When you realize how little we know about the man who wrote shakespeare's play and how little we know of William Shakespeare of Stratford, you begin to think any book written about him is fiction, even if it is not called a novel

In Brandreth excellent book we have the genuine and delightful real thing, a novel which has William Shakespeare as its protagonist. A young Shakespeare is struggling in Stratford, married, with a family, and working for his father. When he runs afoul of a local worthy he must flee.

So begins the period known as "The Lost Years" because so little is known about them. In the novel William takes up with some players and with them joins a group accompanying the English Ambassador as he travels to Venice to seek the Serene Republic's help in England's struggle against Philip of Spain.

Set against all the intrigue that was 16th-century Venice and full of plausible sources for much in the plays and plenty of Shakespeare quotes, the book is wonderful to read as well as a delight for Shakespeare lovers.

In this historical thriller set in 1585 William Shakespeare finds himself attached to a roving band of players. Their lives take a turn for the worse when they are paid to join Sir Henry on his mission to Venice.
A plot that involves a lot of misunderstandings and with a wide cast of characters.
Probably more of a 3.5 star rating but a good solid start to the series

I liked the idea of this book a lot, but I only made it about a third of the way through and couldn't get into the story enough to want to finish it. Will Shakespeare was an interesting character, but I found many of the scenes surrounding other characters confusing.

This is a promising procedural pastiche, giving Shakespeare a role on Sir Francis Walsingham's spy network, and contextualizing the casual cruelty of Elizabeth life. The background research is solid, and the in-joke, like "exit, pursued by a bear," are well-handled.

The story starts with William Shakespeare at the age of 20, married with three children and dreaming about play-writing.

As players traverse towns to act their new plays, once in Stratford-Upon-Avon, William’s hometown, Will convinces them to act a play he just wrote that morning. It is well-received and his talent is recognized. He is encouraged to join the company as they are on the way to London.

Once Will is in London and story starts alternating between London and Venice, it is scattered. Normally, I don’t mind short chapters, but due to shortness of the chapters, a reader doesn’t have enough time to grasp a situation of one place before it jumps to another.

As much as I liked the beginning of the story, once the story got scattered, I couldn’t get back into the story; even with the few following chapters concentrating just on Shakespeare.

Oooohhh! I absolutely loved this book. A great debut in a new series, a suspense/thriller starring William Shakespeare! Wonderfully written, filled with intrigue, a lovely/interesting setting, with a bit of comedy thrown in too! I love how the characters are listed in the beginning, following Will's typical format. It makes it much easier to follow the characters on. Truly a fun book to read, I was so engrossed that I had a hard time putting it down and went to bed WAY too late last night.

I definitely recommend this book and look forward to future books in the series.

*I'd like to thank the author/publisher/Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review*