Review: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

Having just caught up on the third season of "The Tudors," it was hard not to picture Cromwell (or even Henry) as the actors in the TV series.  I both loved and hated the narrative style.  I found myself having to refer back to the cast of characters multiple times since they sometimes appear without warning or description.  The back story on Cromwell makes him more likable than he's normally portrayed yet, at other times, it's hard to understand why he's taking certain actions.  For example, he seems very dedicated to Cardinal Wolsey, yet, when given the opportunity to move forward by negating the relationship, he's all too willing (yet, oddly, without appearing eager) to do so.  He sees Henry eying the elder Seymour daughter so he lends money to the father... but why?  Anticipating future debts owed to him?  The narration, while it reveals so many other parts of Cromwell's psyche, is unclear.  This was both intriguing and annoying.  At times, I was enthralled by the storytelling and, at other times, couldn't wait to finish this book and move on to something else.  It's a hefty tome (nearly 600 pages) and the ending reads more like a random stop before a sequel than something that leads the reader to some important insight or understanding.