Unfortunately I did not finish reading ‘Execution’ by SJ Paris. I have read previous novels by this author and have enjoyed them in the past. Not sure if I’m just not so keen on these type of books anymore or the fact that it was more of the same.

Hurray!!! Giordano Bruno is back! This time he becomes involved with the events around Mary Queen of Scots and the Babbington plot. If you are missing the Shardlake Series by CJ Samson which have sadly come to an end then you should take a look at this series about an ex monk "detective" set in Elizabethan (rather than Henry VIII) times. This narrative for this outing really zips along, the series seems to just get better. I really like the intrigue and mystery around Mary, Queen of Scots attempts to free herself from prisoner and plot against Elizabeth and the plot of this novel does not disappoint. Very gripping. A real page turner. So enjoyable. Write more!

Given a copy of this in exchange for an honest review .I was delighted to get this as have read all of S J Parris' Giordano Bruno novels and looked forward to any addition to he series.Set during the reign of Elizabeth 1 against a background of plots and conspiracies to replace the Protestant Elizabeth with the Catholic Mary Stuart.
Bruno an Italian ex Dominican brother who left Italy on the run from the Spanish Inquisition.This time he is sent by the queens secretary Walsingham to investigate the brutal murder of a friend of his daughters..He also has to impersonate a captured spanish priest who its believed is involved in a plot against the queen.
There follows an investigation labyrinthine in its complications more murders and brutal treatment.The books give a remarkable picture of Elizabethan London you can almost smell the stench and you imagine the squalor those unfortunates not born to money or property lived in and it is easy to understand the reasons for the low life expectancy of he times.
The book like the previous ones is a thrilling page turner if you like historical fiction ,brilliantly researched and brilliantly written you've probably already read SJ Parris if not you've a treat in store.

This is the sixth book in the series featuring Giordano Bruno. Bruno returns from Paris to London and is once again employed by Francis Walsingham in the capacity of spy. His mission is to discover the murderer of a young woman and in doing so he becomes heavily embroiled in another plot involving Mary Queen of Scots.
This series is always well researched and is historically accurate. The are plenty of twists and turns, threats to Bruno's life and interesting characters along the way. The pace is good and it was a very enjoyable read.

Bruno, the excommunicated Italian Dominican friar is back in fine form. He has been spending time in Paris, but yearns for England and his work with Walsingham - the spymaster protector of Queen Elizabeth I. He gets his chance when he is asked to impersonate a Spanish priest - Prado - who is coming to England to join a plot to execute Elizabeth, free her cousin Mary Queen of Scots, and place Mary on the throne of England as the true Catholic queen.

I've enjoyed all the books in this series so far and this is no exception. There are plenty of twists and turns and the first person narration works well to take us on the suspenseful journey with Bruno. He meets up with his old love Sophia along the way as well as other old friends and enemies. Highly recommended.

Thank you to S J Parris and Netgalley for my ARC of EXECUTION.
This is the first book I have read in this series. The amazing research is expertly interspersed with the premise, the execution of the fifty-five year old Queen Elizabeth to make way for Mary Queen of Scots to assume what she and her followers think is her rightful place on the throne of England. This is richly layered and excellent take on the Babington plot. Brilliant. I loved it.

This is the sixth novel of S J Parris to feature the sixteenth-century philosopher, mathematician, poet, astronomical theorist, occultist and one-time Dominican friar, Giordano Bruno. This novel makes good use of the fact that it has also been suggested that the Giordano Bruno of history worked as a spy for Sir Francis Walsingham, the Secretary of State to Queen Elizabeth I, while living in England in the 1580s.

This fast-paced novel begins with Bruno coming to England, from Paris, in 1586 to deliver to Francis Walsingham news of a plot by a group of Catholic Englishmen to kill Queen Elizabeth, and replace her on the throne with the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots currently held prisoner at Chartley Manor in Staffordshire.

Bruno soon discovers that Walsingham is well aware of the plot and is himself planning to use these Catholic plotters, nominally led by the wealthy young nobleman Thomas Babington, in an attempt to encourage Mary Queen of Scots to put her support in writing and so implicate herself in the plot enough to make certain of her own execution when Walsingham springs his trap and arrests the conspirators.

