A Dead Man in Deptford

by Anthony Burgess

With A Dead Man in Deptford, Burgess concluded his literary career to overwhelming acclaim for his re-creation of the Elizabethan poet Christopher Marlowe. In lavish, pitch-perfect, and supple, readable prose, Burgess matches his splendid Shakespeare novel, Nothing Like the Sun. The whole world of Elizabethan England—from the intrigues of the courtroom, through the violent streets of London, to the glory of the theater—comes alive in this joyous celebration of the life of Christopher Marlowe, murdered in suspicious circumstances in a tavern brawl in Deptford more than four hundred years ago.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical, British Literature, Classics, Novels, LGBT

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Seriocomic novels of noted British writer and critic Anthony Burgess, pen name of John Burgess Wilson, include the futuristic classic A Clockwork Orange (1962).

He composed also a librettos, poems, plays, screens, and essays and traveled, broadcast, translated, linguist and educationalist. He lived for long periods in southeastern Asia, the United States of America, and Europe along Mediterranean Sea as well as England. His fiction embraces the Malayan trilogy ( The Long Day Wanes ) on the dying days of empire in the east. The Enderby quartet concerns a poet and his muse. Nothing like the Sun re-creates love life of William Shakespeare. He explores the nature of evil with Earthly Powers , a panoramic saga of the 20th century. He published studies of James Joyce, Ernest Miller Hemingway, Shakespeare, and David Herbert Lawrence. He produced the treatises Language Made Plain and A Mouthful of Air . His journalism proliferated in several languages. He translated and adapted Cyrano de Bergerac , Oedipus the King , and Carmen for the stage. He scripted Jesus of Nazareth and Moses the Lawgiver for the screen. He invented the prehistoric language, spoken in Quest for Fire . He composed the Sinfoni Melayu , the Symphony (No. 3) in C , and the opera Blooms of Dublin .

Reviews

[Hanneke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the last novel of Anthony Burgess. Reading it and being aware of that fact, I felt that Burgess threw open the doors of a great cabinet and cause an avalance of brilliant sentences, contemplations, poems, scenes of beauty and depravity, sometimes almost choking his readers in their overwhelming abundance. No doubt about it, Anthony Burgess resides with the other greats on that highest cloud of writers’ heaven.

[Theo Logos · Rating 4 out of 5]

By the stinking urine of John the Baptist!

By Saint Joseph’s absent left bollock!

By the sore, buggered asses of the twelve apostles!

By the supernumerary testicle of St. Anselm and the withered prick of Origen!

By the six bollocks of the Trinity and the cheese of the milk of the Magdalene!

Astonishing oaths of flagrant profanity are reason enough to read A Dead Man In Deptford. Yet that is just the beginning. Theological disputations, belligerent blasphemies, ribald songs, poetry, plots and intrigue, gruesome executions, plays, and prodigious buggery all abound aplenty. All is delivered with scalpel-sharp wit in authentic Elizabethan argot at a frenetic, kinetic pace that never lets up. Anthony Burgess’s final novel is remarkable and hilarious, a fittingly impressive capstone to his career.

Thus is presented the short, eventful life and violent death of Kit Marlowe. Scholar, wit, spy, and London’s foremost dramatist, Marlowe was a man set against his age. A cynic and free thinker in an age of faith, a homosexual in a time when such could carry the same penalty as treason, Kit lacked the discretion or the will to keep these heresies hidden. It was not a formula for a long life, but it provided just the ingredients necessary for a rollicking good tale.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent biographical novel about Christopher Marlowe, though containing about 300% more buggery than I usually look for in a historical novel.

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was, I think, Burgess' last published novel, and a fine one it is, too. Years after his Shakespeare novel, NOTHING LIKE THE SUN, he goes back to the same era to tackle Christopher Marlowe, the wild, wayward brawler and Master of Arts who went one step further than Thomas Kyd in expanding the scope of English drama with his rollercoaster tales of doomed overreachers and his sonorous lines, like bells tolling in a tottering cathedral to a god or gods unknown. Burgess' immersion in the tone, ethos and language of the times is immense; the picture that builds of Marlowe is garnished with portraits of contemporaries famous and obscure, but at no point is Marlowe himself sidelined.

