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May 17, 2010

John rated it:

Oh my... it didn't go well at all.... how can this possibly be the same book that some people have given 4 or 5 stars to. It really baffles me.

I am one of those poor/deluded individuals [and yes - I actually believe there are more of us than some would admit] that actually enjoyed the Da Vinci Code. Believe me.... it was a literary masterpiece in comparison to this nightmare.

Against my better judgement I continued reading long past the point where the book usually gets s More...

0 comments like (10 people liked it)

Sep 08, 2008

Alison rated it:

Good lord in heaven, this book is a train wreck. It's almost impressive that a plot this unoriginal could also be so maddeningly complicated. I'm somewhat familiar with Shakespeare's plays and the times in which he wrote them, but the jumbled cast of historical characters is impossible to keep straight. I'm surprised the affectedly plucky leading lady could keep track of her own research.

And, of course, the reader is treated to plenty of clichéd (or "classic," if you' More...

2 comments like (8 people liked it)

Dec 22, 2008

Angela rated it:

I have a confession to make, and it is this: I am simultaneously repelled by and attracted to books that shamelessly mention The Da Vinci Code in their blurbs. I think a small part of me keeps hoping that somebody will come along that will take what Dan Brown tried to do with that book and do it again, only better.

The problem is, Interred with Their Bones doesn't do this. It has one major advantage over The Da Vinci Code in that Carrell's prose is infinitely more able than Brown's, but More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Apr 02, 2011

Trak rated it:

It was okay as book reads go. The story line was out there and wholly unbelievable which made it fun.

I brought this book at a second hand book store and having finished the book found the following written black biro at the back:
"I, Matthew Jamieson 17/04/2008, Solemley swear that if I should ever, in the future attempt to wear muscle shirts and look "cool" when I am clearly not, that I will immediately cease this behaviour, or else have my ass kicked. Sincerely More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 17, 2010

Littlemissmuffet rated it:

I picked up this book as it combined both Shakespeare and a murder mystery. Add in all the hype that surrounded the arrival of this book on shelves and I had to read it...

However I was really disappointed with it..
1. The characters are 2-dimensional, they don't display or demonstrate any feelings or emotions whatsoever, (case in point- the lead character was nearly murdered twice and is on the run from the cops yet she doesn't really exhibit any fear or anxiety for the predicam More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Dec 27, 2008

Alan rated it:

Unintelligible romp through pseudo history, December 27, 2008
By Alan A. Elsner "Alan Elsner, author" (Washington DC) - See all my reviews

I thought that this book, promising a historic romp through Elizbathan England, probing the many mysteries surrounding the life and identity of William Shakespeare, would be just up my alley. It combines several themes I love -- history, thrillers, England and Shakespeare. Unfortunately, it fell far short of its prom More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Jan 12, 2009

Caitlin rated it:

I think the best word to describe this book would be derivative. It's the kind of "international chase to uncover secrets of the past" thriller that has become rather formulaic of late. This version adds on the literary weight of Shakespeare, which only intensifies the cliche. If we're not looking for the descendants of Jesus, Shakespeare's lost play is probably the next best thing.
The novel isn't a complete loss. The writing is fact-paced and the set-up is decently entertaining More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jan 10, 2008

Jessica rated it:

An average "secrets hidden for centuries" type book. The main character, Kate, just happens to be a Shakespeare scholar (although a slightly dense one at times) who is the perfect candidate to hunt for a lost Shakespearean epic. She globe-trots rapidly (seriously, why does the author never discuss how jetlagged she would have been by the end of this) in a hunt for secrets left around the world, which she must unite to find the lost manuscript of Cardenio. A really good audio book, i More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Apr 02, 2009

Brooke rated it:

I had warned myself long ago about avoiding books that tried to jump on the DaVinci Code bandwagon, since they seemed to be slapped together without much care in hopes of capturing the attention of one of the millions of people who had spent money on Dan Brown's blockbuster. I let down my guard with Interred with Their Bones - it was about Shakespeare, not mysterious religious texts, after all. Missing Shakespeare plays! The secret identity of the playwright! Should be excellent.

Exce More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

Feb 05, 2009

LJ rated it:

INTERRED WITH THEIR BONES (Suspense-Kate Stanley-Int’l-Cont) – G
Carrell, Jennifer Lee – 1st novel
Dutton, 2007, US Hardcover – ISBN: 9780525949701

First Sentence: From the river, it looked as if two suns were setting over London.

