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Book Overview
History meets mystery with a new twist in this raucous, colorful debut novel set in the bustling theatrical world of Shakespeare and Marlowe during the reign of the formidable Elizabeth I. Fast-paced and sprightly, it takes Nick Revill, a young actor in the newly established Chamberlain's Men company at the Globe Theatre in Southwark, to a luxuriously appointed Thameside mansion where a black-clad youth has offered him temporary lodging. Learning upon his arrival that his melancholy host's father has just died and his mother has instantly remarried his uncle, Nick is naturally struck by the similarities between the young man's woeful story of the Eliot family and William Shakespeare's latest play for the Chamberlain's Men-Hamlet. Nick suspects foul play and sets out to discover the circumstances of the old man's death. Already convinced that something is indeed very rotten in the state of the wealthy Eliot household, Nick stumbles upon evidence that proves his host's father did not die a death entirely natural. More disturbingly, the finger of suspicion points toward Southwark, and Nick finds himself investigating his employer, the celebrated playwright and shareholder in the Chamberlain's Men: Mr. William Shakepeare.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0786707623
ISBN13:9780786707621
Release Date:January 2000
Publisher:Carroll & Graf Publishers
Length:310 Pages
Weight:0.56 lbs.
Dimensions:0.9" x 5.1" x 7.8"
Customer Reviews
4 ratings
Delightful.
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 19 years ago
There are scenes of great good humor, early investigative techniques, some suspense-could Shakespeare be the killer?--and wonderful depictions of London during the late 1500's. One doesn't need knowledge of Hamlet to enjoy this book. This is a well-plotted, delightful book and the start of a very good series.
A fine original crime novel
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 22 years ago
In his new Shakespearian detective world, Philip Gooden has created something new and vibrant and original, with interesting characters, and a marvellous evocation of the world of Elizabethan London.
Witty, Intelligent, Playful, yet quite dark!
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 23 years ago
I loved this book! Even if you don't know HAMLET at all (and so many of the lines are quotations from Shakespeare) I think that any discerning lover of mystery will enjoy this book. Lovers of Shakespeare will also enjoy it enormously. And yet it is never ponderous or difficult--it's sprightly yet dark; intelligent, yet quite easy to read. I believe that SLEEP OF DEATH has something to offer all readers: people who like a good mystery; people who like history; people who like good literature; people who like funny, witty books; people who like to learn. The narrator is quite endearing; the descriptions of the London of 400 years ago are wonderful.This is undoubtedly the best mystery I read in 2001--and I must have read at least 100.
Sleep of Death
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 24 years ago
This was a truly great read! Nick Revill, an aspiring actor with the Chamberlin's Men, investigates the death of a wealthy landowner, who seems to have died in a fashion similar to that of Hamlet's father. Is art imitating fiction or is there something more sinister afoot? Lovers of historical mysteries will quite naturally look for similarites between this work and that of Edward Marston's Nicholas Bracewell series. And while there is very little rollicking humour in Philip Gooden's book, I can truly recommend this book for it's tight plot and dark intrigue, that keeps you guessing as to whether or not a murder was committed and if so, who did it.
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