This is a historical novel that builds from the facts; we know that Marlowe was granted his MA only after intervention by the Privy Council. We don't know why exactly they intervened on his behalf. We know that he was on bail after being arrested for blasphemy and forgery at the end of his life; again we know little of the real circumstances leading to the accusation or his conditional release. That he spend a few days in Deptford allegedly carousing with three men, all of whom were connected with Walsingham's secret service is also a matter of public record. It's the hidden whys and wherefores behind these facts that Burgess invents.

And even if the speculation is debatable, the picture he plays of the foul-mouthed, boozing, buggering, tobacco-smoking Kit Marley, or Merlin or Marlowe is convincing. We come to know the author of Tamburlane and Doctor Faustus as a man whose clear-eyed quest for truth and knowledge were out of sync with sectarian politics of his time and whose penchant for free, profane speech and homosexuality didn't help either. A free spirit, in an age where wisdom lay in discretion. Not necessarily an over-reacher himself but one whose age perhaps was too constrained for his spirit.

An excellent novel, then, and a nuanced, satisfying portrait of its subject.

[MihaElla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interviewer: “On what occasions do you lie?”
Anthony Burgess: “When I write, when I speak, when I sleep.”

What a courageous thing to say. Once read it and I was stunned. It is ridiculously challenging to admit it so willingly. But maybe that is the sign of a great writer. I read only one (this) book so far and I am already labelling him a great novelist. My (good) luck. I am in awe of his versatility and erudition and here now is a kaleidoscope of a book by assessing the struggles of a poet, playwright, spy, a brilliant student of Cambridge Corpus Christi, graduated magister atrium, but also a sentimental and hot-hearted human (a bit too much I would say) in a too far away past under the reign of Elizabeth I of England. And the name of our hero is Christopher Marlowe, or Kit, or Marley, Marlin, Merlin, or why not, wizard Merlin. Besides his tragic life, he was truly blessed with a very elastic name.
I found the atmosphere of the book completely credible, as if I were an active participant to the story, that is to say, only as a neutral witness or observer, fortunately. I believe that this impression is an amazing quality from the writer’s side, who is obviously doing the needed to uncover the web of truth and illusion that was composed around the main character life.
I would assume that many of the details described in the book happened in the historical context, but it is as well a beautiful work of fiction, having the narrator himself (I mean the voice that writes about it) admitting that he is basically imagining in his mind how things could have happened. In some parts it is an outrageously funny, honest and touching exploration, in other parts however it is a darkly cruel, brutal, ridiculously savage description of habits of life, routine of life, experiences of life. Some episodes are too hard to read – to be killed or to be tortured, can be worse than going to hell, so to say.
To my regret, I have to confess I was very little familiar with the main character of the story – that is the real Christopher Marlowe - before reading the book. But, by this account, he is a bombastic, egotistical and sexually eccentric specimen. And quite very interesting through the activities he is supposed to handle, because ‘A dead man in Deptford’ is a brutal historical tale of medieval espionage battles, court intrigues, religious belief and betrayals, obsession to maintain a status quo against all odds.
I was impressed how strongly the novel expresses the feel of England in Elizabeth I’s time. In some respects, I had the feel that I look at history with fresh eyes. But good god! That old time is evoked and brought to vivid life in terms of smell and visceral feelings, of general disgust towards the people and authorities of the moment. I realized it was not an easy task to convey the energy of the Elizabethan age. There is no human freedom, once you take a commitment in the Secret service you are sold for good. So, the cost to reform yourself is life to be taken away from you…
It is simply a dazzling story. I was left convinced that I should read more of him. And I will. That is a candid confession, of course. The wit of the writing style, the flow of the story (through the presumptive voice of an actor and singer, contemporary with Kit Marlowe), the genuine description of the struggles and battles, of the constant clashes between Catholics, Protestants, atheists, etc etc, and, as always, the courage to confront God himself, the stimulating discussions on Art, God, religion, life, each and every one, but especially as a whole, irrevocably seduced me. No doubt those were very wicked times, nonetheless same as today, it is a (truly) wicked world.

[Steven Godin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm such an admirer of Burgess, but can't say I've ever had much interest in the Elizabethan era before, so I started reading this half heartedly, which wasn't helped by the writing; a dense semi-archaic style that took a while to get used to. But I have to say, it slowly grew on me; this bawdy, boisterous 16th century London, depicting dirty brothels, crowded taverns, sodomy, treason and bloodshed. The fact I knew next to nothing about Christopher Marlowe made everything even more of a surprise - especially later on. It's like a love letter to the English language, with spy thriller elements under the surface. Despite the fact that no one is really likable, and it's a bit of a sad and grim tale, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't wildly entertained.