Bruno is sent undercover by Walsingham to pose as a Catholic priest to report on the progress of the plot and to investigate the murder of a young woman Walsingham had previously sent to spy on the conspirators.

Of course, the Babington Plot is a well-known event in Elizabethan history and there can be little in the way of suspense for the reader regarding the final outcome of the plot. There is, however, a good deal of suspense once Bruno is operating undercover with the plotters and constantly in danger of being discovered. In addition to Bruno himself a number of the main characters in this story are real historical figures not least Francis Walsingham who is shown to be a complex figure seemingly capable of both kindness and compassion as well as professional ruthlessness. His cryptanalyst, Thomas Phelippes, who is convincingly portrayed as a brilliant, but socially awkward, cryptographer acts as Bruno’s handler when he goes undercover.

Naturally a number of the conspirators also feature in the novel. In addition to Thomas Babington, the brilliant and driven Jesuit priest, John Ballard, is clearly the real leader of this murderous enterprise. There are also some very strong female characters and while the social attitudes must necessarily reflect those of the Elizabethan era several of the characters, including Bruno himself, are shown to have in some respects at least more modern attitudes.

This novel has clearly been written by someone with a deep knowledge and understanding of the period and who is more than capable of effortlessly using that knowledge to create a convincing representation of London at that time against which to present this very enjoyable Elizabethan thriller. Highly recommended.

I would like to express my thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for making a free download of this book available to me.

It was such a pleasure to return to this series. Bruno is a great protagonist – he has many admirable qualities and interesting traits but he’s fallible and therefore believable. There’s an added frisson in knowing that he was a real person and that the story is woven around real events – in this case, the Babington Plot to assassinate Elizabeth I and put Mary Queen of Scots on the English throne.
I’d forgotten just how good Steph Merritt’s writing is. Descriptive without being too flowery, it immerses you in the noise and filth of sixteenth century London. I enjoyed the previous book, Conspiracy, set in Paris but it was good to be back on home soil. I love imagining London as it was then, trying to fit it in my mind with what remains.
Despite the fairly wide cast of characters, it’s easy to keep track of who’s who because they’re so well drawn. The dialogue feels authentic, and the nods to future events subtle rather than clunky. There’s only one problem with reading an excellent book like this ahead of publication – there’s too long to wait for the next instalment!

Bruno awakes!

The title is a bit of a tease. Is Bruno finally executed for heresy? Is it Mary queen of Scots? Or could it possibly be another or others?

Giordano Bruno returns to England anxious to ingratiate himself with the queen’s spymaster, Walsingham, and receive a haven for his work. He finds himself in an England suspicious, nay hostile, to foreigners, especially those arriving from Europe. A close friend of Walsingham’s daughter has been found murdered and Bruno soon finds himself investigating her death as well as infiltrating the group of Catholic ( and totally incompetent) conspirators she was involved with.

In the course of his investigation Bruno has to deal with xenophobia, religious sectarianism, racism, bigotry, transgender and gay issues, feminism and women’s rights. He must reconcile himself that the cause he represents, the government of Elizabeth I, may be corrupt, cruel and ruthless, and that the Catholic enemy might actually be quite human, even decent. This all helps Bruno develop into a well-rounded and balanced individual.

Initially the plot is quite slow going, especially when focused on the aimless ruminations of the gang of conspirators, but thereafter it does develop into quite a successful mystery, while spotting the elements of political correctness and contemporary referencing is always amusing.

After absorbing the action-man aspect to historical figure, Giordano Bruno, I got utterly caught up in the machinations of spies and Catholic/Protestant plotting so vividly rendered in this novel set in Tudor England .. revolving around real history is always distracting because I keep trying to remember what historical reports purporting to be real in history books I read .. I mean, Bruno was killed by his church enemies for his religious writings finally, and there were only rumours he was a spy.. probably unfounded. Characters and action in this novel are terrifically and plausibly set out .. and I'll seek out more in this series which I've been eyeing for a long time. It's great!!

