The Player King by Avi- 3 Stars!

Today's Tea Choice: Celestial Seasoning’s Eggnogg’n

Trigger Warnings: abuse, war violence (Medieval)

Genre: YA Historical Fiction

Pages: 208

Summary(goodreads.com):

From Newbery Award–winning author Avi comes the gripping and amazingly true tale of a boy plucked from the gutter to become the King of England. England, 1486. King Henry VII has recently snatched the English Crown and now sits on the throne, while young Prince Edward, who has a truer claim, has apparently disappeared. Meanwhile, a penniless kitchen boy named Lambert Simnel is slaving away at a tavern in Oxford—until a mysterious friar, Brother Simonds, buys Lambert from the tavern keeper and whisks him away in the dead of night. But this is nothing compared to the secret that the friar reveals: You, Lambert, are actually Prince Edward, the true King of England!

With the aid of the deceitful Earl of Lincoln, Brother Simonds sets out to teach the boy how to become the rightful English king. Lambert has everything to gain and nothing to lose, or so he thinks. Yet in this dangerous battle for the throne, Lambert is not prepared for what’s to come—or for what it really means to play at being a king.

My Review:

Hi Everyone! It’s been a while since I posted. I’ve been dealing with some fibromyalgia and migraine struggles, but I’ve also opened an Etsy shop, which you can check out here!

As many of you know, I am a huge fan of Avi’s work, especially his historical fiction work, so I had to check this out. While the novel utilizes some excellent devices, the book also struggled in terms of plot.

What I loved:

POV:  The main plot of this novel is similar to Crispin (see next device) in which a poor orphan learns he is destined for greater things. However, there is a manipulative backstory that readers find out later on, which was a fascinating premise! The plot also progressed well without extra exposition, and I appreciate that the main battle scenes weren’t too gruesome.

Setting/Historical Context:  The setting was richly described, just like many different Avi novels. The reader instantly feels as if they are in medieval times alongside Lambert, the protagonist. Avi utilizes sensory descriptions like smells and sights to transport the reader to this brutal time. The setting also shows how hard it was to survive, especially if you were an orphan. The premise reminded me the Crispin series by Avi, which was also reviewed on this blog.

Characters:  The main character is an orphan boy named Lambert, who doesn’t remember anything about his parents. He was always a kitchen servant, and it’s all he knows. In this respect, the character lacked in depth that I’ve come to expect with other Avi novels. Lambert’s only thoughts stem from poverty, but I wish we saw some curiosity or other relatable traits.

Dialogue: The dialogue was also well written with authentic language usage and minimal tags.

What Needed Improvement:

While this book was interesting, I didn’t find it as enjoyable or impactful as other Avi novels. However, I appreciated the main themes of following blind orders along with the consequences. It was a bit too simple in it’s approach, and I wish there was more to the overall plot.

Authors Can Learn:

-          The value of research, especially in medieval settings

-          How to write authentic dialogue with minimal tags

-          How to incorporate a main theme/lesson without being too preachy.

Readers Will Love This For: an interesting Medieval power struggle and a young boy is caught in the middle of it!

I give this book 3 stars.

Kyla