47 pages • 1 hour read
Bring Up The Bodies
A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Summary and Study Guide
Overview
Bring Up the Bodies (2012) is a Tudor-era historical novel by British writer Hilary Mantel. It is the second novel in a trilogy depicting the life and career of Thomas Cromwell, a 16th-century English politician and advisor to King Henry VIII. Bring Up the Bodies followed Wolf Hall (2009) and preceded The Mirror and The Light (2020). It received significant critical acclaim and was awarded the 2012 Man Booker Prize. BBC produced a television adaptation called Wolf Hall in 2015, which depicts the events of both Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies. Bring Up the Bodies covers the time period in which Cromwell colluded with King Henry to bring about Anne Boleyn’s downfall; Mantel uses these historical events to explore themes such as The Precarious Nature of Favoritism; Ambiguity Between Truth, Lies, and Rumors; and Rivalry and Cruelty Between Women.
This guide references the 2013 Picador paperback edition.
Content Warning: The novel and the guide reference pregnancy loss and domestic abuse.
Plot Summary
The novel spans from September 1535 to May 1536. When the novel opens, King Henry VIII has been married to his second wife, Unlock all 47 pages of this Study Guide Plus, gain access to 8,900+ more expert-written Study Guides. Including features:
Related Titles
By Hilary Mantel