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very complex book. I loved the voice, the vagueness of the theme and the music of the sentences, but ask me what it was all about, I wouldn't be able to tell you with a straight face what it was. I don't know if that makes it a great work of literature, or it's just me who needs to reread it? What I know is it's probably the least fulfilling Burgess I've read.

[Iryna K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Це книжка, якій треба ставити дві оцінки. Одну за зміст і стиль - і це було дуже вишукано, красиво і мозконаповнювально. Другу - за читацький досвід, і це було боляче і складно.
Сюжетно ми маємо історію життя єлизаветинського драматурга (автора п'яєси про Фауста, першої відомої авторської інтерпретації цієї середньовічної історії) і поета Крістофера Марлоу (який цікавив мене вже давно, бо регулярно виринав як другорядний персонаж чи просто референс у купі прочитаних книжок). Марлоу - магістер богослів'я, який передумав ставати священником, а став натомість атеїстом, поетом і шпигуном, опинився посеред драматичних політичних інтриг Англії, у часи, коли країна балансує між зовнішніми і внутрішними ворогами, які ставлять під сумнів легітимність Єлизавети і англійський протестантизм, хвилями накочуються епідемії чуми і дрібні та серйозні повстання, змови і вторгнення. У цій катавасії Марлоу пише п'єси і роздумує про природу влади і мораль, яка не грунтується на біблії, про природу і природність любові (бо крім атеїзму, шпигунства і поезії, ніби цього недостатньо для неприємностей, Марлоу втішався ще й гріхом Содому, який Генріх VIII за 50 років до того визнав capital offense і який карався смертю).
Бьорджес у свій час написав магістерську про Марлоу, і все життя хотів написати про нього роман. Це дуже красивий текст, ліричний, ритмічний і поетичний, з лексикою та правописом єлизаветинської доби, з безжальною кількістю історичних постатей та побутових деталей. І це йде як у переваги, так і у недоліки книжки, - адже саме через читати її треба з гуглом, словником і блокнотом під рукою, щоб виписувати імена персонажів і тримати в голові, хто там хто.
Одним словом, це було читання з розряду "караюсь, мучусь, але не каюсь", і я припускаю, що за другого прочитання книжка зайде значно краще (і витягну я з неї значно більше), але не впевнена, що знайду достатньо мотивації на другий захід, зважаючи на кількість непрочитаного.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Dead Man in Deptford is one hell of a book. Imagining the fascinating life and early death of Christopher ‘Kit’ Marlowe – Elizabethan playwright, poet and alleged spy – on opening I was a little worried that the language might be too dense (’tis written in the parlance of the time) but before long I was putting off sleep to read more while gleefully noting all of my new favourite olde words and pretty much wanting to roll around in the wonderful writing.

While studying at Cambridge, although much distracted by writing plays, having lots of sex and questioning the nature of God and faith, Kit is tapped to undertake some work for Sir Francis Walsingham in rooting out the Catholic conspiracy against England and Queen Elizabeth (and if the conspiracies don’t have real teeth, they can always be fabricated). Kit’s bold views on religion (that are of an atheist bent) make him a plausible convert to the Catholic cause, making him a useful spy, but they’re also incredibly dangerous views to be broadcasting in a society intolerant of religious difference and keen on executing those who don’t conform. And if those in power can’t afford a public trial for fear of what may be exposed, ‘drunken brawls’ can always turn deadly.

Books like this are the reason I love historical fiction so much, bringing to pungent life the people and times that my school’s history classes couldn’t get to stick and making them hard to forget. Prior to reading this, my knowledge of Marlowe amounted to a vague idea of him knocking about with Shakespeare, but now I feel as though I know him intimately (very intimately – his sexuality was another point of controversy in his life and is vividly depicted within). Burgess has had him make such an impression on me, in fact, that I’ve not even been able to pick up a new book after finishing a few days ago, preferring instead to let my mind wander back to Marlowe and re-reading my favourite passages. And I’ll definitely be trying to slip a few torcheculs into my conversations from here on out.

**Also posted at Cannonball Read 9**

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the last novel Burgess wrote before he died, sometime in the early 90's. As you might expect, it's raucous, bawdy, and linguistically complex. What you might not expect so much (given the unfortunate fact that most people think of him as merely the Clockwork Guy, which is true indeed but aesthetically unjust) is that it's also erudite, witty, historically informed and philosophically engaged.

