Sovereign by C. J. Sansom

Finally, I've read another book in the Matthew Shardlake series! I decided to continue reading in chronological order (having come to the series from one of the latest books) and decided to read Sovereign, the third book in the series.

Sovereign takes place during the reign of Henry VII, during his marriage to Catherine Howard. Matthew is given an assignment to watch a political prisoner under the guise of being a lawyer for the Progress, a political tour. Together with Barak, Matthew journeys to York. But the 'old religion' (Catholicism) is still strong in the North and when someone dies, raving about the King, Matthew and Barak start to investigate.

This book introduces Tamasin, (SPOILER ALERT) who I first knew as Barak's wife. So it was pretty interesting for me to get to know her a little better and to see her relationship with Barak.

What I really like about this book (and the series) is how it has a strong plot, great characters, and a lot of historical details. I really felt that the research in this book helped to bring England to life. Perhaps it's because this book takes place out of London, but the details of daily life (of which there were plenty) stood out more than in the previous books. Despite the amount of information, I never felt like I was in a history lecture because the information was conveyed naturally.

Speaking of history, I also found the deeper dive into the Protestant/Catholic divide particularly interesting. The religious divide is present throughout all the books, but there are more characters with Catholic beliefs in this book and I felt that the book was able to go into more depth about why there was such religious opposition in this book. And if you're interested in history, you may also enjoy the author's note at the back, which clarifies just how much was based on research and which minor characters were not historical figures.

The characters are also a lot more like how I first met them (in Book 6), and I suppose a lot more settled. Matthew is no longer the idealistic lawyer that surprised me in the first book, and unlike the previous book, he and Barak are now friends. Personally, I like how the characterisation is becoming settled as that leaves me more mental energy for plot and setting. Plus I still remember the shock I had when I read the first book!

In conclusion, if you're a fan of historical novels and/or mysteries, you really need to be reading this series. Sovereign manages to balance a solid mystery plot with great characters and attention to historical detail, resulting in a captivating novel.