Synopsis: 1485. Richard III is King of England. Henry Tudor’s invasion looms.
Jack Broom thinks that war and politics have nothing to do with him. He is a simple apothecary’s boy dreaming of becoming a surgeon – until soldiers mistake him for a boy of noble birth.
Narrowly avoiding being dragged to the Tower of London, Jack sets out on a perilous mission to find out who he truly is. With the help of his new friend Alice, he uncovers conspiracies, treason, and the deadly lengths people will go to for power.
Release Date: 8th September 2023
Genres: Historical, Mystery, Friendship, Adventure, Royals, War, Kings, Mistaken Identity, Middle Grade, Teen.
Pages: 304
Thank you so much to Sweet Cherry Publishing who kindly sent me a copy to read and review.
Review: Jack Broom a simple boy who want to learn to be a surgeon, but he is spotted by King Richard III soldiers and is mistaken as a child of noble birth, and has to prove he isn’t to save himself from the tower. He and his friend Alice set off to find out who he truly is and soon realises the lengths that people will go to have all the reigning power.
A fascinating middle grade historical book set in the Richard III and Henry VII time line when a battle between cousins for the thrown was ongoing. This story concentrates on the mystery of Princes Edward and Richard and what really happened to the two disappearing Princes. It’s great to find a book focusing on other sections of history that we don’t usually see. The author is well researched and really transports you to the time period, some portions were inaccurate but for the most part done correctly. Though some features within this story are fictional there is an authors note at the end to share which are real and which are not, I loved that it was included.
We follow our protagonist Jack who works at his abusive aunts apothecary, but he dreams of working as a surgeon for the kings soldiers. He soon finds himself in trouble as the kings soldiers mistake him as royal, as he shares an uncanny resemblance to one of the royal princes. He and his new friend Alice set off on an adventure to find out who he actually is. They both soon learn more than expected about royals, the mystery of the missing princes, war and politics than they expected they would.
This is a good book for getting younger readers interested in history, it is a bit heavy in places, but royal history is a heavy subject. I think that it would be enjoyable and a more fun way to teach this era, with the huge mystery of the princes and our protagonist taking you on an adventure kids will be whisked away into this historical world.
I liked this book and as a history fan it was really interesting to see a section of history that usually gets forgotten, especially in books. The protagonist was a little irritating at times and some of the inaccuracies were annoying. However overall it was a very fun book and I liked reading it.
apapergirlapapertown 