It is 1540, and Matthew Shardlake, the lawyer renowned as athe sharpest hunchback in the courts of England, a is pressed to help a friendas young niece who is charged with murder. Despite threats of torture and death by the rack, the girl is inexplicably silent. Shardlake is about to lose her case when he is suddenly granted a reprieveaone that will ensnare him in the dangerous schemes of Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIIIas feared vicar-general. In exchange for two more weeks to investigate the murder, Shardlake accepts Cromwellas dangerous assignment to find a lost cache of adark fire, a a legendary weapon of mass destruction. Cromwell, out of favor since Henryas disastrous marriage to Anne of Cleves, is relying on Shardlake to save his position at court, which is rife with treasonous conspiracies. With its wonderful attention to period detail and its brilliant handling of suspense, "Dark Fire" is sure to win comparisons with Margaret Georgeas "Mary Queen of Scotland and the Isles" and captivate readers of Philippa Gregory and David Liss.