Have you ever read about a historical mystery that captivated you so much that you spent your available free time trying to solve the case? Who was the man in the iron mask? Were the casket letters real? Who built Stonehenge and why? And yet, one of the greatest mysteries in all of history revolves around two missing princes who were last seen in the Tower of London. Nearly five hundred years later, an inspector from Scotland Yard named Alan Grant decides to take on the case. Can the inspector solve the ultimate cold case? Josephine Tey tells the tale of the detective and the mystery of the Princes in the Tower in her most famous novel, “The Daughter of Time.”

I have heard of this novel since I started my blog, but I never read it until now. I decided that it was time after it was announced that there was going to be a play adaptation of this novel. All I knew about this book was that it had something to do with the Princes in the Tower and Richard III, but I did not know the extent.

Tey begins with a bored Inspector Alan Grant staring at the ceiling as he lies immobilized in a hospital recovering from a broken leg. He has a stack of books to read, given to him by the nurses nicknamed the Midget and the Amazon, but none of them have caught his interest. One day, his actress friend Marta Hallard comes for a visit and convinces Grant to investigate a historical mystery. She brings copies of historical portraits, and Grant’s attention immediately goes to the one of Richard III. This portrait will propel Grant to investigate the mystery of the Princes in the Tower and prove Richard III’s innocence.

While I do see why this book is so beloved by Ricardians, it took me a while to get used to the dialogue in this novel, as I don’t read books from the 1950s. It was interesting to see the logic of Grant’s arguments for Richard III to be proved innocent, as someone who has no connection to history, but as an inspector. Personally, my favorite character in this novel is Brent Carradine, an American history student who helps Grant with his investigation.

Overall, it was a decent novel that investigates the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower from the perspective of someone who is not a history nerd. It is a well-researched novel for the information that was available at the time, which will appeal to novices and experts alike. If you want a novel with a different approach to the Princes in the Tower, I recommend you read “The Daughter of Time” by Josephine Tey.