The Pretender

Wolf Hall meets Demon Copperhead in a sharply ambitious, brilliantly imagined and hugely entertaining story of intrigue, deceit, revenge and ambition 1483. The English throne is in peril. Peasant boy and pretender John Collan is faced with two options. a) Become king b) Die trying What could possibly go wrong? **WATERSTONES FICTION BOOK OF THE MONTH** ** THE TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER** **NAMED AS BEST HISTORICAL FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE SUNDAY TIMES ** **PICKED AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025 BY THE GUARDIAN , SUNDAY TIMES , DAILY MAIL , AND THE I ** **SHORTLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE** **SHORTLISTED FOR THE WINSTON GRAHAM HISTORICAL PRIZE** Seething with revenge and machination, sparkling with wit and humanity, and roaring with adventure and bravado, The Pretender is the captivating true story of a young man tossed into the chaos of history as it happens. ________________________________________ ‘A bold and brilliant comedy of royal intrigue’ Guardian ‘Funny, moving, filthy and original’ The Times ‘So alive I felt Harkin might be a time traveller’ Maggie Shipstead ‘I read it with the dedicated fervour of a kid discovering literature for the first time’ Yael van der Wouden ‘The most enjoyable historical novel I’ve read in years’ Spectator ‘Witty, poignant, wildly engaging, and with a huge heart’ Sarah Waters ‘Like a Plantagenet Adrian Mole ’ Jenny Colgan ‘A rollicking account of a befuddled boy’s pillar-to-post existence as a political pawn’ New York Times ‘The real deal – nimble, vibrant, playful, and daring’ Kiran Millwood Hargrave ‘Ambitious, mischievous and brilliantly written’ Daily Mail ‘I blazed through full of wonder and admiration ’ Emma Stonex

Wolf Hall meets Demon Copperhead in a sharply ambitious, brilliantly imagined and hugely entertaining story of intrigue, deceit, revenge and ambition 1483. The English throne is in peril. Peasant boy and pretender John Collan is faced with two options. a) Become king b) Die trying What could possibly go wrong? **WATERSTONES FICTION BOOK OF THE MONTH** ** THE TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER** **NAMED AS BEST HISTORICAL FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE SUNDAY TIMES ** **PICKED AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025 BY THE GUARDIAN , SUNDAY TIMES , DAILY MAIL , AND THE I ** **SHORTLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE** **SHORTLISTED FOR THE WINSTON GRAHAM HISTORICAL PRIZE** Seething with revenge and machination, sparkling with wit and humanity, and roaring with adventure and bravado, The Pretender is the captivating true story of a young man tossed into the chaos of history as it happens. ________________________________________ ‘A bold and brilliant comedy of royal intrigue’ Guardian ‘Funny, moving, filthy and original’ The Times ‘So alive I felt Harkin might be a time traveller’ Maggie Shipstead ‘I read it with the dedicated fervour of a kid discovering literature for the first time’ Yael van der Wouden ‘The most enjoyable historical novel I’ve read in years’ Spectator ‘Witty, poignant, wildly engaging, and with a huge heart’ Sarah Waters ‘Like a Plantagenet Adrian Mole ’ Jenny Colgan ‘A rollicking account of a befuddled boy’s pillar-to-post existence as a political pawn’ New York Times ‘The real deal – nimble, vibrant, playful, and daring’ Kiran Millwood Hargrave ‘Ambitious, mischievous and brilliantly written’ Daily Mail ‘I blazed through full of wonder and admiration ’ Emma Stonex

Wolf Hall meets Demon Copperhead in a sharply ambitious, brilliantly imagined and hugely entertaining story of intrigue, deceit, revenge and ambition **NAMED AS BEST HISTORICAL FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE SUNDAY TIMES** **PICKED AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025 BY THE GUARDIAN , SUNDAY TIMES , DAILY MAIL , AND THE I ** **SHORTLISTED FOR THE WINSTON GRAHAM HISTORICAL PRIZE** ‘Wickedly funny ... the filthy, clever, immersive picaresque you didn’t know you needed’ Guardian , The best fiction of 2025 ‘I read it with the dedicated fervour of a kid discovering literature for the first time’ Yael van der Wouden ‘Funny, moving, filthy and original’ The Times ‘So alive I felt Harkin might be a time traveller’ Maggie Shipstead ‘The most enjoyable historical novel I’ve read in years’ Spectator ________________________________________ Kill the pretender. Do not let it be known that there was a pretender to kill. The 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. But history has other plans for John. Stolen 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. Far 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. Seething with revenge and machination, sparkling with wit and humanity, and roaring with adventure and bravado, The Pretender is the captivating true story of a young man tossed into the chaos of history as it happens. **Praise for The Pretender ** ‘A brainy, heartfelt delight’ Guardian , 50 hottest books to read now ‘Witty, poignant, wildly engaging, and with a huge heart’ Sarah Waters ‘Touching and hilarious’ The Times , 80 best books to take on holiday ‘Like a Plantagenet Adrian Mole ’ Jenny Colgan ‘A rollicking account of a befuddled boy’s pillar-to-post existence as a political pawn’ New York Times ‘The real deal – nimble, vibrant, playful, and daring’ Kiran Millwood Hargrave ‘Ambitious, mischievous and brilliantly written’ Daily Mail ‘I blazed through full of wonder and admiration ’ Emma Stonex

