Dissolution by CJ Samson

Plot

During negotiations for dissolution in 1537, one of Thomas Cromwell's commissioners, sent to the monastery of Scarnsea is found beheaded, a black cockerel sacrificed at the altar of the church and the relic of the Hand of the Penitent Thief crucified along with Christ missing. Matthew Shardlake, a lawyer and long term supporter of religious reform is sent to Scarnsea along with his assistant Mark. Shardlake's investigation leads him to question his once zealous conviction for Reform as well as his belief and trust in Cromwell and leads him into increasing danger as the number of people killed begins to mount up.

Thoughts

I can't make any judgements on the historical accuracy of this novel as my only previous knowledge of the dissolution of the monasteries lies in the realm of primary school history and memorisation of dates. It does seem wonderfully detailed, bringing to life the smells and sounds of Tudor England as well as its treachery, shifting alliances and absolute power of and complete dependence on the whims of the King.

The spiritual decay and the genuine belief of the monks is well depicted - the monks have literally grown fat on their supposed life of abstention, give the bare minimum to the poor and harass female servants but also sincerely believe in the power of prayer and the importance of the continuation of a tradition that stretches back centuries. The comparison between the monks and the court is telling as is the realisation at the end of the novel that what is to come afterwards was in no way different to what went on before. The centuries old monasteries are destroyed, the beauty of the buildings gone, relics burned and all gold and silver melted regardless of their aesthetic beauty, religious significance or age and lands granted to local loyal landowners whose take up the abbot's lifestyle and standard of living.

Beliefs of the times are well drawn. Shardlake, the hunchback, finds affinity with Brother Guy, the Moor, on their shared tendency to draw strange looks and taunts from children, although at one point he does bitterly say that at least Brother Guy has a land where he is the norm. What surprised me was the tolerance shown towards 'fraternisation' between the fraternity within Scarnsea, giving the King and Cromwell easy leverage and forcing the monks to suppress their homosexual inclinations and leading them to tortured negotiations with themselves to refrain from the 'sins' of both action and thought. You can see the hardline stance of the Catholic Church in the pronouncements of Brothers Mortimus and Edwig but I find it remarkable that prior to threats to close down the monasteries based on 'sins' of homosexuality, a blind eye was turned to such behaviour.

Resistance to reality, dawning disillusionment with the Reform project and realisation of Shardlake that Cromwell was capable of fabricating evidence of Anne Boleyn's adultery based on confessions gained under duress of torture and the torture used to force monks to foreswear monasticism is nicely drawn although Shardlake seems a bit naive to believe otherwise.

Although at times the book did drag just a little, I loved the level of historic detail. You see the dissolution from the point of view of the monks, the reformers and the court. I would have liked to have a little more of what the ordinary people of the land thought of it all - you do get a little of this through the characters of Alice (the only woman servant) and Mark but this is based on their personal reaction to what happens to them. However, as Samson says in his historical note after the story ends, it's difficult, if not impossible, to know what England thought as people would have kept quiet out of fear and knowledge of what happens to dissenters and free thinkers.

I enjoyed Dissolution and have a feeling that the following books in the Shardlake series will be better. I look forward to reading the rest!