Interred with Their Bones

I'm usually a fan of this genre...history, mystery, England of the 1600's; and yet, the book fell flat. I didn't care about the characters or the mystery surrounding Shakespeare and his (or possibly NOT his)missing play. I didn't care who was committing murder. I didn't care about the dark woman and the lovely, blond youth. I found myself halfway through and didn't care if I finished or not. So, I didn't! Life is too short to read a dull book. Full steam ahead to something more promising.

This book has been compared with "The DaVinci Code" and it's easy to understand why - it follows roughly the same formula. However, it is a good formula which Carrell uses well. Sometimes the plot gets a bit convoluted, but the author does a good job of reiterating the important clues. Overall this book would be of great interest to any Shakespeare fan but I'm not sure if others would appreciate it as much.

As a side note on the authorship question, it would have been interesting to get her take on Mark Rylance's views (artistic director of the Globe for the first 10 years) and the current AD Dominic Dromgoogle.

I was drawn to this book because the author happens to be a graduate of my high school in Tucson, Arizona. This is a first rate thriller in the mold of Da Vinci Code and the movie National Treasure. You can tell that Ms. Carrell is a Shakespeare scholar with the way historical authenticity prevades the storyline. The author's postscript is as interesting as the novel itself.

Too encyclopedic. Too expository. Too derivative. Too boring. Too maladroit. Too bad. The novel could have been immensely entertaining, but it mistakes convoluted conspiracies for clever plotting, and cliched action for legitimate thrills. When imitating something as successful as Da Vinci Code, it would be wise to both set the material apart from the original, and be at least as entertaining. Unfortunately IwTB fails on both accounts, but the author certainly shows potential.

Wow. As a closeted lover of all things Shakespeare, I was not only thrilled to find such a great mystery but also amazed by the how the author wove so many true facts into the book. This was a great story while at the same time being a lesson in the origins of Shakespeare.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good book and likes to learn.

Great story-telling with enough facts to make me want to be an expert on Shakespeare. Yeah, I took two days to finish it. And I'm probably going to re-read it, it was that good. Do I re-read the library copy or wait until my own copy arrives?

Almost didn't read this book due to its comparison to The DaVinci Code (which I did not like). So glad I did read it; what a page turner; and so well written. There could have been a little more character development, but that's my only quibble. Hopefully Hollywood won't ruin the movie--there's GOT to be a movie!

Alas... this 'thriller' didn't work for me overall. A lot of the murder scenes seemed simply too contrived. Which I suppose you'd expect them to be to tie in with various murder scenes from Shakespeare plays.

From the blurb The author is apparently a Shakespeare scholar, and that comes through in the writing. She clearly knows her Shakespeare and the numerous quotes required to make this thriller work, but unfortunately it's the thriller technique which is lacking. Plot threads become too obvious and repetitive, so most of the mystery and tension is lost. You will learn though something about Shakespeare on the way, if nothing more.

A long, long life of book reading and devouring all things Shakespeare and I must say this is one awful book. Implausible plot, cardboard characters, ridiculous dialog, tedious, unimaginative writing. Don't waste your time or your money.

I gave this book to my Mom after hearing Jennifer Carrell speak at the Folger. She and the story are phenomenal! My Mom who loves Shakespeare and a good mystery loved the book too. A must read for all Shakespeare aficionados and enthusiasts!

Jennifer Lee Carrell has done herself in injustice with delivering 'Interred With Their Bones' as her debut novel. A story rife with Shakespearean darkness and mystery, and built upon centuries old fact and legend; Ms. Carrell will find it difficult, I can well imagine, to surpass herself with a sophomore outing.

Centuries after the fire which destroyed the original Globe Theater, home to the dramatis personae of the works of Mr. William Shakespeare, fledgling director Kate Stanley finds herself (while rehearsing 'Hamlet' at a rebuilt Globe) visited by an old/former friend, Roz Howard, with a simple, yet intriguing, revelation...'I've found something'....

With these words Roz lures her former protege, Kate, into a mystery with roots deeply embedded in the masterful works of Shakespeare himself. Kate agrees to meet Roz Howard later that same night, which shares the date of the burning of the original Globe, and witnesses history repeating itself as the theater is once again engulfed in flames. The theater is saved.....Roz Howard is not so lucky.

Kate then sets off, with the help of old friends and new on a quest to find what Roz intended to reveal to her, and finds herself 'chasing Shakespeare' across the Atlantic to New England, back to Great Britain, on to Spain, and finally to the American Southwest, hoping to find at the end of her quest a prize that, while it may not glitter, is certainly literary 'gold'.

An masterfully exectuted tour-de-force of storytelling which will delight and thrill fans of 'The Bard' and fans of stories rooted in such literary legend as the undocumented life of one of theater's greatest talents. I give Ms. Carrell five stars for ensnaring me in her web, and offer her a hearty standing ovation, and a cry of 'encore' in anticipation of her next outing.

What an exciting premise, a mystery involving a lost Shakespearean manuscript! Sadly, although Ms Carrell obviously put lots of care and research into this novel, there were some problems. The search and chase became exasperating, the clues became too numerous, and I never did really develop any feelings for the characters.

If a friend died shortly after whetting your appetite for an adventure with promises of an obscure text that would turn your career around, you'd probably devote your life temporarily to the search as Kate did when Roz gave her a mysterious package. Maybe you wouldn't. There were times when I'd wished that Kate hadn't. The twists and turns and coincidences just didn't work for me.

What I did like about the story were the true details that Ms Carrell interspersed throughout her story. They aroused my curiosity about certain aspects of Shakespeare's life and times. Maybe a hardcore student of Shakespeare would find this book more entertaining than I did.