very well you don't really notice the size. The series is improving with each book and as it started out good then this third instalment is very good indeed. Looking forward to continuing with the next at some point.

[shanaqui_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sovereign is as good a read as the previous books, entwining its mysteries with the history of the period. Some of it is obviously invented, but still, it invokes the Tudor period and the Reformation pretty strongly and with attention to detail. It's slow to unfold -- and this one definitely suckers you in with a slow build of emotion, i.e. the bond between Shardlake and Wrenne.You've got your standard collection of corrupt and incompetent officials, with a bit of torture to spice the dish. A new female character enters the picture, with a bit of romance (not for Shardlake, but for Barak, which is a little sad in one sense).In a way, it's of a piece with the first two books: the style and format haven't changed. If you enjoyed the previous two books, then you'd probably enjoy this; if you found them too slow, too unbelievable in the way Barak and Shardlake mix with high society, in the way that a lawyer like Shardlake can become so entangled in politics and scheming... well, then you'd be best advised to cut your losses, because it doesn't change in that sense.

[jmoncton_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another fantastic Matthew Shardlake mystery. Set in Tudor England toward the end of Henry VIII's reign, lawyer Matthew Shardlake travels to York to meet the king's Progress - a huge event where the entire court travels to another part of the country to hold court. Shardlake's main job is to prepare petitions for the king, but he becomes involved in a mystery when a glazier is murdered. Although the mystery for this story was not that difficult to solve, the book is outstanding for its descriptions of the characters and setting. I loved getting a glimpse of life during that time. There was the complex political climate - Reformers vs. closet Papists vs. loyal followers of the king, the elaborate pomp and ceremony that surrounded the royal court, and the all important dilemma of who would be the rightful successor to the throne. And is there anyone who portrays Henry VIII as anything but despicable? I absolutely loved listening to this book - it felt like I was being transported to a different time and place.

[readafew · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sovereign is the 3rd mystery in the Matthew Shardlake series. Once again a high ranking official in the King's inner circle asks Master Shardlake to undertake a task of some secrecy and importance. Against his better judgment and with promise of a large payment after services rendered, Shardlake accepts the commission, both to help arbitrate grievances and to watch over the health and safety of a political prisoner. Shardlake has to race up to York to help prepare for the coming of Henry VIII progress. Once there he soon becomes caught in a whirlwind of political intrigue, deception and murder. Shardlake soon wishes for nothing more than to be safe back home with his practice as his only concern. This is the largest book of the series so far and it has a lot going on. There seems to be several different conspiracies and Shardlake has accidentally stepped into all of them. He really is too smart and observant for his own good. This go around the axiom "No good deed goes unpunished" seems to be very true for our poor hero. Once again Sansom transports us back to 16th Century England during the time of Henry VIII and you really get the feeling of what is was like to be living there. Excellent book, great mystery, well worth a read. A bit heavy on the detail but I enjoy that part.

[mooknits · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Once again an excellent Shardlake book. I worked out "whodunit" fairly early on as it were - but it really didn't matter at all. These books are just so well written they are totally absorbing. I love the period and the history is so accessible. I love these books.

[dianaleez · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a very satisfying read: historically accurate enough to satisfy, unique characters, and well written. Matthew Shardlake is such an interesting character, and although the main character, so far from perfect. What a treat! But if you haven't read the other Sansom books, by all means start at the beginning and work your way here. Like a box of fine Belgian chocolates - you won't want to miss any!

[lchav52_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In the spring of 1541, Henry VIII faced another conspiracy in the north of England, whose people and nobles were still largely opposed to the 'new religion' and still loyal to Rome. While the conspiracy was uncovered and many of its leaders imprisoned and executed, Henry and his advisers hurriedly organized a grand Progress,setting out to York in July to consolidate his authority. This forms the backdrop to the third of C. J. Sansom's Matthrew Shardlake mysteries, SOVEREIGN.The hump-backed barrister of Lincoln's Inn, London, is called before Archbishop Cranmer and given a commission to assist at York in bringing petitions for justice from the people to the king. In addition, Cranmer gives him a charge to see to the safety of a noble prisoner, one of the spring conspirators, who is being brought back from York to London to endure the ministrations of the expert torturers in the Tower. The book opens as Shardlake and his assistant, Jack Barak, once a top operative for the now deposed and executed Lord Thomas Cromwell, ride into York a few days ahead of the King's Progress. What follows is a story that has all the period detail, suspense, danger, and political intrigue one could expect in the tumultuous times of Henry's England. A suspicious death, cryptic dying words, a cask of secret documents, repeated attempts on Shardlake's life - to say nothing of his current legal quarrel with a powerful foe, Sir Richard Rich, of the King's Privy Council - plunge the lawyer into events larger than he can realize, even to the tragedy of the ultimate fate of Queen Catherine Howard. Readers of the first two books in this series, DISSOLUTION and DARK FIRE, will have come to expect a sense of authenticity in Sansom's portrayal of the highly-charged and dangerous atmosphere of early reformation England, and they won't be disappointed. Sansom has a gift for making the characters and time live before our eyes, all but placing us on the ground there. Those who haven't read Sansom before are in for a treat.

[soliloquies · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My favourite of the series, so far. Shardlake is developing into a well written character who manages to embroil himself in the murkiest depths of the Tudor Court. This book is primarily set in York, as Henry VIII makes his progress North. Shardlake is now working for Cramner, but this doesn't make him any safer than when he was working with Cromwell.Great writing, although I guessed who was instrumental in the conspiracy early one.

[cathymoore_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In this, Tudor lawyer Matthew Shardlake's third outing, we visit York during Henry VIII's monumental Royal Progress. Shardlake has been sent to the north with his assistant Jack Barak to escort a prisoner back to London. Sansom's attention to detail in describing Tudor England really is second to none. Here he vividly portrays York and the Royal Progress. Shardlake is really up against it in this novel facing enemies on all sides and this culminates in Shardlake himself facing torture in the Tower of London. The plot twists and turns up until the final reveal and kept me guessing right up to the last few pages. A great story.

[rkstafford_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Third in the Shardlake series, set in 1541 during the Progress to the North.

[rosareads · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Couldn't put it down!

[moriquen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Read through it in a couple of hours. Very enjoyable.

[devilish2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Lovely period detail. Mildly repetitive.

[lara335 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Shardlake reluctantly joins Henry VIII's progress to York. Wonderfully atmospheric with great historical detail.

[ponsonby_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Third in the Shardlake series and fairly compulsive reading. It's long, but the writing is good enough that you enjoy the length. Thoughtful characterisation and a very sense of place and time for a book set mostly in York rather than London. The pace is kept up well, and the outcome well hidden. I have yet to spot any historical inaccuracy in this series; and the author includes a full note describing what characters and events he has invented to turn the facts into a story.