I enjoy historical novels full of drama, romance, mystery and intrigue as much as the next person and Unsworth has provided just that. However, Thurstan Beauchamp is not the most politically savvy of lead characters and is easily led astray by a pretty face. Unsworth created a set of realistic and diverse characters in this novel and they all play their parts well. The setting and period are described and I found it easy to imagine the scenes and locations. At times I didn't always follow the logic behind the plot but I think this was more a failing on my part than on the novels (making me no better than Thurstan at understanding the political machinations). Otherwise a thoroughly enjoyable novel.