The Daughter Of Time: A gripping historical mystery
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- Create Date：2022-11-10 06:53:23
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Josephine Tey
- ISBN：1529156416
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Summary
Scotland Yard Inspector Alan Grant is intrigued by a portrait of Richard III。 Could such a sensitive face actually belong to a heinous villain — a king who killed his brother's children to secure his crown？ Grant seeks what kind of man Richard was and who in fact killed the princes in the tower。
Reviews
Toni Lapp
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Enjoyed， but I would have preferred this in book form rather than ebook since I wanted to easily refer back to the family tree diagram to help sort out all the Edwards and Elizabeths。 But a good reminder about how flawed our recorded history is。
Melissa Grice
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Here's a book pitch for you: A police detective is confined to a hospital bed， and decides to research the historical facts surrounding a 400-year old suspected royal murderer。 The entire book is an account of the detective's reading and his conversations with hospital staff and a handful of friends who visit him in the hospital， as he pieces together an account of the mystery。Dreadfully boring， right？ But Tey is talented enough to make the story gripping， entertaining， and suspenseful。 I was un Here's a book pitch for you: A police detective is confined to a hospital bed， and decides to research the historical facts surrounding a 400-year old suspected royal murderer。 The entire book is an account of the detective's reading and his conversations with hospital staff and a handful of friends who visit him in the hospital， as he pieces together an account of the mystery。Dreadfully boring， right？ But Tey is talented enough to make the story gripping， entertaining， and suspenseful。 I was unfamiliar with the murder accusations surrounding Richard III， but apparently it's a famous "history" that has been told by Shakespeare and many others。 Tey picks apart the threads of the historical accounts， focusing on those contemporary to Richard III， and posits a credible alternative theory of who may have murdered the princes in the tower。 The book was a fascinating examination of how a few well-placed rumors can be immortalized as fact in history books for centuries to come。 。。。more
Daniel De
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Truth is that daughter， I imagine， and this was an intriguing historical revisionism presented as a whodunit。 In the end， it wasn't actually clear who exactly did the deed and when， just that Richard III didn't order it。 The impact on English people is probably much greater， as the whole incident around the "Boys in the Tower" really wasn't part of my historic background。 It's clear why this is such a lauded work - well-written， taut， makes one like the protagonists， has the necessary elements t Truth is that daughter， I imagine， and this was an intriguing historical revisionism presented as a whodunit。 In the end， it wasn't actually clear who exactly did the deed and when， just that Richard III didn't order it。 The impact on English people is probably much greater， as the whole incident around the "Boys in the Tower" really wasn't part of my historic background。 It's clear why this is such a lauded work - well-written， taut， makes one like the protagonists， has the necessary elements to keep one interested， though it fizzled out a bit and was convoluted in the middle - I had to keep looking at the family tree to get a bearing of who was who。 。。。more
Heep
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Talk about really cold case files - popular history has made Richard III the fall guy in the the princes in the tower mystery。 Shakespeare's "my kingdom for a horse" is the final line in a closing argument that not only condemns Richard of murder but of rank cowardice。 The Tudors did quite a hack job on the last Plantagenet。 And why would such virtuous monarchs besmirch their predecessors？ To justify their claim to the throne and undermine rivals， perhaps？ It is a novel and interesting pretext f Talk about really cold case files - popular history has made Richard III the fall guy in the the princes in the tower mystery。 Shakespeare's "my kingdom for a horse" is the final line in a closing argument that not only condemns Richard of murder but of rank cowardice。 The Tudors did quite a hack job on the last Plantagenet。 And why would such virtuous monarchs besmirch their predecessors？ To justify their claim to the throne and undermine rivals， perhaps？ It is a novel and interesting pretext for a cozy crime。 One expects that a 500-year-old murder is cozier than something more recent， but there is still enough historical intrigue to keep it interesting。 I did find the narrative a bit repetitive at times and would not regard this as one of the best mystery novels ever written （it is included in many lists）。 Then again， Tey writes very well and deserves comparison to Christie as a master of the genre with particularly strong character development。 。。。more
