Wolf Hall

a novel

Paperback, 604 pages

English language

Published Nov. 8, 2015 by Picador.

ISBN:
978-1-250-07758-5
Copied ISBN!
OCLC Number:
904964637

View on OpenLibrary

4 stars (94 reviews)

In the ruthless arena of King Henry VIII's court, only one man, Thomas Cromwell, dares to gamble his life to win the king's favor and ascend to the heights of political power. The plot contains profanity, sexual situations, and violence.

31 editions

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

I now understand historical and political reasons for the English Reformation. That's always something nice to take away from a great story.

This book sucked me in more and more as I read it, at least half of that was because I had to be sucked in to be able to keep track of all the Henry's and Mary's. I was constantly flicking back to the character list at the start to know who was who.

Written in a style I'm not sure what it is but it took a while to wrap my head around, it's all from the point of view of Cromwell but still in third person, it leaps around in time very casually and sometimes doesn't bother with dialogue but just keeps it in a "then they talked about this and then that" style of writing. I'm not sure why this is the style but hey, …

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on Goodreads

3 stars

The easiest way to sum up this book is to say it's the comings and goings and conversations of Thomas Cromwell on his way to becoming the second-most powerful man in 16th-century England.

On an historical level, this book gets praised for its accurate portrayal of the events under discussion, even if it paints Cromwell more sympathetically than his portrayal in textbooks. Certainly, he's no angel, but his motivations are relatable, and we understand him quite well. His character is well defined, as are King Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, Cardinal Wolsey, and a handful of Cromwell's right-hand men. The narrative is quite witty, and there were moments I was glad it was written by a woman given these #MeToo times. I also thought the pace of the novel was nigh on perfect.

Unfortunately, though, that's where the praise must stop. The narrative, for the most part, is pretty choppy. The …

reviewed Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (Thomas Cromwell Trilogy, #1)

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I really enjoyed the book. The period piece is not my usual cup of tea, but Mantel's style really caught me as something special. I wasn't totally hooked, but I picked the book up quickly after taking a break. Will definitely continue with the series and with Mantel.

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Divorced, Beheaded, Died. Divorced, Beheaded, Survived. Thus went the wives of Henry VIII. Join me on a journey of Court intrigue with Thomas Cromwell as he works his way to chief minister to the King. Twisted relationships, archaic gender roles, and general historical treachery is headed your way. Hang on to your hats, because it's going to be a long, wild ride.

I enjoyed the history and the different perspective into Thomas Cromwell. The writing was strong, however I had to subtract a star because this book was not made for audio. I kept finding myself pausing to think, "Which Thomas is this? Cromwell, Wolsey, More? Or possibly Howard or Boleyn? Are we talking about King Henry or Henry Percy?" And don't get me started on Mary and Anne. I realize it's history and yes, everyone was named Thomas, Henry, Anne and Mary, but it made the audio experience especially …

reviewed Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (Thomas Cromwell Trilogy, #1)

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

A massively ambitious attempt that comes off brilliantly. I do think you need a knowledge of Tudors history to keep track of everything, but Mantel found a lovely subtle method for the narration and it held my interest until the end - and left me wanting to start the next volume immediately.

reviewed Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (Thomas Cromwell Trilogy, #1)

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Hilary Mantel is the most creative manufacturer of swearing that I've read in a good long time. I mean that as positive praise. Actually, I could praise her creativity across the board and feel pretty good about doing so. Great characterization, loads of folks with distinct and well-rounded personas, lots of heart. Plenty of anxious moments.

The plot does stick on some slow parts that don't seem entirely necessary. Of course, there is a sequel that may call on some of the plodding bits of Wolf Hall, so I may have to adjust. (This is one of the reasons I stay away from series fiction, by the way.)

Draggy episodes aside, I enjoyed this quite a bit and am (grudgingly) eager to move on to the followup.

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

During the reign of Henry VIII, Thomas Cromwell rose from a common birth to become one of the most powerful men in England. As Cardinal Thomas Wolsey's right-hand man, Cromwell learns the intricacies of the court, and begins to successfully navigate its politics. When Wolsey fails to produce the divorce the King demands and falls from Henry's favor, Cromwell's talent as a diplomat allows him to eventually rise to succeed where his former master couldn't.

Wolf Hall is brings life and drama to the politics of Tudor England. Written in present-tense episodic sections, the prose is a little jarring at first, but settles into a rhythm quickly. The tense is not distracting, and the prose sparkles (as one would expect from the Booker winner). The cast is a little confusing, but family trees and an itemized cast at the beginning help things immensely. With a lack of dialogue tags, a …

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Told through the eyes of Thomas Cromwell, Wolf Hall is a wonderful take on Tudor history. Hilary Mantel sets out to write a fictionalised biography of the rise to power of Cromwell, as well as the fall of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Henry VIII’s desire to divorce and the opposition of Thomas More. Mantel puts her take on the characterisation of these historical figures and went to painstaking lengths to make sure her version of the story lines up with the historical events as accurately as possible.

Just for the sake of understanding the history behind the book, I did a bit of research before reading this book. I believe this book is set between 1500 and 1535; King Henry VIII has no heir and his chief advisor Cardinal Wolsey is trying to secure his divorce which the Pope refuses to grant. Thomas Cromwell, the son of a blacksmith rises to …

reviewed Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (Thomas Cromwell Trilogy, #1)

Review of 'Wolf Hall' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Wolf Hall is a retelling of the story of Thomas Cromwell, adviser to Henry XVIII
It starts with the process of the king getting rid of his first wife (which takes years, and a large part of the book to accomplish) and ends with the execution of Thomas More.

Hilary Mantel is an awesome writer. This is a vivid and fascinating book. If you are not already familiar with the history of Henry XVIII, you will find it very confusing. There are many characters with similar names and the story is bizarre, to say the least.

There are many fascinating themes. The way in which royalty erodes humanity, for example. Henry is like an enormous child, not evil, but emotionally crippled. Characters like Anne Boleyn and Thomas More are portrayed with empathy, even though they are deeply flawed.

Fantastic.

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Subjects

  • Fiction
  • Court and courtiers
  • History

Places

  • Great Britain

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