It’s that time again: The time when I hit the end of my Libby queue and find myself wondering, “what can I read that is like reading the Wolf Hall trilogy without just rereading the Wolf Hall trilogy again.” Suggestions welcome. - ThreadSky

daralind.bsky.social • 75 days ago

It’s that time again:

The time when I hit the end of my Libby queue and find myself wondering, “what can I read that is like reading the Wolf Hall trilogy without just rereading the Wolf Hall trilogy again.”

Suggestions welcome.

Comments

postambition.bsky.social•75 days ago

I feel your pain. Those books are so extra. There is nothing quite like them. One thing I’ve done when I’m jonesing is listen to interviews of Mantel talking about the books. She was such a genius and is delightful to listen to.

melissaw-i.bsky.social•75 days ago

Older and maybe wiser: “The Fifth Queen” trilogy by Ford Maddox Ford. 💚💛

daralind.bsky.social•71 days ago

I gave up on this recommendation because I couldn't get it on my Libby app, but I just saw who made it, and I suppose I will go and buy a copy now

mangofantasy.bsky.social•71 days ago

I sort of went sideways and read Diarmaid MacCulloch’s excellent biography of Cromwell - fascinating comparison

zombiecube.bsky.social•73 days ago

Wife suggests Naomi Novik Temeraire books (“not as well written as Mantel, but ‘rhymes’ a bit with Wolf Hall”). Then she goes off the deep end and suggests War and Peace.

I love the Temeraire books but don’t know enough about Wolf Hall be confident recommending them as a response to your question.

grouchybagels.bsky.social•73 days ago

Temeraire books are super fun but I think of them as far sillier/less beautiful than Wolf Hall/Hild etc.

jbul83r.bsky.social•73 days ago

This is probably way different than what you’re looking for. But a nonfiction book that I really enjoyed was Faraday, Maxwell, and the Electromagnetic Field. Together, these two men set the stage for Einstein.

kristin1965.bsky.social•75 days ago

And then there’s me, letting my hold on The Bear and the Nightingale lapse over and over bc i’m too tired to listen to a book… what?!?

whetstone.bsky.social•73 days ago

i did that too. you’re going to be so happy when you get to it, but it’s fine to take your time… it’ll wait for you!

wandsci.bsky.social•75 days ago

Do you read sci-fi/fantasy? If do, and what you're trying to replicate about Wolf Hall is the palace intrigue and richly-drawn characters: Arkady Martine's Teixcalaan series and Katherine Addison's The Goblin Emperor would be good fits

snacksalot.bsky.social•74 days ago

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Baroque_Cycle

nationalsliker.bsky.social•75 days ago

Dorothy Dunnett’s Lymond Chronicles has many admirers.

imperiledreader.bsky.social•75 days ago

Not truly political--or, more accurately, they gloss over politics--but Sharon Kay Penman's novels are fun. I like The Sunne in Splendour.

For political fiction set in the same era as Wolf Hall, I like the Shardlake mysteries, by C. J. Sansom, especially the first three and the last one.

rodeokitten.bsky.social•75 days ago

This is the second recommendation I've seen today for The Sunne in Splendour. Adding to my list!

imperiledreader.bsky.social•75 days ago

I hope you enjoy it! It's a chunky book but a fast-paced story.

imperiledreader.bsky.social•75 days ago

Something I really like about Shardlake's novels is that he considers the impact of these 'great' people on the poor. The character of Shardlake has connections to powerful people, but there's quite a bit of narrative and authorial sympathy for people impacted by the rich & powerful.

sethdmichaels.bsky.social•73 days ago

i have probably already touted A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE to you, but otherwise just avidly watching the replies here for suggestions

daralind.bsky.social•73 days ago

I’ve been in the hold queue since you did!

pilgrimdear.bsky.social•75 days ago

Fox In the Attic/Wooden Shepherdess feel right for this style

postambition.bsky.social•75 days ago

Wow, I never heard of those books or of Richard Hughes. They sound fascinating. Thanks!

pilgrimdear.bsky.social•75 days ago

🫡🫡🫡

allisonwgood.bsky.social•75 days ago

Hild!

postambition.bsky.social•75 days ago

Have you read Matrix by Lauren Groff? It’s Hild adjacent in my mind.

allisonwgood.bsky.social•75 days ago

Yep! I think Hild is supposed to be a trilogy? Fingers crossed

daralind.bsky.social•75 days ago

Read Hild and Menewood last year on the recommendation of @grouchybagels.bsky.social ! And Matrix, which I think of as Hamnet-adjacent but which is also definitely Hild-adjacent

ueowen.bsky.social•75 days ago

SPEAR READ SPEAR (also by @nicolaz.bsky.social )

bellwetherevent.bsky.social•74 days ago

I do love Spear. it’s a novella not a trilogy of 500 page books

allisonwgood.bsky.social•75 days ago

I think Matrix is more like what the third Hild is supposed to be if we ever get it

dreamgalaxies.bsky.social•75 days ago

seconded

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