Blake Ferguson
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Excellent detective story。 I really want to know how much of this is fiction。 I also wish I had a bit better understanding of The War of the Roses。
Lesley
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Having seen the recent “The Lost King” I decided to reread this book。 I found it absolutely riveting。 The way the history was blended into a fictional story about a policeman in hospital unraveling the story of Richard III was inspired。 As a longtime Ricardian this book was a must and came up with very convincing arguments。 A superb piece of writing。The copy I read was the original Penguin paperback I bought in 1974 which is not shown as an edition in Goodreads。
One Sentence Audio Critic
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A very good， intellectual， Richard III， Alan Grant series mystery by Josephine Tey， a。k。a。 Elizabeth Mackintosh and Gordon Daviot， BUT a great audiobook narrated by Derek Jacobi。 This book， The Daughter of Time （1951）， was voted the greatest mystery novel of all time by the Crime Writers' Association in 1990。 A very good， intellectual， Richard III， Alan Grant series mystery by Josephine Tey， a。k。a。 Elizabeth Mackintosh and Gordon Daviot， BUT a great audiobook narrated by Derek Jacobi。 This book， The Daughter of Time （1951）， was voted the greatest mystery novel of all time by the Crime Writers' Association in 1990。 。。。more
Carrie
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I read this years ago and really liked it。 When I decided to try the audio version， imagine my surprise at how fast the narrator spoke。 Thankfully， I was able to slow it down on the Libby App。
Cindyann
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AudioI will be the first to admit I don't know as much as I feel I should about British history， royalty， class divisions， etc。 I tried to follow along and maybe it would have been better in print than audio so I could Google all of the players。 It was interesting how people classified a man by simply looking at his portrait and none of them really agreed which side of the coin he fell on。 I'm not even sure the mystery was solved at the end。 AudioI will be the first to admit I don't know as much as I feel I should about British history， royalty， class divisions， etc。 I tried to follow along and maybe it would have been better in print than audio so I could Google all of the players。 It was interesting how people classified a man by simply looking at his portrait and none of them really agreed which side of the coin he fell on。 I'm not even sure the mystery was solved at the end。 。。。more
Kurt J。Gary
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Great read。 I hadn't read any Josephine Tey for a long while and I would highly recommend this one。 Tey's detective Alan Grant is in the hospital-stuck in bed after falling through a trap door。 Friends bring him books to read which bore him， but one brings a portrait on King Richard III-much maligned in history and Shakespeare。 He sees something different in the portrait and decides to investigate。 Tey helped to popularize the work of the Richard III Society which tries to correct the record on Great read。 I hadn't read any Josephine Tey for a long while and I would highly recommend this one。 Tey's detective Alan Grant is in the hospital-stuck in bed after falling through a trap door。 Friends bring him books to read which bore him， but one brings a portrait on King Richard III-much maligned in history and Shakespeare。 He sees something different in the portrait and decides to investigate。 Tey helped to popularize the work of the Richard III Society which tries to correct the record on Richard III。 I so liked the book that I'm now reading: "Digging for Richard III- The search for the lost King" by Mike Pitts who dug up Richard's bones in 2012- another fascinating tale。 。。。more
KVoorman
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Tey's prose more than makes up for how insufferable her main character is。 But she really lost me in all the minutia of the royal lineages。 I think some historical fiction fans might enjoy this， but I don't recommend it for anyone who wants to read a good old fashioned detective book。 Tey's prose more than makes up for how insufferable her main character is。 But she really lost me in all the minutia of the royal lineages。 I think some historical fiction fans might enjoy this， but I don't recommend it for anyone who wants to read a good old fashioned detective book。 。。。more
Kelli Reddy
