The Mirror & the Light

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"If you cannot speak truth at a beheading, when can you speak it?" In May 1536, Anne Boleyn is executed, and Thomas Cromwell, the son of a blacksmith, finds himself amidst the aftermath, enjoying breakfast with the victors. As he navigates the treacherous landscape of power, his master, Henry VIII, briefly revels in happiness with his third queen, Jane, before her death during childbirth. Cromwell, lacking noble lineage or a private army, relies solely on his wits to ascend in a kingdom rife with rebellion, treachery, and the looming threat of invasion. His imagination fuels a vision of a new nation, yet he grapples with the question of whether one can truly shed the past. The Spanish ambassador warns him of the inevitable turn of the king’s favor, a fate that befalls all close to Henry. The narrative unfolds the final years of Cromwell’s life, illustrating his rise from obscurity to power, while exploring the fierce struggle between the present and the past, royal authority, and the aspirations of a common man. This concluding volume of the trilogy offers a profound portrayal of the complexities of ambition, conflict, and the courage required to forge a modern nation.