{"product_id":"9781526678348-pretender","title":"The Pretender","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA Sunday Times Best Book of the Year\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWolf Hall \u003c\/i\u003emeets \u003ci\u003eDemon Copperhead\u003c\/i\u003e in a sharply ambitious, brilliantly imagined and hugely entertaining story of intrigue, deceit, ambition and revenge\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWolf Hall \u003c\/i\u003emeets \u003ci\u003eDemon Copperhead\u003c\/i\u003e in a sharply ambitious, brilliantly imagined and hugely entertaining story of intrigue, deceit, revenge and ambition\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**NAMED AS BEST HISTORICAL FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE \u003ci\u003eSUNDAY TIMES**\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e**PICKED AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025 BY THE \u003ci\u003eGUARDIAN\u003c\/i\u003e,\u003ci\u003e SUNDAY TIMES\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eDAILY MAIL\u003c\/i\u003e, AND THE \u003ci\u003eI\u003c\/i\u003e**\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘Wickedly funny .  the filthy, clever, immersive picaresque you didn’t know you needed’\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e, The best fiction of 2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘I read it with the dedicated fervour of a kid discovering literature for the first time’ \u003c\/b\u003eYael van der Wouden\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Funny, moving, filthy and original’ \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘So alive I felt Harkin might be a time traveller’ \u003c\/b\u003eMaggie Shipstead \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘The most enjoyable historical novel I’ve read in years’ \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eSpectator      \u003c\/i\u003e            \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e________________________________________\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003eKill the pretender. Do not let it be known that there was a pretender to kill.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eThe year is 1483 and England is in peril. The much-despised Richard III is not long for the throne, and the man who will become Henry VII stands poised to snatch the crown for himself. But for twelve-year-old John Collan, living in a remote village with his widowed father, these matters seem far away.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut history has other plans for John.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eStolen from his family, exiled – first to Oxford, then to Burgundy, and then Ireland – and apprenticed to a series of unscrupulous political operators, he finds himself groomed for power; not as John Collan, but as Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick – and rightful heir to the throne.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFar from home at the Irish court, preparing for a war that will see him become king or die trying, John has just his wits – and the slippery counsel of his host’s daughter, the unconventional Joan – to navigate the choppy waters ahead.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSeething with revenge and machination, sparkling with wit and humanity, and roaring with adventure and bravado, \u003ci\u003eThe Pretender \u003c\/i\u003eis the captivating true story of a young man tossed into the chaos of history as it happens. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**Praise for \u003ci\u003eThe Pretender\u003c\/i\u003e**\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘A brainy, heartfelt delight’\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e, 50 hottest books to read now\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Witty, poignant, wildly engaging, and with a huge heart’ \u003c\/b\u003eSarah Waters \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Touching and hilarious’ \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e, 80 best books to take on holiday \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Like a Plantagenet \u003ci\u003eAdrian Mole\u003c\/i\u003e’ \u003c\/b\u003eJenny Colgan\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘A rollicking account of a befuddled boy’s pillar-to-post existence as a political pawn’ \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘The real deal – nimble, vibrant, playful, and daring’ \u003c\/b\u003eKiran Millwood Hargrave\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Ambitious, mischievous and brilliantly written’\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘I blazed through full of wonder and admiration\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e’ \u003c\/b\u003eEmma Stonex\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41754419757153,"sku":"9781526678348","price":19.55,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/orig_34965063_9852af68-a48c-43e2-82cb-cca42483257a.jpg?v=1750931677","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781526678348-pretender","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}