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The Semper Sonnet

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In this stunning thrill ride, perfect for fans of Steve Berry, a poem holds the key to unlocking the past― and to eliminating the future.

Lee Nicholson takes the academic world by storm, seemingly unearthing a never-before published sonnet by William Shakespeare. When she reads the poem on the air, her words are ignored by all but a small group of people. There are the English and literature buffs. There are the curious and those who seek out hoaxes.

And there are men who will kill to keep the sonnet from every being read again.

Buried in the language of the sonnet, in its allusions and wordplay, secrets have been hidden dating back to Elizabethan times, shared by the queen and her doctor, by men who seek the crown and men who seek the world. If the riddles are solved, it could explode what the world knows of the monarchy. Or, it could release a pandemic more deadly than the world has ever seen.

Lee’s quest keeps her one step ahead of an international hunt―from the police who want her for murder, to a group of men who will stop at nothing to end her quest, to a mad man who pursues the answers for destructive reasons of his own. Globetrotting as she pieces together what Shakespeare meant, and what he meant to leave unsaid, Lee carries this intelligent thriller through to its gasp-out-loud conclusion.

374 pages, Paperback

First published April 19, 2016

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About the author

Seth Margolis

19 books42 followers
Seth is a writer whose most recent novel, THE SEMPER SONNET, will be published on April 19. He is the author of six earlier novels, including LOSING ISAIAH, which was made into a film starring Halle Berry and Jessica Lange.

Seth lives with his wife, Carole, in New York City. They have two grown children, Maggie and Jack. Seth received a BA in English from the University of Rochester and an MBA in marketing from New York University’s Stern School of Business Administration. When not writing fiction, he is a branding consultant for a wide range of companies, primarily in the financial services, technology and pharmaceutical industries. He has written articles for the New York Times and other publications on travel and entertainment.

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5 stars
24 (26%)
4 stars
22 (24%)
3 stars
32 (35%)
2 stars
12 (13%)
1 star
1 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
Profile Image for Magdalena aka A Bookaholic Swede.
1,953 reviews833 followers
December 6, 2016
If there is one category of books that I really, really love is it historical mystery/thrillers when someone in the present time stumbles over a mystery, like, for instance, as in this book a sonnet written by Shakespeare. This story in this book felt refreshing with a secret that could have devastating consequences for the world.

The main character Lee Nicholson is thrown into a perilous race not just to clear her name from murder, but also save the world from a dangerous threat. Intertwined with this story is diary notes from a doctor that lived during Elizabeth I reign. And, he reveals in his notes a secret that Elizabeth I kept hidden from the world. Or rather two secrets, of which one is extremely dangerous. In the present time, there are people who will go to any length to stop anyone from learning this secret. And, Lee also discovers that there is a man out that, who ruthlessly want to find this hidden treasure.

I did enjoy reading the book, however, there were some things kept me from fully enjoying the book. As much as I enjoyed the historical mystery there were just too many things that bothered me, things that I personally had some problems with. One of the biggest problems was the book's predictability. It felt like it was following how to write a historical thriller to the letter. The main character goes from living an ordinary life to being in danger, finding a new friend, chasing clues, the whole secret society thing, and a ruthless madman. And, I can take that, it's not that bad if it's written in a way that I get caught up with the story. The Semper Sonnet is not bad, but there were some moments now and then when something happened that made me lost the rhythm. For instance, in this book, the clues was a bit too obvious now and then. Like when Lee Nicholson was visiting a man for information and the man's dogs name gave her a clue that he could be involved in the whole conspiracy. Not to mention that some people seemed to be dressed a bit too warm for the weather. Right, not at all suspicious. Then, we have the man that is after the treasure. I just didn't fully understand what he was after, it just felt like this was some kind of petty revenge. I would have liked a better and more interesting motive.

All right, now I have rambled on about things that bothered me. I also want to say that I did enjoy reading the book. I didn't have any problems with Lee Nicholson as a character. Although the revelation, in the end, could I have lived without I must admit. But, despite that did I find her quest for answers interesting. She just wanted her life back to how it was before.

For me was this a so and so book. Not perfect, but not that bad. I had some problems with the story, but I liked the main character and I enjoyed the doctor's diary noted from, very intriguing to read. Honestly, I do think when I think back to the book that the story set in the past was a bit more interesting than the one in the present time...