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 What a gem of a mystery novel！ Had no idea what to expect and absolutely loved this story about a Scottish detective recovering from injury in a hospital。 Bored out of his mind， he starts to ask questions about the notorious king Richard III and discovers he was not the horrid monster he’d been taught in school at all。 In fact， he was admirable when it came to family and not possible he would have killed his nephews， made no sense once the story was unraveled。 I cannot wait to read more from thi What a gem of a mystery novel！ Had no idea what to expect and absolutely loved this story about a Scottish detective recovering from injury in a hospital。 Bored out of his mind， he starts to ask questions about the notorious king Richard III and discovers he was not the horrid monster he’d been taught in school at all。 In fact， he was admirable when it came to family and not possible he would have killed his nephews， made no sense once the story was unraveled。 I cannot wait to read more from this author， this mystery was so fun and I felt like I was learning history at the same time， a history that is normally incredibly boring and hard for me to follow， how the English line of kings came to be。 。。。more
Ellen H
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4。5。
Gal Amir
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Excellent book， but he still did the deed。
Andrew
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This first came on my radar many years ago when I was very lucky to have Robin Stevens on my tiny book blog to celebrate the release of her second book in the Murder Most Unladylike Series， Arsenic for Tea。 On it （which you can find here）， she spoke about her love for Josephine Tey。 I wasn't aware of Josephine Tey till then， and was intrigued over her and how each of the books Robin mentioned were so different。 But it was Daughter of Time that caught my eye the most and I bought it。 There， it sa This first came on my radar many years ago when I was very lucky to have Robin Stevens on my tiny book blog to celebrate the release of her second book in the Murder Most Unladylike Series， Arsenic for Tea。 On it （which you can find here）， she spoke about her love for Josephine Tey。 I wasn't aware of Josephine Tey till then， and was intrigued over her and how each of the books Robin mentioned were so different。 But it was Daughter of Time that caught my eye the most and I bought it。 There， it sat on my kindle for several years。 Inspector Alan Grant is in hospital， recovering from a broken leg and bored。 When he discovers the portrait of Richard III， he is intrigued。 How can this man believed to have brutally killed his brother's children - the Princes in the Tower - to make his crown secure？ To pass the time， Alan begins to look into it and begins to realise that there are elements to the story that just don't add up。 Is Richard III really one of the world's most heinous villains， or was he the victim of one of the most insidious plots in history？When I started reading this， I knew I was going to enjoy it and read more of Tey's stories （I have my eye on either The Man in the Queue， Miss Pym Disposes or Brat Farrar to be my next attack on her）， but I'm surprised over how clever and how well researched this was - there's no way this came to her in a flash and she wrote it instantly。 She must have researched and took her time over it。 Because of the level of research， I found that this was a little dense for my liking。 But that was because I was reading this on holiday and thought this would be an easy read （I was torn between this and The Song of Achilles）。 I think that's why， on a few occasions， I got muddled over who was speaking as there would be long sections of dialogue between two characters and you wouldn't know who was speaking。 Not sure if this was the best Tey for me to start with， but I can't wait to try more from her and more from other authors from the Golden Age of Crime （Agatha Christie， Gladys Mitchell， Dorothy L Sayers and the British Library Crime Classic range） 。。。more
Gina Kelley
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The most thought provoking book I've read this year。 Was Richard III the evil power grasping uncle that murdered the Princes in the Tower？ A sidelined Scotland Yard inspector with time on his hands sets out to solve the mystery。 Using modern （by 1951 standards） detective analysis， he comes to another conclusion。 Very well written & it has given me a new appreciation for this much-maligned monarch。 The most thought provoking book I've read this year。 Was Richard III the evil power grasping uncle that murdered the Princes in the Tower？ A sidelined Scotland Yard inspector with time on his hands sets out to solve the mystery。 Using modern （by 1951 standards） detective analysis， he comes to another conclusion。 Very well written & it has given me a new appreciation for this much-maligned monarch。 。。。more
Daggry
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A little gem of a mystery novel， written with a careful and satisfying economy。 It was sometimes a struggle keeping names and titles and relationships clear in my mind， but a handy chart at the front helped。 Some comments， idioms， references， etc。 felt awkward in the way of things written so many decades ago。 This aspect could be alienating for readers who didn’t live through the 1940s or 50s。 For me， love of the writing style carried me through。
Sherri Rabinowitz
