Sleep of Death

Highly entertainingSunday Times

In the last decade of Elizabeth Is reign, Nick Revill, an aspiring young actor, comes to London seeking fame and fortune. Once there he gains employment with the Chamberlains Men.

Thrown out of his digs over an unfortunate accident, Nick is offered lodgings at a wealthy Thameside mansion by a black-clad youth whose father has just died and whose mother has remarried his uncle. Pondering on the similarities between the young mans story and William Shakespeares newest tragedy, Hamlet, Nick is charged with the task of finding out whether foul play was involved in the death of the old man and hasty remarriage of his young, lusty wife.

As Nick works his way ever closer to the truth, the finger of suspicion begins to point to his enigmatic employer Mr William Shakespeare - actor, author and shareholder in the Chamberlains Men . . .

The first gripping historical mystery in the Nick Revill series, set in the bustling theatrical world of William Shakespeare.

Praise for Philip Gooden:

Another clever criminal plunge into historyGuardian

The witty narrative, laced with puns and word play so popular in this period, makes this an enjoyable racy taleSunday Telegraph

The book has much in common with the film Shakespeare in Love - full of colourful characters . . . but the book has an underlying darknessCrime Time

Historical mystery fans are in for a treatPublishers Weekly