There isn't a lot necessarily known for sure about Marlowe, though the quality of his plays and his probable friendship (or more) with Billy Shakes and the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death after a pub brawl in Deptford.

That's the kind of thing that happened all the time in the rowdy and tension-filled Elizabethan era but exactly why Marlowe met his end in only his mid-twenties is very much up for grabs.

Burgess explains in the afterword that he wrote his undergraduate thesis on Marlowe's version of Faustus until the Nazis rudely interrupted him by bombing the bejesus out of Manchester right about the time he graduated.

So the fact that he came all the way around to finish a brilliant writing career by writing up Kit Marlowe is interesting and kind of poignant.

DMiD is a historical novel, sure, but it's also an extended character study of the interesting man and his tumultuous times. A scrappy, brilliant student from humble cobbler stock in Canterbury, Marlowe made it all the way to Cambridge to study theology but got caught up in poetry and playwriting and the anti-Catholic intrigue bubbling over everywhere during the reign of the Virgin Queen. The fact that there isn't a lot of solid evidence about Marlowe means that Burgess can comfortably play with the facts, possibilities and illustrate the projected contour of a controversial life at his informed imagination sees fit.

Marlowe (or Marley or Merlin, nobody quite knows what his true name is) does some sneaky spy business in France, getting some earfuls of anti-Protestant sentiment, argues silently against an unfeeling god, goes back and forth across the channel a couple of times, smokes some funny "tobacco" and really takes to the stuff, has some intense, passionate sex with a prominent male son of the aristocracy, hangs out with his fellow scribblers like Kyd, Webster, Fletcher and- you guessed it- a young upstart from the Midlands by the name of Shakespeare. Marlowe pounds down flagons of wine and gobbles meat pies over arguments amid suspicious henchmen in brothels and taverns across Merry Olde England, affirming a ballsy 17th Century version of secularism wayyy before it was popular, or even physically safe, to do so.

It's quite a tale Burgess has to tell and even though the old fellow had written like crazy for years and lived pretty hard the novel really holds up, some opaque historicizing notwithstanding. it's ribald and engrossing throughout it's briskly readable 300 or so pages.

I'd been wanting to read this one for a while. It was one of the first books I ever added to my to-read pile back in the day when I started making a profile on this site. And when I read Burgesses's excellent Nothing Like The Sun, I bumped DMiD up a few notches. Glad I did.

I notices that it was on a list here in GR-land of books that are neglected, having gotten some less than 500 ratings. It's a shame since in comparison to all the fans of bowler-hatted droogies and volocheks, the readership for this ripping, accessible, vividly written yarn can't hold a candle. The damn thing's even out of print- I had to get a used copy shipped to me from across the pond. A pity.

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think Burgess should have retired way before this book or really any book after Clockwork. Man what a book. Oh right this is a review of something completely different. So if I take it in an isolated environment I did like this book. I did audiobook and I think I purchased it because of the author and the premise. (By the way was there some sort of update because the number of my typos is out of this world and y’all know I don’t edit.) anyway book on its own yeah I think I liked it. It was not what I expected which I enjoyed. Synopses are not my favorite and most of the time I don’t read them. I can’t stand having a storyline ruined for me. Anyway see! I can’t write a review for this.
Ok if you like general fiction or literature, if you like Tudor era fiction, if you don’t expect in any way another Clockwork you’ll most likely enjoy this. The narrator of the audiobook did a great job as well. I appreciate a talented narrator because otherwise all of the characters will just sound like Grandpa Jim or a boy named Sue just ruins the experience. So there that’s all I got right now.

[Kate O'Hanlon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I put off the ill-made disguise and, four hundred years after that death at Deptford, mourn as if it had happened yesterday. [...] But, as the dagger pierces the optic nerve, blinding light is seen not to be the monopoly of the sun. That dagger continues to pierce, and it will never be blunted.

This was just an utterly wonderful book. For the first 50 or so pages a barely paid any notice to the plot because I was so taken with the rich beauty of the prose.
I am of course, well disposed to like this book, obsessed as I have recently become with Elizabethan politics. I suspect that some (many?) people will be put off by the endless religious and political debating, though I found them quite engaging, I am a philosophy graduate after all. Still others will find fault with the amount of sodomy in the book, at them I can only roll my eyes, I would say that it's all written very tastefully, except that 'tasteful' is a terrible slight to what are often brilliant examples of how to write sex scenes without recourse to anatomical descriptions, and when dropping in a load of latin is a very good idea.