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review!
Profile Image for trishajennreads.
137 reviews20 followers
November 23, 2016
A wild ride that made me want to discover Elizabethan history. Seth sure knows how to throw a wrench in the story and make the road very twisty while still staying on track. Interesting, intense, fun and satisfying.
Profile Image for Michele.
110 reviews3 followers
August 23, 2020
I read this book several years ago and reread it now for a family book club. It was just as intriguing and fascinating as I remembered it: Not simply the plotline and the action, but the wordplay and clues embedded in the riddles Lee, our heroine, comes across in her quest to clear her name. Definitely a fun read and well worth revisiting.
Profile Image for Tammy Buchli.
655 reviews11 followers
May 30, 2017
Quite a crazy ride. Historical thriller in the vein of The Da Vinci Code and similar. Madly, madly unrealistic but a real page-turner.
5 reviews
May 5, 2022
excellent

A twisting thrilling adventure with the rare ability to seamlessly take the reader through time, complicated plots and complex relationships.
Profile Image for Patty.
1,210 reviews35 followers
December 30, 2016
There are two ways to read this book:

abandoning all sense, all reality, all grounding in the true world and just go with it
with a sense of how ridiculous and stupid and impossible is any of this


How a reader enjoys or doesn’t enjoy the book is going to completely depend on how much they can go with #1 rather than live in the real world of #2. I respect that the book is a work of fiction and I will admit that the author wrote with the skill to keep the pages turning but I just like my books – even my fictional books – somewhat grounded in a little bit of reality. If I keep finding myself, as a reader coming out of a story because of a feeling of unreality or impossibility I become a frustrated reader.

But if you are willing to to totally suspend belief this will be a book to keep you a reader engaged. A young woman finds a lost sonnet that she is convinced was written by William Shakespeare. As she researches and begins to announce her find she suddenly finds herself in the middle of a royal mess; the police think she has committed a murder, a secret society is trying to keep her from finding out its secrets and a madman is trying to destroy the world.

But this young woman, an expert in Shakespeare suddenly becomes adept at alluding the police and she follows clues to possibly solve a problem that has been unsolved for 500 years! All the while teaching all around her about the wonderful word play of the Elizabethans. Again – suspend reality and you have a great round the world chase with a seek and find puzzle as well. For me it was just too facile and slightly ridiculous.

Our heroine is also bad with men – she will sleep with just about any one that appeals. I suspect the author was trying to make her liberated but to me she just came off as a bit confused. It didn’t help the character development at all. Nor did the main antagonist have any real motivation. I never did understand why he did what he did. The one reason put forth seemed seriously inadequate to destroy the world.

So – no I didn’t like this book and yes I did like this book. It’s a Jekyll and Hyde kind of thing. I would not read it again and I honestly wanted to throw it against the wall. There was so much possibility here and so much possibility lost.

RATING:

Rating for reading way 1: 4

Rating for reading way 2: 2

Overall Rating: 3
Profile Image for Stephanie.
1,374 reviews33 followers
December 12, 2016
Lee Nicholson believes she has found something that will make her academic career. As an English literature grad student at Columbia, Lee believes she has found a new sonnet written by Shakespeare. After an appearance on the evening news where Lee reads a stanza of the sonnet, everything goes downhill. Lee is now a suspect in a murder; a murder over a clue in the sonnet. Lee quickly figures out that Shakespeare hid a series of clues in the wordplay of the sonnet, clues about something big enough to kill for. Now, Lee is on the run from the law chasing the clue to Henford estate in England chasing the secrets of Queen Elizabeth I.
This is a historical secrets thriller, perfect for those who enjoyed Angels and Demons but thought it needed more of a Tudor twist. As a lover of all things Tudor, the historical aspect and mystery surrounding Elizabeth I was what got me interested and kept me hooked. The chapters alternate between diary entries written by Elizabeth’s physician beginning in 1555 and present day with Lee. The diary entries were the most interesting aspect to me; however, as Lee began to extract clues from the sonnet I was pulled in along with her and was trying to figure out the hidden meanings alongside her. Now, some suspension of disbelief was necessary on my part in order to believe that one historian suspected of murder could leave the US with a fake identity and travel freely around the world; that really isn’t the important part though. The intensity and suspense grows with each clue that is uncovered, and Lee is put in danger from more than one source. While I did guess some things along the way, I never would have guessed what the sonnet was actually hiding and the bigger prize that Lee finds at the end. Overall, a fast paced, multi-faceted historical thriller for any Tudor fan.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
Profile Image for Stephanie Kline.
Author 4 books38 followers
November 3, 2016
Definitely one of the most imaginative and clever Tudor novels I have read, and I truly loved every page. It's not often that I'm this unable to put a book down, but it really did seem to take over most of my weekends! It's hard to know what to write in a review, so as not to give away the most intriguing points of the storyline, but I can say that this novel focuses on a mysterious Shakespearean sonnet, deciphered and studied by doctoral student, Lee Nicholson. Shortly after reading a stanza from the sonnet on the news one evening, her world turns upside-down in a dangerous, and murderous, twist. Swiftly, getting to the bottom of the sonnet's encoded messages becomes no longer an academic need, but a life-or-death urgency.
This novel spans New York City, Massachusetts, Washington D.C., England, and even South America, and bounces back and forth between Lee's present-day world, and Queen Elizabeth's 16th-century world. The sonnet has ties to the queen herself (and another deadly secret), as well as a mysterious substance that could have the potential to decimate the entire world's population.
Most impressive in this novel is not just the intricate, crime-thriller drama storyline that spans 5 centuries (as if that's not enough)... it's the elaborate wordplay that the author uses to solve the enormous puzzle of a mystery. While at times the story may have seemed far-fetched, I can only be impressed by the level of detail that Seth Margolis went to in order to create such a puzzle. No one can say that this novel is predictable -- I guarantee there isn't any reader out there who could get to the bottom of this sonnet's hidden meanings before they're revealed by the author... and that's what makes a book like this so much fun.
And the back cover is right - even with the entire novel being fast-paced, gasp-worthy, and truly captivating, the ending scene ties it all together in a way that no one will have expected. I can't say enough about this novel... I'd recommend it to anyone (Tudor enthusiast or otherwise), because it's just plain great.
Profile Image for Kathleen Kelly.
1,376 reviews128 followers
December 28, 2016
A Great Thriller I have to say that this book grabbed me from the beginning chapter to the last page. I love anything Elizabethan and after reading the first chapter that was dated March 20 1555 by a man, Rufus Hatton, physician to Elizabeth I. What intrigued me about that first chapter was the fact that Queen Elizabeth I gave birth to a son. Of course historians would probably disagree but what if? I don't think that it could not have been possible. Her lack of wanting to marry might just be what was stated in the book, she had a hard delivery and never wanted to go through that again. Knowing that if she had married that she would be obligated to produce an heir, makes sense to me. Of course it probably never happened. The real story of the book though is about a woman, Lee Nicholson who has discovered a sonnet, written by Shakespeare and this sonnet holds a secret that if unleashed upon the world would be devastating. After Lee has an evening with a man, goes to get coffee and comes back to this man dead in her bed. She had read the poem on the air of a radio broadcast the evening before. She is interrogated by the police and her story to them does not sound plausible and she turns out to be a suspect in this murder. She wants to figure out what happened and she ends up on the run, staying one step ahead of the people that want that sonnet, for what secrets it holds. She narrowly escapes with her life as she desperately tries to find the information needed to exonerate herself. This book is a thriller at it's best. Like I said, I was taken in by the story from, page one. The story goes back and forth from Tudor England to present, from a diary written by a man who was privy to the secrets in the sonnet to a young woman on the run, trying to stay one step ahead of the people out to get the sonnet one way or another. If you like historical fiction, Tudor England and thrillers, this one is definitely for you. I loved it and give it 5 stars!! Congrats to the author for a well written, thrilling book!
Profile Image for Kendal.
139 reviews13 followers
December 7, 2016
The Semper Sonnet is a new compelling thriller by Seth Margolis. It is captivating from beginning to the end. There is no slowing down when reading this book. The characters are strong and bring the story to life. I'm a big fan of Dan Brown and I found The Semper Sonnet to be very much in the same vein. I will say it will be very difficult to write a review without spilling any spoilers; however, I will do my best not to give anything away.

Mr. Margolis has brought Elizabethan England back to life in the 21st Century. His theories of Elizabeth I are very interesting and thought-provoking. As a person with a history degree and studied that time period, I found his storyline very entertaining and (almost) believable. He was able to create a conspiracy theory about Elizabeth I that will make your mind start spinning and wondering: Could this be true?