Wolf Hall meets Demon Copperhead in a sharply ambitious, brilliantly imagined and hugely entertaining story of intrigue, deceit, revenge and ambition **NAMED AS BEST HISTORICAL FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE SUNDAY TIMES** **PICKED AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025 BY THE GUARDIAN , SUNDAY TIMES , DAILY MAIL , AND THE I ** **SHORTLISTED FOR THE WINSTON GRAHAM HISTORICAL PRIZE** ‘Wickedly funny ... the filthy, clever, immersive picaresque you didn’t know you needed’ Guardian , The best fiction of 2025 ‘I read it with the dedicated fervour of a kid discovering literature for the first time’ Yael van der Wouden ‘Funny, moving, filthy and original’ The Times ‘So alive I felt Harkin might be a time traveller’ Maggie Shipstead ‘The most enjoyable historical novel I’ve read in years’ Spectator ________________________________________ Kill the pretender. Do not let it be known that there was a pretender to kill. The 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. But history has other plans for John. Stolen 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. Far 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. Seething with revenge and machination, sparkling with wit and humanity, and roaring with adventure and bravado, The Pretender is the captivating true story of a young man tossed into the chaos of history as it happens. **Praise for The Pretender ** ‘A brainy, heartfelt delight’ Guardian , 50 hottest books to read now ‘Witty, poignant, wildly engaging, and with a huge heart’ Sarah Waters ‘Touching and hilarious’ The Times , 80 best books to take on holiday ‘Like a Plantagenet Adrian Mole ’ Jenny Colgan ‘A rollicking account of a befuddled boy’s pillar-to-post existence as a political pawn’ New York Times ‘The real deal – nimble, vibrant, playful, and daring’ Kiran Millwood Hargrave ‘Ambitious, mischievous and brilliantly written’ Daily Mail ‘I blazed through full of wonder and admiration ’ Emma Stonex

Set in the tumultuous period of the Tudors' ascent, The Pretender brings to life the little-known story of Lambert Simnel. From humble beginnings as a peasant boy, Lambert's life takes an astonishing turn when, at just ten years old, he becomes a claimant to the English throne as one of the last of the Plantagenet line. As Lambert navigates the treacherous waters of royal intrigue and court life, complex themes of identity, power, and destiny unfold, weaving a tapestry of ambition and survival in a world where the stakes couldn't be higher. In 1480 John Collan's greatest anxiety is how to circumvent the village's devil goat on his way to collect water. But the arrival of a well-dressed stranger from London upends his life forever: John is not John Collan, not the son of Will Collan but Lambert Simnel, the son of the long-deceased Duke of Clarence, and has been hidden in the countryside after a brotherly rift over the crown--and because Richard III has a habit of disappearing his nephews. Removed from his humble origins and sent to Oxford to be educated in a manner befitting the throne's rightful heir, Lambert is put into play by his masters. He learns the rules of etiquette in Burgundy and the machinations of the court in Ireland, where he encounters the intractable Joan, the delightfully strong-willed and manipulative daughter of his Irish patrons, a girl imbued with both extraordinary political savvy and occasional murderous tendencies. Joan has two paths available to her--marry or become a nun. Lambert's choices are similarly stark: he will either become king or die in battle. Together they form an alliance that will change the fate of the English monarchy. Inspired by a footnote to history--the true story of the little-known Simnel, who was a figurehead of the 1487 Yorkist rebellion and ended up working as a spy in the court of King Henry VII-- The Pretender is historical fiction at its finest, a gripping, exuberant, rollicking portrait of British monarchy and life within the court, with a cast of unforgettable heroes and villains drawn from fifteenth-century England. A masterful work from a major new author

Set in the tumultuous period of the Tudors' ascent, The Pretender brings to life the little-known story of Lambert Simnel. From humble beginnings as a peasant boy, Lambert's life takes an astonishing turn when, at just ten years old, he becomes a claimant to the English throne as one of the last of the Plantagenet line. As Lambert navigates the treacherous waters of royal intrigue and court life, complex themes of identity, power, and destiny unfold, weaving a tapestry of ambition and survival in a world where the stakes couldn't be higher. In 1480 John Collan's greatest anxiety is how to circumvent the village's devil goat on his way to collect water. But the arrival of a well-dressed stranger from London upends his life forever: John is not John Collan, not the son of Will Collan but Lambert Simnel, the son of the long-deceased Duke of Clarence, and has been hidden in the countryside after a brotherly rift over the crown--and because Richard III has a habit of disappearing his nephews. Removed from his humble origins and sent to Oxford to be educated in a manner befitting the throne's rightful heir, Lambert is put into play by his masters. He learns the rules of etiquette in Burgundy and the machinations of the court in Ireland, where he encounters the intractable Joan, the delightfully strong-willed and manipulative daughter of his Irish patrons, a girl imbued with both extraordinary political savvy and occasional murderous tendencies. Joan has two paths available to her--marry or become a nun. Lambert's choices are similarly stark: he will either become king or die in battle. Together they form an alliance that will change the fate of the English monarchy. Inspired by a footnote to history--the true story of the little-known Simnel, who was a figurehead of the 1487 Yorkist rebellion and ended up working as a spy in the court of King Henry VII-- The Pretender is historical fiction at its finest, a gripping, exuberant, rollicking portrait of British monarchy and life within the court, with a cast of unforgettable heroes and villains drawn from fifteenth-century England. A masterful work from a major new author