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I had never heard of this book or author but I must say I was gripped by the book。 I couldn’t put it down。 It was a fascinating Historical Mystery， and Tey’s pace in the book is very electrifying。 I knew little of Richard the third other then seeing the play by Shakespeare and the movie of the play with Laurence Olivier。 Of course， I know they found his body in that parking lot and that he didn’t have a hunchback， he had a raised shoulder from a severe case of scoliosis， nor a withered arm， that I had never heard of this book or author but I must say I was gripped by the book。 I couldn’t put it down。 It was a fascinating Historical Mystery， and Tey’s pace in the book is very electrifying。 I knew little of Richard the third other then seeing the play by Shakespeare and the movie of the play with Laurence Olivier。 Of course， I know they found his body in that parking lot and that he didn’t have a hunchback， he had a raised shoulder from a severe case of scoliosis， nor a withered arm， that was all dramatic license。 It made me want to read more about him， I know there is a society who want to clear his name and then there are Historians and classics scholars who say he is still a bad guy。 And that this book really started the former。 It is all catnip to me， fascinating。I really liked Detective Inspector Alan Grant， he is very human and understandable。 Lying on your back that long staring at the ceiling would bore anyone to death。 It is interesting that a picture and his expertise on faces drew him into the whole saga。 I really liked his friend Marta Hallard， a very intelligent and fun actor who brings first a book on mountains that helps make him feel better than a load of pictures from the National Gallery， that includes Richard’s picture who Alan said looked like a judge。 I loved her lamb Brent Carradine， though I still think it is funny when someone from the UK has an American， they always sound like they are from the Midwest， even if they are from the west or east coast， they still seem to have that Midwest speech pattern。 （I was born and raised in California， but I lived in the Midwest and east coast as pre-teen， so my own speech pattern is mixed。） He is really his side kick in this one， but he is the one who goes out and does all the research and tells him what he finds and gets him the books， but he still listens to our heroes' ideas of how the “case” fits together。I zipped through the book because I loved it and couldn’t put it down， I have been telling anyone who would listen about it。 。。。more
franklygeese
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i do enjoy the historically accurate storyline， but i don't know why i still felt that i have been missing something in this book i do enjoy the historically accurate storyline， but i don't know why i still felt that i have been missing something in this book 。。。more
maybe_a_simp
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I didn't understand what was happening a lot of the time lol and the whole thing was just conversations。 Not the worst book I've read for school though。 I didn't understand what was happening a lot of the time lol and the whole thing was just conversations。 Not the worst book I've read for school though。 。。。more
Maria
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A very clever way to tell a mystery story， but the pace was slow to me。
Susan
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According to a blurb from the NYT on the cover of my copy of this book， it is "One of the best mysteries of all time。" But it was not my cup of tea at all。 I believe someone would have to have an insatiable curiosity about Richard III of England to enjoy this book。 The only action consists of the detective lying in a hospital bed and getting visitors to do research for him and then talk about their findings with him。 According to a blurb from the NYT on the cover of my copy of this book， it is "One of the best mysteries of all time。" But it was not my cup of tea at all。 I believe someone would have to have an insatiable curiosity about Richard III of England to enjoy this book。 The only action consists of the detective lying in a hospital bed and getting visitors to do research for him and then talk about their findings with him。 。。。more
Annie
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I really enjoyed this one！ Questioning history and really well developed characters even as the main character is laying on his back in a hospital for a few months。 And it was interesting to think that Richard might have been different than we think of him。 I’m curious if all the historic documents were fiction as well。
Stacey
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This mystery came highly recommended but I didn’t know enough about English history and Regency to fully enjoy it。 It does clear Richard III of the murders of the princes in the Tower， so that was interesting。
William Huber
