Confession is good for the soul and this narrator has much to reveal... This imaginative re-stitching of 13th-century historical events uses the fictional confessions of King Edward I's lead court jester and fool to sit the reader in a dark corner of a monastery and listen to a story of the making of a king and tale of a shrewd fool. Through the mists of time Hamo Pauncefoot reveals his involvement in historical events from 1253-1274 to a monk he has hired to document the story of his life. The narration takes on dark eloquent styling and magnificent character representation; characters are magnified by this narration and of course embellished for the sake of the story and the narrator's royal benefactors. If readers are familiar with The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett or Bernard Cornwell's Warlord Chronicles then you may find another antihero in Hamo Pauncefoot. The reader is taken to this fool's humble beginnings and then witnesses Hamo's all consuming obsession of advancement of life and status which he believes can be obtained by providing his distinct set of services to the young prince Edward. Set to the backdrop of England during the mid-13th century the reader is privy to the intimate complicated relationships and manipulations of the court of King Henry III. As the story progresses the locations thunder on from battle fields, to towns, to clandestine rooms of taverns, to the holy crusade and back again with always Hamo Pauncefoot under the table or in a corner collecting vital information for his advances. This narration takes on a delicious dark phrasing that leaves more of a convincing representation of the mid-13th century, characters are painted with flaws and very few are described as faultless. Piety and virtue serve little in this story, greed and lust for power reigns over this storyline. In the end, although a few anachronistic terms in the dialogue briefly pulled this reader from this striking narration and the middle sagged with the different excursions, these can be forgotten with the twists and surprises that leapt from the corners of The Chronicles of Pauncefoot and Longshanks: The Making of a King. The footnotes at the end were a creative touch that leant more validity to the beginning claim that this story is true and recently discovered in 2007; all research and implantation was explained and (to this reader) showed superb attention to detail. Finally the sometimes awkward formation and execution of showing time and births to the reader were seamless in this narration (a very hard thing to accomplish). Overall this was gem of a read, an original story that I highly recommend for those readers who enjoy a more realistic view of this time period, those who enjoy reading about the machinations of a mind born into misery and desperation and another game for the control of England. The ending clearly indicates a sequel and this reader eagerly awaits the next installment about this shrewd narrator. * I would like to thank Troubador Publishing Ltd and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and enjoy The Chronicles of Pauncefoot and Longshanks: The Making of a King -EGP/May 2014 Comments are closed.
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