Wolf Hall

I was so looking forward to this book but found it really hard going. If I hadn't been very familar with the period and subject I think I would have struggled to understand quite a bit of what was going on. Not for the faint-hearted!

The plaudits for this book are almost unerryingly dazzling, alas i think this underplays just how astonishing a book this is. I had read her book Beyond Black and bored everyone i knew about the opening page and a half being the greatest writing i had read. A friend of mine had been pushing Margetet Attwood as unrivalled. I laughed and countered Mantel is not only the best women writing anywhere but also at the moment she is peerless. My friend subsequently submitted. One review had described how after finishing Mantel's achievement she was concerend that Hilary Mantel actually is Thomas Cromwell. I felt i knew him better than anyone i actually know, including myself! How does she manages that? I have never finshed a book and be left so hollow that it had ended and i had no more to feast upon. It left me empty for 2 days, i could not pick up another book and here is a warning, once i did manage to; the next two novels, in thier own right lauded, were like reading books written by those in primary school. I have forced this book on at least ten people and all have adored it. People are 100% right to say that they do end up re-reading some of the speech again to follow who is speaking but this is not a big problem...indeed re-reading some of her prose is a delight as she conjures some of the most beautiful images and writing ever produced.....

I was really impressed with the purchasing and receiving of this book. It was a bargain and took less than a week to arrive. As it was needed for a book club, time was of the essence! It is a lengthy book and took quite a time to get into it as its style is not easy to follow. However I would recommend persevering with it as Mantel is good at bringing out the characters and making the history come alive. Don't rush through it as it needs to be 'savoured'. Wolf Hall I am definitely going to read it again and probably again. One to be kept on the shelf not given away!!

Other reviewers have commented on the weight of the hardback, the awkwardness of prose in the present tense and the need to back-track to establish who said what. All are valid criticisms but completely irrelevant when compared to the sheer magnificence of the story telling. I've lugged Wolf Hall back and forth to work for several weeks and now I have finished it I'm eager to get my hands on the sequel. The early 16th century was a defining period in English history and Wolf Hall brilliantly captures the religious and power struggles of the era. I can hardly imagine the enormous amount of research the author must have done to make her characters come to life in a very believable account of a tumultous period of European history. It is a spledid piece of work. You'll have gathered from other reviews that Wolf Hall is not an easy read. It really isn't. However, there is little of worth that can be obtained without a deal of effort and you really will be rewarded if you persist with this wonderful book.

Actually, I bought it twice by mistake (having pre-ordered it, then forgotten I had). But the measure of this wonderful book is that I'm not dismayed by my blunder, and I shall simply hold onto the second copy until I find someone who deserves it - that is: someone who appreciates marvellous writing, and has an attention span of - at least - an elephant. Because it demands close and prolonged engagement, and rewards such attention amply. Not for the soundbite generation, I think. I'm only a gnat's crotchet into it so far, and already I'm loving it. And I was rubbish at history, at school. But I relish the Tudor paintings in the National Portrait Gallery, and I enjoy the Shardlake books, so I guess I'm a pushover for Wolf Hall. But this book really is terrific. I first came across Hilary Mantel when I found her book 'Beyond Black' - a favourite now. But this book takes the bit in its teeth and flies away, like all great winged horses. If you love to be transported... this is your next winged-horse journey.

I enjoyed this book in many ways, the use of Cromwell as a main character when generally King Henry or Anne Boleyn would be used and the new ways in which history was explored. However, does a book well written have to confuse the reader to be considered worthy? The answer is no and this book dished out confusion everytime a character spoke. I had to continually stop and think, 'Eh? Who is speaking now?' as it was never clear, speaker running into speaker with never a hint of who it was. Sometimes it brought me near to screaming point but in the end I decided to take a deep breath and just keep reading. The number of times I re-read passages in the hope of enlightenment did not work so I had to plough on. If Hilary Mantel had tried to be less original in her narrative and more conventional in it this book would have been one of the best historical novels I have ever read. As it stands I can only give it a 3 due to my teeth grinding with annoyance every few pages.

Id looked forward to reading this book and now I have read it I'm left wondering about all the good reviews on the back. I found this book sadly lacking in substance plenty of details in some parts and in other parts I was left wanting more. I presume with the abrupt ending the writer intends to write a sequel...I hope she doesn't waste her time. I found my memories of Carolly Ericksons 'Bloody Mary' and recently C.J.Sansoms four books far more informative and entertaining. now THEY are four books worth reading.

......great subject matter and an interesting story, ruined by stilted, pretentious prose which, far from engaging the reader and creating that vivid imagery in the mind, lurches and stumbles along destroying any flow. Life's too short for this rubbish. If you want to see how period language can be woven into a riveting historical novel then read anything by Patrick O'Brian and be transported to another age.

Despite my best efforts I finally gave up on this book after 204 pages. The plot moves at a snail's pace and leaves little impression for the following evening's read. There is so much conversation and, most of the time, it is unclear who is speaking to whom. It is - in fact - boring and offers little or no pleasure. With all the hype that led me to buy it I feel cheated. A complete waste of my time, effort and money.

I found myself unable to wait for the paperback version so, for a week or two, carried the hardcover version around for tube and other reading. Heavy to carry but well worth it. As a great admirer of A Place of Greater Safety, had been looking forward to this and will definitely buy the paperback for a reread. Thank you Hilary Mantel for adding quality to my life!