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Along with Hamlet， Macbeth， King Lear ， Othello ， Romeo & Juliet ， the story of the evil ， deformed Richard III who murdered his brother’s children to gain the crown and died in disgrace whimpering for a horse are the most performed of all the Bard’s works。 Lawrence Olivier won every award for his portrayal of Richard in 1952 including an Oscar nomination。 Ian McLellan’s portrayal with Richard as Hitler similarly was bathed in awards。 It is performed non-stop throughout the world as an object le Along with Hamlet， Macbeth， King Lear ， Othello ， Romeo & Juliet ， the story of the evil ， deformed Richard III who murdered his brother’s children to gain the crown and died in disgrace whimpering for a horse are the most performed of all the Bard’s works。 Lawrence Olivier won every award for his portrayal of Richard in 1952 including an Oscar nomination。 Ian McLellan’s portrayal with Richard as Hitler similarly was bathed in awards。 It is performed non-stop throughout the world as an object lesson of the evils of tyranny and the hypnotic allure of power。 But with one huge difference : Richard III was an actual human being and was nothing at all like Shakespeare portrayed him。 tRichard III was not deformed 。 He did not have a humpback ， a withered arm and a short leg。 He revered his handsome brother Edward who died suddenly at the age of 40 and he not only took loving care of his two sons and their mother he installed them in the Tower Of London –then a royal residence， not a prison –and made sure they were educated by the top scholars of the day。 By all contemporary accounts he was a wise administrator who treated his opponents fairly in the belief that the long War of the Roses between the Houses of York and Lancaster had run its course and magnanimity would sooner bring about a lasting peace。 He was wrong 。 The man who would become Henry VII was then conspiring with the French to attack England and name himself king。 The attack succeeded but only because Richard’s main force was delayed and he was forced to fight --gallantly leading the charge ， btw--the hired French troops with a skeleton army。 But here’s the thing : the English public was almost universally in favor of Richard and looked upon Henry’s invading force as a foreign enemy。 Richard’s sad end brought about the reign of a corrupt king who owed his fortune and crown to a foreign foe。 And here is where the story turns very dark How did Richard become history’s villain？ By all accounts it was largely due to the writings of the Sainted Thomas More –paradoxically venerated by Pope Paul II as the patron saint of politicians and statesmen –and considered one of the great humanists of the Renaissance even after Henry VII’s successor Henry VIII lopped off his head。 There was one slight problem 。 When Richard was king ， Tommy More was only 5 years old。 The dishonest history of Richard was actually written by one of Henry’s public relations crew 。 And the Sainted Thomas More underwrote and sold the Big Lie in order to curry favor with the man who ， again， chopped off his head。In certainly the most entertaining explanations of what really happened Josephine Tey ， a mystery writer who was head and shoulders above Agatha Christie in terms of style， language， research and sheer brain power--and during btw what’s considered the golden age of mystery writing -- wrote what the Mystery Writer Society voted the Greatest Mystery Novel Of All Time。 It’s a story that not only holds up but should be required reading for anyone who wants to believe in history as a discipline and guiding force。 In it Ms。 Tey has her hero detective of Scotland Yard。 Alan Grant， confined to a hospital bed with a strained back and broken leg 。 Entranced by a portrait of a kindly but thoughtful Richard which gives no indication of any physical malformation ， he acquires all the historical records of the period and enlists the aid of a young researcher and slowly pieces together the true facts of the period。 While this may sound like tough sledding it is anything but: the dry wit and clever dialogue keep the short book –164 pages –humming along tSpoiler Alert : He convincingly concludes through dates and records not destroyed by the Tudors 。 that Henry VII murdered Edwards sons， condemned their mother to a nunnery and destroyed all records of Richard’s legitimate right to the throne ， plus his heroic deeds and wise administration 。 And the corrupt bastard also forced the two boy’s older sister Elizabeth into marriage and kept her in what contemporaries politely called an “un-uxorious” relationship， to legitimize his right to the throne。 Did Shakespeare know the real story but was too tempted by the entertainment value of a deformed monster villain who gets his dramatic comeuppance weeping for an horse to resist the sheer theatrically of the enterprise。 Or could he have written a production of equal drama and far greater portent that would have shaken the establishment to its roots ？ Not where the bucks are babe ， he might’ve admitted in a truthful moment。 In plain English ， the guiding principle of Netflix and ， sadly， contemporary historians。 。。。more
محمد العرڨوبي
，
