John Collan’s world has just been turned upside down. The nine year-old has just learned that he is not actually a peasant boy, son of a dairy farmer. Rather, he is told that he is in fact Edward, Earl of Warwick, and that he is expected to overthrow Henry VII, the new Tudor King, and assume the throne. John is whisked away to Oxford, where he assumes the name Lambert Simnel and begins his aristocratic education. The ensuing years take him to Burgundy and then to Ireland, where he learns courtly manners, comes to understand political machinations, and meets Joan, the slightly sociopathic love of his life. Throughout it all, John/Simnel/Edward will struggle to define his own identity; is he a peasant, a noble, or just a pawn in someone else’s political game?
I did not expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. I’m not especially familiar with the War of the Roses and thought that might make the book hard to follow. But, though The Pretender is based on the true story of Lambert Simnel, I found that I didn’t need a background in English history to follow the plot. John/Simnel/Edward is such a likable protagonist, trying his best to make the people around him happy and fulfill what he’s been told is his destiny. It’s fascinating and heartbreaking to watch him grow from a naive young boy into a cynical youth, as he learns to manipulate the way he has always been manipulated.