Kate Stanley is a Shakespeare scholar who has left the halls of academia for the boards of the Globe Theatre. Her Harvard mentor and friend, Rosalind “Roz” Howard, comes to see her as Kate is preparing her debut of “Hamlet,” giving he More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Feb 02, 2009

Melissa rated it:

Several months back I happened on a book called Codex which I had hoped to follow in the footsteps of other books I enjoyed about lost manuscripts and literary mysteries. Codex disappointed me severely, but at last I seem to have gotten my wish with Interred with Their Bones.

If such a comparison were necessary, I'd call it a cross between Possession and The DaVinci Code. It is not quite the page-turner that Dan Brown's book is, but then it doesn't have that cheesy "tv-movie-of- More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Dec 28, 2008

Nicole rated it:

In Interred With Their Bones, author Jennifer Lee Carrell plunges you without delay into a suspenseful story revolving around Shakespeare and the burning of The Globe Theatre. In the present day Globe, Kate Stanley is directing soon to be premiered Hamlet when Rosalind Howard, her mentor not seen for many years, asks her to take a gift - an adventure, a secret - and follow when it leads…The Globe Theatre is on fire, the same day when The Globe Theatre burned in 1613 and Rosalind Howard is found More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 01, 2012

R rated it:

I picked this book up by chance for 50p in the library, and read it in less than two days. I immediately loved all the characters, even the ones I was supposed to loathe, and found myself completely wrapped up in the story. I'm so glad this book is mine and not the library's, as I don't think I'd be able to give it back. I'm always a sucker for literary mysteries, and what I liked about this book is that it never really gave everything away. Even when you finish it, all the questions are not ans More...

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Dec 06, 2011

Pikachu rated it:

I blame the Da Vinci Code for the onslaught of 'OMG famous historical monument/book/painting that's linked with a scandalous seeeeecret that we'd kill to know!' mystery novels coming out. Some are wretched, and some are wonderful — even better than DVC. Thankfully, this belongs to the latter category.

Kate Stanley is an occult Shakespeare scholar. Not occult as in supernatural, but in terms of the older meaning: hidden secrets. In recent years, though, she's traded the third-party obser More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 12, 2011

Janneke rated it:

Oorspronkelijke titel: Interred with their Bones

De schrijfster Jennifer Lee Carrell promoveerde op Engelse en Amerikaanse literatuur en gaf enkele jaren les over Shakespeare aan de Harvard Universiteit. Ook regisseerde ze diverse stukken van deze beroemde toneelschrijver. Zo stuitte ze op onbeantwoorde vragen over het auteurschap van Shakespeare en twee zoekgeraakte toneelstukken: Love’s Labour’s Lost en Cardenio.
Shakespeare wordt door velen gezien als de grootste schrijver van More...

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Mar 27, 2011

Samantha rated it:

I was assigned this book as Spring Break reading for my college Shakespeare class. My professor meant it as a fun Da Vinci Code-esque thriller that also tackles some key issues about Shakespeare's life, such as who the sonnets are about and who really wrote Shakespeare's plays. While it does deliver on the controversies and some awesome Shakespeare play-references, the "thriller" part I felt was severely lacking. There were way too many solid chunks of thinking and theorizing to move t More...

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Nov 15, 2010

Oreotalpa rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Oct 01, 2010

Dlora rated it:

I kept thinking I should like this story more than I did. Yes, a literary romp or an intellectual thriller would describe it well. It's like the Da Vinci code with our heroine deciphering clues that challenge your thinking and race you around the world. The chase is to find a lost Shakespearean play but also to resolve the long-standing question of Shakespeare's real identity. But I kept getting confused and had to go back and refresh my memory. I suspect that someone with a better Shakespearean More...

2 comments like

Sep 29, 2010

Brackman1066 rated it:

Thank you, Jennifer Carrell, for writing one of the first "lost ancient book adventures" I've read that actually allows its educated protagonist to be, you know, knowledgeable about her field. I'll admit that the rank of cultural historians who travel in time and are surprised by garderobes, or D.Phils in Middle English lit who have to look up who Chretien is on the internet probably annoy me more than they should, especially when their field is my field and I know what they had to rea More...

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Jun 07, 2010

Tony rated it:

Jennifer Lee Carrell- The Shakespeare Secret (Published in the U.S. as Interred with Their Bones) (Plume 2008) 4 Stars

When the Globe theatre suddenly burns down due to arson and Kate Stanley’s mentor dies in the theatre after giving Kate a mysterious gift, she is forced to dig deep into secrets some wish to remain hidden. The gift is the first clue as to what her friend Roz had stumbled upon, and the thing that will throw Kate into a life on the run. She is an expert her field More...