Lee Nicholson is the perfect character for this wild chase for knowledge and redemption. She is strong and independent; almost to a fault. I appreciated that Mr. Margolis did not focus on a romantic relationship for Lee. Her intelligence and her ability to persevere were the main tenants of her story. She accepted help but really didn't need it. She is a true scholar with an independent mind and heart.

If you love Elizabethan history, conspiracy theories, and a fast-paced story line, you will love this book. Overall, The Semper Sonnet is fun and entertaining. At time, some of the story line seemed not very believable. However, as a whole, the book really works and the unbelievable parts will melt away.
Profile Image for Julie.
1,385 reviews122 followers
November 30, 2016
As a huge Tudorphile, I jumped at the chance to read a modern mystery with an Elizabethan twist. A recently discovered Shakespeare sonnet offers clues to Queen Elizabeth’s most closely guarded secret and grad student Lee must decode the bard’s wordplay to exonerate herself of murder charges. There is a lot more going on than just the possibility of exposing a 500 year old scandal. Lee discovers links to an isolated tribe in South America discovered by Spanish conquistadors, the lost Hever emeralds, the journal of Elizabeth’s physician, and a ruthless murderer using medieval torture devices on his victims.

Lee is clever and resourceful, but determined to take matters into her own hands, which gets her in a fair share of trouble. As the body count rises, it’s a wonder Lee is able to elude authorities for as long as she does. With so many different leads to follow and clues to decipher, it’s no wonder the mystery has remained unsolved for so many centuries. Some of the connections between the various threads seem like a bit of a stretch, especially how neatly the conclusion is presented, but it was intriguing. Though excerpts from the physician’s journal were integral to the overall plot, it was probably the least compelling aspect of the novel. I didn’t care for the doctor’s perception of Elizabeth and the journal didn’t seem particularly authentic. Otherwise, it was a decent mystery with some captivating aspects.

I received a complimentary copy of this book via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours.
1 review
June 28, 2016

Rare for a great summer read to satisfy on so many levels. SEMPER SONNET is first and foremost a thriller. The book follows Lee Nicholson, a young Elizabethan scholar, in a cat and mouse game that involves a series of murders tied to her discovery of a Shakespearean sonnet that may hold apocalyptic secrets. There’s plenty of nail-biting suspense, but the novel also achieves as a literary and historical work. Author Seth Margolis masters two distinct voices: the omniscient narrator creating the modern-day world of Nicholson who encounters both lovers and monsters and that of a 16th- century physician whose diary and relationship with Queen Elizabeth are key to solving the mystery – and maybe even saving the world.

Don’t miss this one. If you’re someone who feels a bit sheepish indulging in guilty- pleasure whodunits, you won’t have to with this clever crime novel. You’ll be turning the page furiously to find out how SEMPER SONNET ends, but you’ll be left with worthwhile knowledge and the feeling you’re just a bit smarter.
1 review2 followers
April 22, 2016
A thrilling, satisfying historical mystery perfect for lovers of Shakespeare and Elizabethan England. As a fan of both the historical fiction of Philippa Gregory and Hilary Mantel and the historical mysteries of Iain Pears, this book has the ideal combination of historical character-building and gripping narrative - all driven by the scholarly protagonist's dissection of a newly discovered Shakespeare sonnet. Highly recommended for mystery lovers and Anglophiles alike!
1 review
April 22, 2016
What a fun read in this big Shakespeare year. People too often say books are "page turners" but this one really is. It's a fast thrill ride but also full of smart word puzzles and plenty of rich historical references. And it's great to relate to a modern female protagonist who's smart and attractive but not a cardboard cutout. Loved it!
May 13, 2016
Absolutely loved, could not wait until I could turn the next page to find out what was next in this wonderful historic adventure. Each page caught you by surprise, not sure where Lee was off to next and what mystery she would uncover. I feel the need to uncover her adventures myself, to set off to England and help her solve the mystery. It left me wanting more. What is next for Lee Nicholson.
3 reviews
May 11, 2016
A thoroughly enjoyable thriller. I loved how Margolis wove together Elizabethan London with the contemporary world … two strong heroines, one a queen, the other 21st century scholar. The word puzzles were mind-bending. And the ending was quite a shocker.
1 review
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July 26, 2016
This is a great read! Lately I've been starting books and then put them down. Not the Semper Sonnet.
A thriller set in modern day times and Elizabethan England. The book brings both together seamlessly.
Also loved the clever word puzzles that provide clues to the mystery!
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews

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