I read this when it first came out in 1971 (for some reason the paperback edition I now have is in two parts). It came close on the heels of reading Josephine Tey's "The Daughter of Time", and for many years I was a romantic Ricardian. Nowadays I think on balance he probably was quite ruthless and did indeed have poor little Ned and Dick killed. But I'm still fascinated by the period, was very excited when they discovered his bones in the car park, and went with a friend in a rainy March 2015 to stand in a wet Leicester street watching the long-delayed obsequies at Leicester Cathedral on a big screen. I think the romance lies in it being the end of the Middle Ages; soon Henry VII's son would strip us of our saints and shrines, our candles and prayers for our dead loved ones....
But to Ms Jarman's book. This is a really good, well-written, beautifully imagined historical novel. She avoids the knee-slapping fustian of "Gadzooks, my lord!", inventing a hybrid language between modern and medieval speech, which swings the story along: "Gardening is all of my pleasure now. It was ever more a joy than a duty, to watch the tender shoots burst forth in spring, and to know that I had a part of them, in the cold season".
There's a richness and immediacy to it all: the casting of weird spells to ensnare King Edward, the Maiden watching the far-off revels at Court from her draughty hiding place above, the old nun at the end casting her beautiful embroidery as a pall over the dead king...
Here Richard is portrayed as the verray parfit gentil knight. An alternative, what-might-have-been history.

The first in two books about Richard III, the first part from the point of view of a young girl in love with him, the second from the Fool.

The first part is narrated by the Nut-Brown Maid, a girl who falls in love with the young Richard. Through her eyes, we see the politics at the heart of the English court, as Richard's star ascends. The Maiden's life is forever changed by her relationship with Richard, ultimately showing him more loyalty than he shows her. The second part is narrated by Patch, the Fool, a gift from Edward to Duke Richard. Patch's narrative is not clouded by love, indeed he resents Richard for taking him away from court. While not as popular as Edward, Richard comes across as a serious man, who looks ahead.

The book was written in the '70s, and, despite the cover art of the copy I have being similar to that of books by Philippa Gregory, Jarman's work is less of a romance, rather more historical fiction. I found it an enjoyable read, interesting to see another side to one of Shakespeare's villains. One huge drawback is that there appear to only be 4 names in use in England at the time, so you really have to pay attention! ( )