Bring Up the Bodies (2012) by Hilary Mantel is the second installment in the Wolf Hall trilogy, a masterful historical novel that chronicles Thomas Cromwell’s orchestration of Anne Boleyn’s downfall. Set in 1535–36, the book captures Henry VIII’s growing disillusionment with Anne and his infatuation with Jane Seymour, as Cromwell—now Lord Privy Seal—methodically engineers treason charges against the queen and her alleged lovers.
Mantel’s prose is razor-sharp, blending present-tense immediacy with psychological depth, painting Cromwell as both ruthless and achingly human. Winner of the Booker Prize, the novel transforms court intrigue into a gripping, morally complex tragedy.
