Seventeenth century England, vividly brought to life . . .

For fans of Historical Fiction. Are you looking to escape back to a time when many people thought they knew exactly what God wanted them to do? Enjoy some satisfying research and a transformation of an historical turning-point to lively effect. In this brilliantly atmospheric novel called ' The Soldier, the Gaoler, the Spy and her Lover', Simon Parke explores one of the most gripping tales in English history. He weaves together the four coinciding stories of Charles, including his extraordinary year-long imprisonment on the Isle of Wight. Robert Hammond, the poor man who found himself the king's gaoler , Charles' remarkable mistress (written out of the records), the super-spy Jane Whorwood and of course, the brilliant and depressed Oliver Cromwell, who is working through his own demons of religion, politics, love and death. January 30th 1649. England is not a country that wishes to execute its divinely-appointed king. Yet Charles 1 finds himself shivering on a scaffold in Whitehall, with the axe man by his side . . .