Or, My Thoughts On Mark Garber’s Book

Back Cover Blurb:

For centuries one great historical crime mystery has been capturing the imagination of the world – the fate of the Princes in the Tower.

Shakespeare casts Richard III as the ultimate villain, murdering his nephews in order to usurp the throne. This has always been the traditional view. In recent years alternative theories have been suggested that let Richard III off the hook and lay the blame elsewhere. However, with the recent discovery of Richard III’s body in Leicester a whole new wave of interest has been stirred in all things related to Richard III. Was he really the child killer portrayed by Thomas More and William Shakespeare?

In this short book a retired detective reopens this true crime cold case and attempts to piece together the evidence and answer the great historical crime mystery about what really happened to the young Princes in the Tower.

Were they really murdered? If so, what happened to the bodies and who did the evil deed? Or were they left unharmed and left to live out their days in peace? Was a challenging offered up in place of Richard, Duke of York by Elizabeth Woodville and was that why Henry VII was so concerned by Perkin Warbeck? How much did the sister of the Princes and Henry VII’s wife Elizabeth of York actually know about this true crime.

As the author delves deeper into the evidence he finds intriguing facts including doubts about dental evidence used to determine the ages of the skeletons found in the Tower of London, the fact that skeletons were abandoned for years in the Tower after their discovery and details of two mysterious coffins buried at Winsor.

In addition, he highlights the key suspect that no historian seems to even contemplate could be responsible for the Princes disappearance.

Finally he gathers the suspects in one room to revel what he believes really happened. The question is, do you agree?

My Thoughts:

I have been obsessed recently with the mystery of the princes in the tower and the role their uncle, Richard III, played in their deaths. Garber, as a former detective, has a very logical and evidence-centric approach to the case, which I really enjoyed. His conclusion makes a lot of sense and ::spoiler alert:: his prime suspect is not Richard III. Though, because of the lack of real evidence, any of the major players of the time could have been responsible for the boys’ murder, so I don’t think the case will ever be fully solved. In some ways, that makes the mystery more intriguing and frustrating.

If you like true crime stories from history, you’ll enjoy this brief take on the famous case.

<3 Anna