C. J. Sansom is an English writer of crime novels. His books take place in the 16th century, and the main character is the hunchbacked lawyer Matthew Shardlake, working on commission from Thomas Cromwell.

Sansom was educated at the University of Birmingham, where he took a BA and then a PhD in history. After working in a variety of jobs, he decided to retran as a solicitor. He practiced for a while in Sussex as a lawyer for the disadvantaged, then he quit in order to work full-time as a writer.

List of works

• Dissolution (2003)
• Dark Fire (2004)