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I liked the book and hope someday to read her Booker prize in paperback. But I think this was written for Believers of a particular stripe--those who object to the Church's cruelty and narrowness and yet who want to keep its belief in magic. The conceit is that Fludd is an alchemist of another era, but in this era, he's an alchemist of the human spirit. He helps transform several lives of those imprisoned in the demeaning, cruel thinking and practice of the Church. You naturally cheer for their success, even if you wish it had not been accomplished through magic (supernatural, Divine Intervention or however you interpret the events). Two other things need to be said. First, there is a lot of comedy, not all of it black, though it arises in the depressing, sub-human world of poverty of spirit and intellect. Second, the picture of the Church and its practices is telling, but intermixed with magic. I don't think magic works in realistic ficition. It detracts from the realism and makes you think of the writer, not the characters. Not necessarily a problem with comedy, which can flit in and out of black realism very well in the hands of a capable writer (like Mantel). So, I say this is for Believers who want a more human, more decent Church, but who don't want to give up on magic and the supernatural.