The Execution of Justice

by Elisabetta Sala

When Jack Digby’s father is executed for high treason, the boy’s dream life turns into the worst of nightmares; and when he is forced into the murky, ruthless world of double agents and cowardly betrayals, his fate would seem to be already written. As he grows up, however, he discovers that something is wrong with the official narrative concerning his father’s tragic end. It will take time and suffering for him to discover that things are rarely as they seem, that the King’s Men – the greatest playing company of all time – are not just simple entertainers; that our most bitter enemies may turn into our best friends; that, at times, Fair is Foul and Foul is Fair.

“Altogether, this is at once an enchanting, engrossing, intriguing novel and a novel approach to early modern history, such as to throw an unaccustomed light on the inner meaning of Shakespeare's great tragedies from Hamlet and Macbeth to King Lear ” .
Peter Milward, S.J.

“This thrilling and chilling historical novel brings Shakespeare's England to vivid life amid the backdrop of the vicious intrigue of the plot to kill the King and blow-up Parliament”.
Joseph Pearce

404 pages, Paperback

Published December 29, 2022

Reviews

[Marta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Io ho un profondo amore per i romanzi storici. Se poi il romanzo storico è dal punto di vista degli sconfitti della storia ancora di più.

Questo romanzo unisce i fatti storici della congiura delle polveri con la vicenda romanzata del protagonista Jack Digby, figlio di uno dei congiurati. La Sala si prende qualche licenza storica, ma rimane assolutamente fedele allo spirito del tempo e sicuramente ha una grossa base di ricerca storica e artistica alle spalle.

È appassionante leggere della Londra dei primi anni del 1600 fra inganni e doppiogiochisti, teatranti e spie e anche un pizzico di amore. Troviamo anche personaggi storici come William Shakespeare, anima importante nella trama e chiave di lettura dell'intero libro. Perché niente è come sembra e tutto il mondo è teatro.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

The novel begins with young Jack Digby watching his father executed for being involved in the Gunpowder Plot. The plot follows him as he grows up, attends Cambridge, and begins to work for his guardian, Robert Cecil. However, he gradually learns that the official version of the Gunpowder Plot is different from the reality. Although the premise is a conspiracy theory about the Gunpowder Plot that few historians entertain seriously, it is an excellent read. Sala effectively maintains the suspense, and the reader's interest, until the last page.