Corpus: A gripping spy thriller

Product Information

Clements spins his wheels within wheels to enjoyable, if mind-boggling, effect. Pay attention if you don't want to get lost: it works for thrillers and American Presidents alike. * South China Morning Post * There is clearly a great deal of research which goes into the book and I particularly enjoyed the notes at the end of the book. The blue cover is simply gorgeous and I knew it was a thriller and a mystery, so I decided this was enough to get me going. If this book review ever captures your attention, I advise you to also go in blind. I think going blind made me enjoy this book even more.The fact that this is a third book in a series doesn't mean anything. The only similarity with the other books is the main character. Almost the same basis as Dan Brown's series and his professor Robert Langdon. The books are entirely standalones.

It is very hard to reveal what the plot is about without spoiling the fun. Tom Wilde is a university professor and one of his very talented students, Marcus, has left to join the International Brigades in Spain. Now, two years after, he is in trouble, and Tom helps him come home. As the body count rises, Wilde discovers a piece of film which casts new light on Marfield's time in Spain. Wilde realises he has been duped and that everything he knows about Marfield is a lie. But who can he trust? Almost everyone involved seems to have a secret agenda.

Summary

Shakespeare comes into this world only to find out the worst news possible– that the queen is in danger. Not only that, but he and his family also find themselves at the center of some interest that they rather would not have attracted. And when the death of two lovers young in age appears to link into a plot, Shakespeare doesn’t know what to do. Could the Earl of Essex be involved? It appears so when the deaths of the two lovers somehow are related to an alleged plot by the Earl to take the English throne when Queen Elizabeth I passes.

CORPUS honestly blew me away. It was everything I wanted in a historical thriller. Clements has created a really interesting world and crime, and Thomas Wilde is an interesting main character. I really enjoyed reading CORPUS, and I can't wait to get my hands on the next book in the series.' * The Flutterby Room *I hadnt realised how often the pendalum had swung in that period for the man in the street. How the support was split between the fascists and communists in Spain only to move to the communists with the rise of the threat from Hitler, only to swing again away from the communists as we edged towards the Cold War.

Sweden, 1942 - Two old friends meet. They are cousins. One is Prince George, Duke of Kent, brother of the King of England. The other is Prince Philipp von Hesse, a committed Nazi and close friend of Adolf Hitler.
Days later, the Prince George is killed in a plane crash in the north of Scotland. The official story is that it was an accident - but not everyone is convinced.
There is even a suggestion that the Duke's plane was sabotaged, but with no evidence, Cambridge spy Tom Wilde is sent north to discover the truth . . . Corpus is quite rich in history and detail within the plot, so there are many threads to follow. The author has done a great job of weaving it together cohesively and the end result is a highly intriguing read.' * Bibliophile Book Club * Argue with me!' Wilde insisted. 'Make me prove my points, demand evidence, get as near the truth as you can. Re-examine everything you have ever been told and make your own mind up on the evidence you can find. And if there is not enough evidence, then keep an open mind. Become a detective- because if you don't, you'll never become a historian.' Whilst the fifth book in the series, it can easily be read as a standalone, however I think you would soon be devouring the rest.Dramatic . . . pacy and assured . . . Well crafted, it has all the pleasures of an intriguing lead character, intricate plot and fascinating historical context * Daily Mail * Rory Clements is best known for his highly acclaimed Elizabethan murder/espionage books featuring John Shakespeare. Now he has another string to his bow in the form of an American professor, although there is a link between the two. Tom Wilde specialises in Elizabethan history with a particular interest in Frances Walsingham, Queen Elizabeth's secretary and one of her more successful spymasters. (Note to budding authors: make your research work doubly hard for you!) The prof therefore has a second hand knowledge of espionage that will come in very handy. That and a line in national neutrality that will come in handy when he seeks to retain a sense of objectivity when all around lose theirs. These secret negotiations will in the end have very severe consequences, being the plane crash and subsequent death of Prince George and his crew in the north of Scotland, while an important aide of Prince Philipp von Hessen, Rudi Coburg, has gone in hiding with very important knowledge to deliver to England and the rest of the world. It’s well enough written in many ways, but there is an awful lot of ponderous historical detail which was sometimes so basic and clumsily presented that I felt rather patronised. Similarly with the geography of Cambridge; it’s a city which I know and love, but do we really need to be told constantly that characters turned right from this street to that one and then...etc? There’s a lot of extraneous detail which doesn’t add to the atmosphere or setting but really slows down the narrative. Characters tend to be rather thin stereotypes of either extreme communists or odious fascists, whereas most people at the time were neither – the exception, of course, being Wilde who is wise, thoughtful and well-balanced. This fabulous entertaining spy thriller is the 5th volume of the fantastic "Tom Wilde" series, from the formidable author, Rory Clements.