The Shakespeare Secret - J.L. Carrell > Reviews

Advantages: A good thriller, plot twists, interesting facts dotted throughout
Disadvantages: Plot holes, not an easy read, lack of character development

...of a copy of it. The Shakespeare Secret was indeed one of those books, and I really wanted to read this one! I tried to get a copy on my swapping sites to no avail but luckily my local library came up trumps for me and a brand new copy was soon sitting next to my bed ready to be enjoyed by me! The Shakespeare Secret tells the story of Kate Stanley, an ex-Harvard student who now works as a director of plays at The Globe Theatre in London. One day, ... Read review

Advantages: easy read, mixes some fact & fiction, fun even for people not into the Bard
Disadvantages: possibly a bit too dry for some, lot of fact thrown in, "another conspiracy"

...London to direct Hamlet at the Globe Theatre when she receives a visit from her old university mentor Rosalind "Roz" Howard who hands her a package and tells her that "if you open it, you must follow where it leads…" A fire destroying part of the new Globe Theatre leaves behind a victim, Rosalind, mirroring the burning of the original Globe almost 400 years earlier to the day where the fire also left one person dead. Fleeing from the prying eyes ... Read review

Advantages: A good story with interesting sub-stories.
Disadvantages: A little predictable

The Shakespeare Secret by J L Carrell is 'almost' to Shakespeare what the The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown is to Leonardo Da Vinci. There are twists and turns galore and in that respect it is a very compelling read. However, being of that genre, the twists are generally expected. You start by trusting no one and expect the worst and therefore are not too surprised when some of your expectations are realised. The sub-story about The Bard and the ... Read review

Advantages: Good for a train read
Disadvantages: Predictable

It starts with the burning of The Globe on the anniversary of its original incineration. Kate, a professor of Shakespeare now director of Hamlet at the Globe, is visited by an old friend who gives her a small Victorian brooch, only to die in the fire. Kate along with an old actor avoids giving any evidence to the police and returns home to America and to her old college Yale. It is here that the book begins to come alive. It is obvious that ... Read review