jesshbooks:

The 4th book in the Matthew Shardlake series is a big improvement on the 3rd.  Matthew Shardlake, now a Serjeant of the Court in London is a successful lawyer and investigator (as well as a ‘hunchback’ or ‘crookback’.)  Shardlake is again drawn into the intrigue of the court, along with his faithful servant Barak, and his friend Guy, the doctor and ex-monk, when a series of gruesome murders is begun in London.  There are links between Catherine Parr and the crimes, and since Henry the VIII is currently courting Catherine, Shardlake, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Thomas Seymour are forced into an uneasy alliance in an attempt to catch the killer. 

The Tudor mindset is unprepared to deal with the concept of serial killers, so Shardlake has to deal with a great deal of religious prejudice from both conservative Catholics, and liberal ‘Bible-thumpers’ or Protestants.  The Protestants think that it’s a sign of the end of the world…that the Revelation of St John is coming true, whereas the Catholics are trying to blame the reformers.  In the midst of the murder and religious mayhem, Shardlake must also deal with some difficult personal circumstances, and a young boy who is unable to stop praying, and may be locked up or burned as a heretic if Shardlake can’t protect him.