استهلّت الكاتبة جوزفين تاي في بدايات روايتها على لسان الشخصية الرئيسية غرانت بالقول: "ألم يعد يوجد في هذا العالم الفسيح شخص واحد يحاول تغيير مدونته، والانسلاخ عن جلده من حين إلى آخر؟ هل يخاف الجميع، في هذه الأيام، من الانقلاب على الصيغ الجاهزة والمقولبة؟ يكتب المؤلفون اليوم في نمط يتوقعه أغلب جمهورهم من القراء"。وقد لقيت هذه الكلمات تجسيدا كليّا داخل الرواية، فقد تجاوزت بل قطعت مع تقاليد الأدب البوليسي الذي تنتمي إليه。。أعجبت بفكرة التعامل مع حقيقة تاريخية على أنها قصة غامضة، كما راقت لي الطريقة ا استهلّت الكاتبة جوزفين تاي في بدايات روايتها على لسان الشخصية الرئيسية غرانت بالقول: "ألم يعد يوجد في هذا العالم الفسيح شخص واحد يحاول تغيير مدونته، والانسلاخ عن جلده من حين إلى آخر؟ هل يخاف الجميع، في هذه الأيام، من الانقلاب على الصيغ الجاهزة والمقولبة؟ يكتب المؤلفون اليوم في نمط يتوقعه أغلب جمهورهم من القراء"。وقد لقيت هذه الكلمات تجسيدا كليّا داخل الرواية، فقد تجاوزت بل قطعت مع تقاليد الأدب البوليسي الذي تنتمي إليه。。أعجبت بفكرة التعامل مع حقيقة تاريخية على أنها قصة غامضة، كما راقت لي الطريقة التي قدمت بها الكاتبة قصة تقع في منتصف الطريق بين رواية بوليسية ورواية تاريخية。 فأحد أساسيات الرواية البوليسية هو التشويق والإثارة، في حين أن هذه الرواية عبارة عن عملية نبش في التاريخ، فالمجرمون شأنهم شأن الضحايا قد ماتوا 。。بطل رواياتنا هو الشرطي غرانت الذي يشعر بالملل أثناء فترة علاجه في المستشفى جراء سقوطه في حفرة أثناء ملاحقته للص، تنتشله من ضجره صورة لريتشارد الثالث حيث يقرّر أن هذا الملك صاحب الوجه الطاهر، بريء من الجرائم التي نسبها إليه شكسبير وتوماس مور والعديد من الكتاب والمؤرخين الآخرين، فيبدأ في التحقيق لمعرفة ما إذا كان هذا الرجل قادرا حقا على قتل ابني أخيه كما هو موثق في كتب تاريخ انجلترا 。。تكشف الرواية لاحقا كيف يكتب أصحاب السلطة التاريخ، وكيف يخصصونه للتلاعب به كما يشاؤون وفقا لمصالحهم، وبالتالي التأثير على حكم المواطنين والأجيال القادمة ليوقعوهم في فخ التحيز أو الافتقار إلى الموضوعية 。。هذا العمل ذكي، لا يتميز فقط بالحبكة المتقونة، بل أيضا بالحوارات الرائعة بين الشخصيات。 كما أن السرد سريع ومباشر، فنرى الشخصيات طبيعية جدا في سلوكها وطريقة تعبيرها عن نفسها 。。ما يجعل شخصية غرانت ذات مصداقية كبيرة، فلم يتم تصويره كشخص مثالي، فهو محقق عادي، لا يظهر ذكاء خارقا، وليست له عادات مميزة، ولا يقتبس باستمرار الكلاسيكيات في اللاتينية أو اليونانية القديمة 。。 لا ينتمي إلى عائلة نبيلة، بل على النقيض تماما فهو يبدي بعض الخشونة وسوء الطبع أحيانا 。。 بغض النظر عن اعتباره لنفسه خبيرا في تحديد شخصيات الناس من خلال وجوههم، فهو رجل عادي جدا 。。بطريقة ما، هذا هو السبب في أنني أحب الخيال التاريخي، لا لأنه يحتوي على كل المعلومات التاريخية ويقدمها في سرد مستساغ فقط، ولكن لأنه يجرؤ على طرح الأسئلة 。。 。。。more
Vivienne
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Read this year's ago， not long after a visit to Fotheringay in the early 90s when I became intrigued with Richard III。 The book converted me to his cause and I immediately joined the Richard III Society。 I must read more of her work。 Read this year's ago， not long after a visit to Fotheringay in the early 90s when I became intrigued with Richard III。 The book converted me to his cause and I immediately joined the Richard III Society。 I must read more of her work。 。。。more
Svea
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Tey said "defined by their histories， distorted to fit into their narrative， until all that is left of us are the monsters in the stories they tell their children" but make it a murder mystery， and honestly， it's more motivating to study this time period than school could ever have hoped to achieve in me。 Tey said "defined by their histories， distorted to fit into their narrative， until all that is left of us are the monsters in the stories they tell their children" but make it a murder mystery， and honestly， it's more motivating to study this time period than school could ever have hoped to achieve in me。 。。。more
Briansmom
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I read a lot of reviews for this book， and it seems everyone else just LOVED it。 While it had it’s moments， for me it was just meh。 The good: fabulous conclusion reached by Alan Grant， the laid-up-with-a-broken-leg-and-back-injury protagonist。 With a little help from his friends， Grant researches the mystery of the princes in the tower and reaches， imho， a reasonable， if not provable， conclusion。 The meh: the endless， snappy， witty， tête-à-tête between Grant and his nurses， Grant and his insipid I read a lot of reviews for this book， and it seems everyone else just LOVED it。 While it had it’s moments， for me it was just meh。 The good: fabulous conclusion reached by Alan Grant， the laid-up-with-a-broken-leg-and-back-injury protagonist。 With a little help from his friends， Grant researches the mystery of the princes in the tower and reaches， imho， a reasonable， if not provable， conclusion。 The meh: the endless， snappy， witty， tête-à-tête between Grant and his nurses， Grant and his insipid friend Margo， Grant and whoever， etc。 etc。 etc。 OK， I get it。 Grant is a semi-jerky snark。 But not everyone in his life could possibly have a snappy comeback to his snark。 It just didn’t ring true， or much fun， for me。Also， I couldn’t get past the continual archaic and colloquial references。 I had to use Dr。 Google ALOT while reading this book。 I’m a 58year old American who reads many books by British authors。 But this one was annoying to me。 I mean， a risole？ NEVER heard of it。 It made my reading experience less enjoyable and it didn’t “flow。” 。。。more
Bert van der Vaart
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