A right royal a scandal.

IT'S a bumper week for top quality books!

From a real-life tale of sailing around the world to the completion of a Scandinavian crime trilogy,, there's sure to be something that'll grab your eye.

history THE LADY IN THE TOWER: THE FALL OF ANNE BOLEYN Alison Weir HHHH FOCUSING on the dramatic final months of Anne Boleyn's life, this is a tale of the plotting, scheming and intrigue of the Tudor court. The disgracing of Henry VIII's second wife and mother of Elizabeth I is a family scandal to rival those of today's dysfunctionals on The Jeremy Kyle Show.

Specialist royal writer Alison Weir gives an original account, wading through primary sources and previous histories of the period to sort the myth from the fact and sprinkle liberally with colour.

The level of detail, and her careful weighing of the available evidence often only to dismiss it as unreliable, frequently slows down what is otherwise a rattling good story.

That is only the price of good research, though, as she demonstrates how there was far more to this illfated queen's execution than Henry's irritation at her failure to bear him a son.

(Jonathan Cape, pounds 20) thriller SELF'S MURDER Bernhard Schlink HHHH UNLIKELY hero, philosopher and private investigator Gerhard Self returns in Bernhard Schlink's latest crime instalment, this time set in the underworld of a privately-owned German bank, Weller &Welker.

A chance rescue of the partners of the bank is the start of a case more thrilling than Self could have expected, as he finds himself caught up in the mystery of the company's success.

The drama that unfolds follows an ageing Self as he finds himself involved in a kidnapping, a case of impossible paternity, a blackmail attempt and a journey of self-enlightenment.

Given German writer Schlink's similarly-veined undertaking in The Reader, the character of Self - a post-war public prosecutor turned investigator - again presents a society struggling to look back at its past and deal with the unsettling issue of responsibility as it manifests itself in everyday life.

A crime story with an edge, Schlink's quietly reflective, good-humoured and compelling novel delves deep.

(Weidenfeld & Nicolson, pounds 16.99) crime THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET'S NEST Stieg Larsson HHH THE final part of an unlikely trilogy of best-selling Scandinavian crime novels finds the hero, computer hacker Lisbeth Salander, laid up in hospital recovering from the violent events of the second novel. It soon emerges that Salander, who was earlier framed for several murders, is the victim of a conspiracy dreamt up to protect a group of corrupt members of Sweden's secret service.

The book goes back into the country's Cold War history to explain her troubled and violent upbringing, and this is where the problems start.

Obviously a bit of background is needed, but the plot gets lost as the reader wades through potted history lessons and sociological asides about Swedish society. Which is a shame, because there is a cracking tale somewhere in the book's 600-odd pages.

Fans of the first two books, published after author Stieg Larsson died in 2004 at the age of 50, certainly won't be put off by this, but casual readers might find it a struggle.

(Quercus, pounds 18.99) fiction LAST NIGHT IN TWISTED RIVER John Irving HHH VETERAN American writer John Irving is a stickler for meticulous detail.

So he makes his readers work hard from the outset of his latest tome as he paints an elaborate portrait of Coos County, New Hampshire, and its hapless inhabitants.

Here live cook Dominic Baciagalupo, whose awkward name we'll stumble over time and again, his young son Danny and fierce logger Ketchum. The three are tied by a series of tragic events, which cause them to go on the run for decades from the twisted Sheriff of Coos County.

In this strangely self-reflexive work, Danny grows up to be a successful author, allowing Irving to indulge in passages devoted to the art of writing.

His narrative, which runs from 1954 up to 2005, meanders between past and present, while his characters are somehow unfeeling.

They muddle along through the bad and good times, with no discernible sign of emotion other than remote fatherly love.

(Bloomsbury, pounds 20) non fiction THE MAKING OF THE BRITISH ARMY: FROM THE ENGLISH CIVIL WAR TI THE WAR ON TERROR Allan Mallinson HHHH THIS thoroughly enjoyable yomp through more than 350 years of British military history is essential reading for students of national defence and politics.

Allan Mallinson, himself a soldier for 35 years, makes the transition from historical fiction to military history with ease and delivers an smooth narrative across a considerable canvas.

The author of the Hervey novels takes as his starting point the New Model Army, the professional soldiers fighting for Parliament during the Civil War.

From there he leads us through the major campaigns and generals of the following centuries - he is particularly good on the Napoleonic wars - detailing how each shaped the army. He is light-footed and thorough all the way through two world wars and right up to the most recent conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Northern Ireland.

(Bantam Press, pounds 20) fiction TOMMY STORM AND THE GALACTIC KNIGHTS AJ Healy HHH UNLIKELY hero Tommy Storm is still trying to save the universe.

The second book in the series from Irish writer AJ Healy starts just after Tommy and his four knight friends have been captured by gangster Nack Jikilson - and when they escape he follows them across the galaxy.

But he's not the only problem for the five, as a terrorist called A-Sad-Bin-Liner is trying to wreak havoc with his planet-destroying machine. The knights try to find Bin-Liner and land at Hellsbells after receiving a tip-off.

The beast there sets a task for the friends before he will help them. They jet off again, but are caught up in an intergalactic game show.

As they tackle the several tasks at hand they must also battle with their own egos in a bid to save the universe.

Tommy Storm is not a particularly likeable character, and although this book is riddled with intelligent crossreferences meant to amuse, it just comes across as though it's trying too hard to impress.

Billed as a comedy adventure, it's not that funny and the adventure is confusing. However, being confusing means that it's unpredictable to the end, and it is heart-warming in parts.

(Quercus, pounds 6.99)

CAPTION(S):

Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and Natalie Dormer as Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn in BBC's The Tudors.