Skip to main content

Quick Review: "To the Tower Born" by Robin Maxwell

From Goodreads:  Debated for more than five centuries, the disappearance of the young princes Edward and Richard from the Tower of London in 1483 has stirred the imaginations of numerous writers from Shakespeare to Josephine Tey and posited the question: Was Richard III the boys' murderer, or was he not? In a captivating novel rich in mystery, color, and historical lore, Robin Maxwell offers a new, controversial perspective on this tantalizing enigma.

The events are witnessed through the eyes of quick-witted Nell Caxton, only daughter of the first English printer, William Caxton, and Nell's dearest friend, "Bessie," daughter of the King of England, sister to the little princes, and founding ancestress of the Tudor dynasty.

With great bravery and heart, the two friends navigate this dark and dangerous medieval landscape in which the king's death sets off a battle among the most scheming, ambitious, and murderous men and women of their age, who will stop at nothing to possess the throne of England.

My Thoughts:  The mystery surrounding what happened to the 'Princes in the Tower' is one that seems as though it will never be resolved.  I personally am super interested in this topic and I always like to see how authors address this topic and their opinions as to what really happened to the two young boys.

To the Tower Born is Robin Maxwell's tale of the events surrounding the disappearance of the boys and is a really fun and engaging story.  It is told from the perspective of Nell Caxton and Elizabeth of York and creates a new version of events surrounding the rise of Richard III and the disappearance of Prince Edward and Dickon.  While I am not sure how historically accurate the story is, I did find myself easily hooked.  The story is fast paced and the characters, especially Nell, are really interesting.  I was very surprised by Maxwell's version of events regarding the boys but personally I liked it (no matter how impossible it seemed).  As always, I did appreciate the extensive author's note at the end of the book and the list of sources that Ms. Maxwell used.  If you are looking for a light historical read, I would highly recommend this book.  3 1/2 stars.

This book is part of my personal collection.
Labels:

Comments

  1. MysticaJuly 23, 2013 at 8:11 AM

    Making a note of this one! would like to read it myself.

    ReplyDelete
  2. ShoshanahAugust 16, 2013 at 8:32 PM

    This was actually the first book I remember reading that delt with the princes in the tower. I couldn't believe I hadn't read about them before this, and from there was hooked on this period. And while I don't remember this one that way, it holds a special place for me, for those reasons.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review and Giveaway: "Distant Signs" by Anne Richter

Synopsis: Distant Signs is an intimate portrait of two families spanning three generations amidst turbulent political change, behind and beyond the Berlin Wall. In 1960s East Germany, Margret, a professor’s daughter from the city, meets and marries Hans, from a small village in Thuringia. The couple struggle to contend with their different backgrounds, and the emotional scars they bear from childhood in the aftermath of war. As East German history gradually unravels, with collision of the personal and political, their two families’ hidden truths are quietly revealed. An exquisitely written novel with strongly etched characters that stay with you long after the book is finished and an authentic portrayal of family life behind the iron curtain based on personal experience of the author who is East German and was 16 years old at the fall of the Berlin Wall. Why do families repeat destructive patterns of behaviour across generations? Should the personal take precedence over
Post a Comment
Read more

Mailbox Monday (49)

It's time for another Mailbox Monday post!  Once again I could not resist the cheap ebooks that Amazon and Barnes and Noble were promoting this week.  I really need to stop!  I already have more than I can read.  I also was able to spend a little time browsing at the library and I came home with a nice stack of books.  These days, I hardly ever get to spend time at the library by myself for more than a minute or two so it was wonderful to have time to just wander and see what I could find. Purchased (for kindle): The Color of Secrets by Lindsay Ashford The One I Was by Eliza Graham House of Bathory by Linda Lafferty   Purchased (for nook): One Night in Winter by Simon Sebag Montefiore  Becoming Queen Victoria by Kate Williams From the Library: The Messenger by Daniel Silva   The Ripper's Wife by Brandy Purdy Hotel Moscow by Talia Carner Brazen by Katherine Longshore What books did you get this week?
15 comments
Read more

Mailbox Monday (78)

 Happy Sunday everybody!  September is over and I can hardly believe it.  It seems as though the month has flown by.  Now I'm excited for fall and all of the upcoming holidays.  October is the start of my favorite time of year and I'm hoping there will be plenty of room for reading in between all of the upcoming events. I requested some new holiday books from the library and had no idea all of my holds would come in at once so I need to get moving on these.  I'm really excited to dig into some sweet, fluffy reads and these will do just the trick. From the Library: A Snow Country Christmas by Linda Lael Miller This is the fourth book in a series that I really enjoyed so I'm eager to get started on it. Holly and Ivy by Fern Michaels The Christmas Room by Catherine Anderson I was so intrigued by the cover on this one that I had to pick it up. For Review (from NetGalley): I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon     I really need to st
13 comments
Read more