Bring Up the Bodies

Wolf Hall was on the verge of 5 stars. In the sequel Mantel keeps it far more focused, dives in deeper, goes more into the machinations behind the conversations, the pace is balanced (I mean, I think we know how it ends up) so although it moves along nicely we are not hostage to a “thriller pace” I would not be surprised to see the two books being seen in “I, Claudius” category

 At the end of my review for Wolf Hall, I said that I would read its sequels but I wasn't excited for them.  I am so glad I pushed through despite not liking the first book, as I think Bring Up The Bodies maintains the strong qualities of its predecessor while also improving on its weak points.    Like Wolf Hall, Bring Up The Bodies thrives in its attention to detail and quality of writing, but it tightens up the pacing as it focuses on a much shorter time period.  Wolf Hall takes place over the course of over 30 years while its sequel doesn't even cover one.  I find that this allows the book to breathe a lot more and makes each event matter.  Bring Up The Bodies also has a cleaner narrative that is easier to follow and is more interesting than its predecessor.  Focusing on the downfall of Anne Boleyn through Thomas Cromwell's eyes is a genuine treat as we see exactly what mistakes she makes (and doesn't make) in order to lose favor with Henry.  As all good sequels do, Bring Up The Bodies expands on its returning characters and these three in particular benefit greatly from having another book to explore their personalities.     After reading Bring Up The Bodies, my opinion of its predecessor has gone down.  Knowing that Mantel had this within her makes me wish that Wolf Hall was tighter in a similar way.  As it stands, Bring Up The Bodies is one of my new all-time favorite historical novels, and I can now say I eagerly look forward to reading the conclusion of this trilogy. 

I found myself without reading material on a recent flight, so splurged on this, recalling how much I'd loved Wolf Hall. It was a 4- as opposed to 5-star experience for me because I knew what to expect of Mantel's style, whereas I'd been actually shocked by experiencing her craft for the first time. Still, this was a great read. There were points where I felt like the plot was almost careening towards the grim and foregone conclusion, in a way that both nervously thrilled me, and that I suspect may be a fairly accurate reflection of what it would have felt like to be living in the eye of the political storm Mantel depicts.

I loved this book but not as much as Wolf Hall. Here it felt like the immediacy and intimacy with our boy T Cromwell - with everyone really - was diminished. It was looking at the throbbing heart on an operating table, rather than racing around through bloody ventricles and veins.

If you read the first one then for god's sake read this one too, and if you haven't read the first one yet then this is no place to start.