The Pretender, Harkin - B+

    This fascinating novel is set in the late 15th century, during the Wars of the Roses. John Collan is a happy, curious ten-year-old farm boy when two men arrive, speak to his father, and take him away. He’s told he is, in fact, Edward, Earl of Warwick — a prince of the realm hidden by his now-dead father out of fear of his uncle, the king. A tutor takes him to Oxford, renames him Lambert, and begins the long process of educating him. Soon after, Henry Tudor triumphs at Bosworth Field, and all Yorkists are suddenly at risk. Lambert is spirited away to Burgundy under the care of his aunt and renamed Edward Plantagenet. He’s tutored in royal matters, grows accustomed to fine clothes, and learns the ways of courtly life.

    After a few years, he’s sent to Ireland under the protection of the Earl of Kildare, whose household teems with lying, cheating dissemblers and knaves — led by his eldest daughter, Joan, whom Edward longs for. A year later, the Yorkists crown him Edward VI in Dublin, and their army sails for England. The Tudors prevail easily in battle, and Edward is captured. Spared because of his youth, he is sent to work as a kitchen scullion named Simnel. One of Henry’s ministers offers him a chance to become a falconer — but only if he reveals the names of Yorkists who approach him. Desperate to escape the cellars for the open air, he accepts. When he betrays his first traitor, guilt gnaws at him, but he carries on. As the years pass, Simnel grows into a handsome young man who beds endless unhappy wives — though he dreams only of Joan. His guilt fades, replaced by cynicism and a thirst for revenge. Two men, in particular, haunt him: Kildare, who sent Joan away, and Lord Lovell, who seems to lurk in every shadow of his past — Oxford, France, and Ireland alike.

    The more Simnel learns about the Yorkists, the more he realizes Lovell was behind the deaths of those he loved. He takes revenge first on Kildare, forging a letter that leads to the earl’s downfall. Around this time, the grateful king rewards Simnel with a pension and a bag of gold. But Simnel’s vengeance isn’t complete. He travels to Edinburgh, finds Lovell in hiding, and kills him with a sword to the throat. He returns to England, once again John — unsure whether he is royal or peasant, good or evil. Restless, he travels to the Continent and beyond.

   This masterfully creative novel is based on a true story. Though little is known of Lambert Simnel, he was a real young pretender — hidden by the Yorkists, captured, pardoned, and ultimately made a falconer for the king. The author’s imagination fills in the gaps of history beautifully. Critics have praised this book enthusiastically, and I fully agree — it’s a very good read.