Another of S.J. Parris' excellent reads. Once again Bruno is caught up in the protestant/ catholic underground war in another attempt to free Mary Queen of the Scots and Walsingham doing everything to persuade Queen Elizabeth to have Mary executed. Bruno has to work with the conspirators but who can he trust? In the same vein as Sansom and in my opinion just as good and I read it in just about 2 days - a real page turner. Recommend most highly.

I've really enjoyed the books in this series so far and this book was no different. I was worried that I wouldn't remember enough of the last book (its been awhile) to pick up the story but I needn't of worried, any events that are important to this book was recapped without you even noticing and the story itself is pretty much standalone. The amount of historical detail is always amazing in this series, the author has obviously done a lot of research. The characters are complex and interesting, I really connect with and root for Bruno though there are moments that I'm thinking 'what are you doing? You idiot Bruno!' His relationship with Sophia is a unending annoyance to me, they bring out the worst in each other, I wish he would move on. I loved the spy/undercover aspect of the story, you never knew when he was going to be found out (some of his actions didn't help with that). There is a lot of sexist remarks from men in this but that's true to the time and the main character doesn't have that view, it also has some great female characters. I highly recommend this to anyone who likes historical mysteries.

I've been a fan of this series from the start so I went in with high expectations! This book did not disappoint. Bruno is as enigmatic as ever and the story was a gripping as you'd expect from Parris.

Once again the continuing story of Giordano Bruno is fantastically written and true to the history of the time. This series just gets better and better even though some of us know how the series will end. The historical content is fantastic and as the books are set against a turbulent time in our History you almost can believe you are there experiencing it all. I am waiting with great anticipation for the next in this wonderful series.

This was the first, but hopefully not the last book in this well established series that I will read.

Excellently researched and exceptionally well written S J Parris has invented a wonderful everyman hero in the heretic cleric Giordano Bruno who at the behest of Elizabeth's spy master Walsingham now immerses himself in the Babington plot to put Mary Queen of Scots upon the English throne.

History buffs will know exactly how things turn out but the book still makes these events come to life and there is much scheming and intrigue as Bruno becomes an informer infiltrated into the plotters' gang.

An exciting, entertaining and thought provoking read.

Another great historical mystery from Parris. Bruno is back and this time he faces the machinations behind the Babington plot – the conspiracy to remove Elizabeth I and put Mary Queen of Scots on the English throne. Parris has a talent for investing you in the story so that it doesn’t matter if you’re familiar with the history and know what’s coming. There’s plenty of pleasing historical detail but it serves as world building rather than a history lesson. This is a great series.

Bruno is back in London and in the pay of Walsingham again - just as the Babington Plot to put Mary Queen of Scots on the throne of England hots up. Of course, Bruno goes undercover with the conspirators and is embroiled in all manner of dastardly deeds...

This has all the entertaining lightness of historical crime but is better written than much of the genre. Of course we have to suspend disbelief in Bruno's ability to involve himself in all the key events of the period, and accept major simplifications of historical characters - once that's done this is a fun read, and more knowing of history than some similar Tudor crime series.

Another enjoyable read from Parris. Bruno returns to England and works for Walsingham again. Although it is slightly formulaic and it was obvious early on about Clara's death, it is still a good read for any fans of historical conspiracy.

I love the S. J. Parris' Bruno Giordano novels. Well-written, exceptionally researched (with learning worn and shared lightly) and being genuine page turners, I was delighted to be granted a copy of Execution, the sixth in the series by NetGalley.

Set in 1586, Execution provides a new take on the well-known story of the Babington Plot, the catholic plot to execute Elizabeth I and put Mary, Queen of Scots on the throne. Featuring many real-life characters, plus her creation Bruno Giordano, S. J. Parrish interweaves fact and fiction with a deft hand to create a nail-biting tale of Elizabethan skulduggery. I know Tudor history relatively well, so the outcome at the end wasn't a surprise, but somehow that didn't affect my enjoyment one bit. It was still thrilling to follow Bruno's constant struggles to stay one step ahead of his co-conspirators and stop them finding out he is a spy. And if you like that sort of thing, which I do, you also find out quite a bit about cryptography.

You don't have to have read any of the other Bruno Giordano novels in order to enjoy this one. But I recommend that you do because they are all brilliant!