The Physician of London: The Second Part of the Seventeenth-Century Trilogy of Nicholas Cooke

The absorbing sequel to Cowell's first novel, Nicholas Cooke, is imbued with the same measured gravity, poetic and bawdy language and grasp of the political, social, religious and cultural history of Elizabethan/Stuart England that distinguished its predecessor. Set in the years between 1617 and 1648, the narrative captures a turbulent epoch in English history, the period of the Stuart monarchies; its action presages but does not include the Civil War. Though priest and physician Cooke is again the nominal protagonist, it is the historical figure of Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, who seizes the reader's imagination and sympathies. Wentworth's rise to power as a member of King Charles's Privy Council, his tragic fall and his heroic sacrifice to save the crown are depicted with compassionate insight. Cowell portrays him as a brilliant, complex man, whose fierce ambition and firm belief in the unity of state, church and sovereign were undermined by his rashness and intemperance. Nicholas, too, remains conflicted about the balance of the spiritual and the temporal in his life, but he finds solace in his union with enchanting bluestocking Cecilia. Actual historical figures are equally well depicted, especially William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury, and medical pioneer William Harvey. The narrative is leisurely but always engaging; built on a solid foundation of period details, both minute and wide-ranging, it appraises the burgeoning field of science, the roots of religious controversy and the struggle between the landed gentry and the Stuart monarchy. One looks forward to the third volume of the trilogy, which will undoubtedly treat the years of Cromwell's reign. (Oct.)