The Man on a Donkey

This masterclass in historical fiction has a long, slow-burning fuse and a culmination that blew me away. Along with expert world (re)building and insightful character (re)animation is a key feature of the best of the genre—an examination of what it means to be a human in history. In tumultuous times, do you keep your head down and put your trust in things working out, or do you bend events to ensure they do? Neither option is a sure bet, so which stance does your conscience demand? It also reminded me that that nasty-piece-of-work, Henry VIII, may be the most illustrative precursor to our own current obese, ailing, greedy, and cruel head-of-state (and future exemplar of historical villainy).