This one is definitely marked for a re-read after I get through some more Elizabethan non-fic

[Chequers · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tratti un po' pesante, ma qua e la' si intravede il genio di Burgess:discontinuo, ma sicuramente un libro da leggere.

[Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Patience and focus are required for this fictional rendering of the life of Christopher Marlowe. Burgess, using his version of Elizabethan English, has created a fascinating and atmospheric novel that gives a hair-raising impression of life under what was apparently the paranoid regime of Elizabeth I. Put aside your cinematic impressions of Elizabeth (i.e. Glenda Jackson or Cate Blanchett) --- this, I suspect, is a more nearly accurate portrayal of an era where fabricated evidence, often extracted under torture, was used to justify public executions, where the skill of the hangman was judged by how long he could keep the victim hovering between life and death --- all in the name of preserving the monarch's rule and of maintaining religious purity.

The plot presents a plausible explanation about the death of Marlowe, so often considered in the shadow of Shakespeare, and so in a sense the book is a murder mystery --- but one like you've never read. The playful and inventive language requires close attention, but the effort is very rewarding.

[Neale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anthony Burgess’s novels often promise rather more than they deliver – not that they don’t deliver, it’s just that they promise so much. It’s the downside of being too clever, generous and prolific for your own good, I suppose. A remarkable writer, always interesting, invariably frustrating.

‘A Dead Man in Deptford’ is one of the exceptions. It promises, and it delivers, in equal measure. A late work, not overly long, it is the sordid and amoral story of Kit Marlowe, playwright. What is most remarkable is the language that Burgess creates to tell the story: not Elizabethan pastiche, but something much more interesting. It is sinewy, archaic, vernacular, obscure, poetic. In its way, the language is as much of an achievement as Burgess’s notorious ‘nadsat’, the argot that he created for ‘A Clockwork Orange’, and a lot more subtle. All historical writers should be required to study this book closely.

[David B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anthony Burgess is a masterful novelist whose playful sense of linguistics informs this wonderful novel that speculates about the life and death of Shakespeare's contemporary, the playwright Christopher Marlowe. Burgess has steeped himself in the history and language of Elizabethan times, and the result is a completely successful evocation of that era in all its beauty and horror, with its philosophic adventurers bravely seeking truth and its dogmatic religious authorities plunging nations into war. Intellectually challenging and emotionally moving, this is one of the finest novels I have read in quite a while.

https://thericochetreviewer.blogspot.com

[Kathe Koja · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the book that turned me on to Christopher Marlowe. Witty as rapier repartee, earthy as dirt under your nails, heartbreaking and funny and so, so beautifully written it's an ongoing treat just to graze through . . . I can't say enough about this book. Most of us know Burgess from A CLOCKWORK ORANGE, but do yourself the favor of a lifetime and read this too.

[Sam Aird · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tough going - confusingly formatted dialogue, too many unexplored minor characters (all named Tom as far as I recall) and much more detail about what Christopher Marlowe may have got up to in bed than I was bargaining for.

[Nicki Markus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved A Dead Man in Deptford from the very first page. Burgess' prose style really evokes the period and he makes a Kit a memorable and loveable character; I just adored him from start to finish. The prose style does make this a little stodgy at times, considering it is only a short novel, but I didn't find that a detraction in this instance. If anything, I had to remind myself it was only fiction a couple of times, and I ended the book with a desire to read some more scholarly works on Marlowe's life, and to re-watch Doctor Faustus and dig out my old Edward II programme from the Globe production.
This is a wonderful read for fans of historical literary fiction and for those interested in the Elizabethan period and theatre history.

[Isabel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this when I was living in digs in Deptford. Simply brilliant. Turns out Marlowe's final resting place was behind my digs. Always liked this book.

[Susan Chapek · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Catching up on registering books I should have listed long ago.)

[Amolhavoc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marlowe: more fun than Shakespeare since 1564.

An excellent book, even better the second time around. The quasi-Elizabethan prose is strange but compelling, and since everything about Marlowe is rather ambiguous anyway the illusive (and allusive) language suits the subject matter very well indeed. I will have to head to Deptford at some point and take him a bunch of flowers, plus the Orpington and District Archaeological Society website informs me that Scadbury Manor, site of his slightly shitty and probably fictional love affair, is currently being excavated. Nerdy post-lockdown South London daytrips ahoy.

[Lynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marlowe's The Tragical History of Dr Faustus is one of my all-time favourite texts even though it has to be one of the most frustrating given that neither the A or B text is fully Marlowe's because he was too busy being Kit Marlowe. Typically dead at 29 (although there are some who dispute this and claim he was the 'real' Shakespeare, his exact contemporary) following a brawl in a Deptford Tavern, Kit's life provides Burgess in his last published novel a great canvas of buggery, booze and backstabbing.

This is not an easy read by any means, in that it's apparently narrated by very minor actor clearly in love/lust with Kit and aims to use both contemporary speech patterns and rhythms of language but it's well worth it. Marlowe/Morley/Merlin as Burgess calls him is both a sympathetic and empathetic character and one whom Burgess clearly admires. A night on the town with the pair of them would certainly have proved memorable.

[Micha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book accidentally in a used book shop. I was in a phase where I was completely in love with Burgess. I was also completely in love with Marlowe. So you can imagine when I find a book by Burgess about Marlowe...

It was an excellent story, and I liked it was hardly all flattery. Marlowe's life does make for an interesting book. A wonderful read in Burgess' style, capturing Elizabethan England, and a world of spies, barfights, and some of the world's most beautiful poetry.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Burgess’s final novel is a lovingly crafted account of Kit Marlowe’s life and death. Written in a period style, he had trouble getting this novel published. But his love for his subject is ever apparent, bringing tears to this reader and an appreciation for the man ever in Shakespeare’s shadow for over four hundred years.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A poignant, atmospheric novel about the last days of the playwright Christopher Marlowe, who was killed in a brawl in a tavern in Deptford, probably assassinated in connection with spying activities. Burgess's language is rich and evocative as usual and nuanced to the Elizabethan style, and transports one back to the scenes and rumbustious, violent times.

[Derek Bridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

The life of Christopher Marlowe, reimagined by Burgess. It has everything you expect of Burgess: complex, linguistically rich, scholarly, and unafraid to take up positions on Marlowe controversies from his sexuality to the circumstances of his death. It's hard work and, as ever with Burgess, many of the allusions elude someone like me, but I still found it enjoyable and rewarding.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beatitiful language: Burgess transcends. Honest, forthright sexuality: Burgess understands. Unengaging, overly complex story: two out of three isn't bad.

[David]

Burgess, in his last published novel, plays with a device to which he has previously alluded (the appearance in a Shakespearean stage direction of the name "Jacke Wilson"--actor substituted for character by the printer). For John Anthony Burgess Wilson, a namesake appearing in Shakespeare's works (even if by accident) was a high point. In this novel, "Wilson" is the almost unnamed narrator (late in the text the narrator identifies himself by reference to that stage direction) and he details the last 7 years or so of Marlowe's life--treating more of Marlowe's calendar time than either of the other Marlowe novels I read this week, but in less detail: the shortest of the lot. Marlowe is, at least, not "Shakespeare" in this one, though Warwickshire Will does appear (again late) as a sometime collaborator. I am always interested to see how various authors combine known history with fictional invention, and this novel is fun from that perspective. On the whole, I think it would have been better to focus on less of Marlowe's life and go into more detail surrounding the events directly leading to his death. All the same, this one is worth reading, especially in combination with a few of the other (many) novels treating Marlowe as a character.

[Cory Ibáñez Blanco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro histórico, hecho novela, sobre la vida del dramaturgo Christopher Marlowe en el que no falta ni un personaje histórico isabelino, ni un detalle, ni un lugar con importancia en la época. La traducción es perfecta, elegante y refinada con un apéndice donde explica cada expresión o palabras que no tienen traducción al español. Los personajes mezclan el latín con su inglés medieval, además de comentar palabras en italiano, francés o español (aparecen así realmente en la versión original del libro). Me encanta como Anthony Burgess plasma el carácter rudo, agresivo, amable, cariñoso y tan cambiante y diferente de Christopher Marlowe. El amor entre Marlowe y Thomas Walsingham, en esta novela, es realmente tan perfecto que llega al corazón. Con todo lujo de detalles sobre el físico de los personajes, sus cuerpos desnudos, sus caracteres, sus peleas, fiestas y vomitonas, que hacen de este libro unos de los mejores sobre Kit Marlowe. El final? La mejor parte sin duda alguna.