THE BOY KING'S TALE

Author January’s “boy king” is Edward III, who reigned in the 1300s; the narrator of the tale is none other than Edward’s loyal subject Geoffrey Chaucer.

January’s account of the life of Edward is highly romanticized and takes us only through his early years. He was crowned in 1327 at the age of 14, so his mother, Isabella, and her lover, Roger Mortimer, controlled the regency. Mortimer is an absolute snake and a master of intrigue. At one point, Isabella arranges Mortimer’s escape to France, and the malleable young Edward, in tow, becomes convinced of their cause to overthrow his father, the feckless Edward II. Young Edward is as conflicted about his father as he is about other things. The lesson to be learned here—and that Edward will very slowly grasp—is to be mistrustful when there is good reason to be. Edward is too idealistic (and naïve) for his own good. Time and again, Mortimer foils the young king’s plans and makes him look a fool; only belatedly does Edward realize Mortimer’s true nature and intentions. This is a story of Edward’s coming-of-age and his confusion about his father. Some figures are well drawn, others, less so, and readers may well be distracted by typos and omissions. Yet Edward’s saucy bride, Philippa, gets our attention in their courting, and Mortimer is an apt villain. Isabella is complex and compromised. The use of Chaucer as a kind of foxy grandpa is a clever device and gives a wink to true history: How much is January making up? A case in point is a charming story of how Edward impulsively founded the curiously named Order of the Garter. It’s probably untrue, but this is a novel and makes no claim to history.

An entertaining, well-written account of a time so far away from us.