"I loved Wolf Hall , but I was spooked by it too. The voice is so true: I have my suspicions that Hilary Mantel actually is Thomas Cromwell' 
 - Rachel Cooke, Observer, Books of the Year 
 I agree with Rachel. Granted, I didn't know much about Thomas Cromwell before reading this book, but I am still convinced that this character must be the real Cromwell and that Mantel has some supernatural, extraordinary access to the Tudor time period. 
 So, where to start? This has probably been the best and the most challenging read of the year for me. Challenging in part because it is so extremely intelligent that I am not sure my own intelligence can do it justice when reading it, but also challenging because English is not my first language and this novel makes use of some archaic forms and ways of speaking that I am not as familiar with. The best because - oh, there are so many because's! For one, you never notice the author. The author is non-existent and for me that really signifies great writing. The characters are wholly the characters and you can almost pluck them off the page and place them in the real world. Cromwell especially is brilliant, as he of course should be, being the center of the whole narrative. 
 Secondly, the writing itself is exquisite. The present form is perfect for this novel even though it might seem an odd choice for a historical novel - being set in the past and all. Thirdly, I adored that this was also a funny novel. Not funny as in comedic, slap-your-thighs funny. More like chuckle-because-that-is-witty-and-subtle-funny. The humour is presented in absolute seriousness, which is probably what makes it funny in the first place. Let me give you a few examples: 
 "The trouble with England, he thinks, is that it's so poor in gesture. We shall have to develop a hand signal for 'Back off, our prince is fucking this man's daughter." 
 "At New Year's he had given Anne a present of silver forks with handles of rock crystal. He hopes she will use them to eat with, not to stick in people." 
 Now, don't say that doesn't make you chuckle! 
 Of course I have a few issues with the book. I have yet to come across a completely perfect novel. One of my issues is the one that several reviewers on here mention too: the whole 'he' business. I admit it's difficult to figure out in the beginning, but once you realise that 'he' usually refers to Cromwell, it gets easier. Why Mantel choose to then sometimes use 'he, Cromwell,' to clarify instead of just 'he' confuses me. Especially because there is no consistency; 'he, Cromwell' is used both when it's clear that it can only be Cromwell AND when it might not be as clear from the text. Which doesn't really make sense and gives a feeling that she just decided to put a 'Cromwell' in once in a while to change it up. Not saying that's the case, just how it comes off. 
 Another issue is also mentioned by several reviewers; there is seemingly no rules for when to put dialogue in quotation marks and when not to. It is mixed to her pleasure all the way through the book and can sometimes be a little confusing, but overall you don't notice it too much. These a both very small issues, which is why it still deserves 5 stars! 
 This is also the longest book I have read in a very long time, but for my sake it could go on and on forever, which is why I ran straight into town today to get the second installment, Bring Up the Bodies. Which I am going to read right now. So. Bye!