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May 25, 2010

Tina rated it:

“At the far end of a maze of police barriers and command tents, we came at last to a wide set of double doors. I frowned. They looked like the main doors to the theater. ‘Had to sacrifice everything else,’ said the fire chief… ‘But I think we’ve saved the Globe.’” (p. 21)
“’He looked round and then leaned in close. ‘It’s the First Folio. After the fire last night, the Widener rotunda’s littered with partly charred pages and scraps of the Gutenberg, but so far, they’ve found no identi More...

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May 05, 2010

Ty rated it:

I didn't hate this book, but it certainly fell far below the potential it offered based on the synopsis I read. That book, had it existed, would have been a tight, inspired combination of some of my favorite things; Shakespeare, history, England, adventure, and puzzles.

What it ends up being is, sadly, a bit of a novelized text book on Shakespeare history and hidden/theoretical Shakespeare history. Some fascinating stuff in it's own right, but merely a ball and chain when incorporated s More...

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Apr 22, 2010

Lauren rated it:

i haven't been this divided on a goodreads' rating in a long, long time. and it's one of the rare occasions where i feel goodreads would really benefit from a half star rating.

the expense of spirit:

1. i'm a sucker for any mystery book that envelops art, literature, and history. it lured me in with the da vinci code and it lured me in here. i like it when my mysteries feel "smart" - it's the lit snob in me.
2. the creepy murders in the style of shakespearean More...

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Dec 04, 2009

erin rated it:

Man, everyone is taking this too seriously. Suspend disbelief and read the novel as a novel! This is not supposed to be literary fiction or intellectually hip nonfiction. This is essentially a murder mysteryish lit thriller! Sheesh!

I may have more warm fuzzies for this book because it kept me entertained while being sick for way too long, but I completely enjoyed it. While I get the Dan Brown comparisons as this was a run-around-the-world-and-find-out-secret-scholarly-stuff-and-other More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jul 13, 2009

Danna rated it:

While picking up books I plan on borrowing, I like also to invite serendipity and browse the shelves at random. This time I did have a bit of focus: I wanted something fun to offset The Grapes of Wrath and the heavy non-fiction I've been reading. This was a delightful choice!

At first I laughed and rolled my eyes because it seemed nearly identical to The Davinci Code , our current bedtime read-aloud. Estranged protege and mentor; ghastly murder; cryptic academic/religious mysteries More...

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Jun 22, 2009

Julie H. rated it:

I stumbled upon this at the library the other day and it was great--as in can't put it down, read it in a day great! The gist of the plot is that a brilliant young Shakeseare scholar and director must follow a series of clues to unravel a mystery surrounding a long-lost Shakespeare manuscript. While the amount of transoceanic travel necessitated--and how it was paid for--requires a willing suspension of disbelief, the story is well worth that modest investment. An early scene in the stacks at More...

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May 13, 2009

Anna rated it:

Halfway through reading "Interred with Their Bones", I checked to see if it had been written before or after "The Da Vinci Code". On finding that it had been written after, my initial 4 star rating got bumped down to 3.5 stars, and stayed at that level for the duration of the book.

That having been said, it's a very good page-turning, puzzle-weaving, thought provoking book, set around the mystery of a) whether William Shakespeare was actually the autho More...

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Feb 14, 2011

Tyson rated it:

This book was released hot on the heals of The DaVinci Code. I have read a few Dan Brown novels and have also started in on Steve Berry's works, and usually find their ancient mystery thrillers quite entertaining. Carrell's book was a slightly different story.

Carrell is a literary history scholar, specialising in, you guessed it, Shakespeare. This of course had absolutely no influence on the book and its plot (sarcasm warning). The overburdening of the narrative with various debates More...

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Jul 10, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

This Shakespearean-themed thriller was far more interesting than I expected. The narrator, Kate Stanley, an academic turned theater director, is a day away from opening a version of Hamlet at the Globe Theatre in London, when her old mentor, Roz Howard shows up with a mysterious box and a request for Kate's help. She leaves Kate with the box and Kate reluctantly agrees to meet her later that night. Before Kate can learn what exactly is going on, Roz is murdered and the Globe Theater is set ab More...

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Jan 27, 2011

Elizabeth rated it:

It was a good read. A fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat thriller kind of read. But it also fell short in a number of places. One (and maybe this is just me), the main character's unexpected companion was just too perfect. Benjamin Pearl. British. Wealthy. Dark hair and clear green eyes. Not to mention that he wielded a gun throughout the most climatic scenes and rescued her from the killer's intention of turning her into Lavinia - hands severed, tongue cut out, and ravished. He was too much More...

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