To write a biography of Edward V is difficult. Only a child when he vanished, Edward never had time to do anything; his entire life was spent being done unto. But who was doing unto him? This question almost certainly cannot be answered definitively. We may suspect Richard III of murdering his nephew. Certainly Richard created the conditions which led to Edward V's death. On this point, Michael Hicks gathers overwhelming evidence. But once he has gathered it, it seems to me that he loses his grip on the material. Was Richard III guilty of killing his nephews? Probably. Can we prove it? No. Do we know what Richard was thinking? No. Does that make him a monster? Well -- maybe. Sadly, that word "maybe" seems to occupy a very small place in this book. If this were half of a debate, balanced by a pro-Richard biographer, this would be a noteworthy contribution. Without that balance, it strikes me as regrettably one-sided. ( )

Michael Hicks's straightforward thinking and line of logical argument are a relief straight after reading David Baldwin's book The Lost Prince. Nevertheless, this book does not really succeed in its aim of being the first modern biography of Edward V. There is simply not enough known about Edward V as an individual whose actions and motivations can be analysed until the death of his father and the last few months of his life. Much of the book is a rather dry analysis of property transactions between members of the nobility and what this may show about shifting balances of power between the various factions. It is noticeable how much more readable it gets when it adopts a narrative approach after Edward IV's death. ( )

Memorable not for his life but his death, Edward V is probably better known as one of the Princes in the Tower, the supposed victim of his uncle, Richard III. Though he was never crowned, Edward reigned for 77 days until Richard made himself his nephew’s Lord Protector before imprisoning him and his younger brother Richard in the Tower of London. Michael Hicks presents to us the backdrop to this tragically short life—Edward’s parents, the contemporary political scenery, his own remarkable achievements—and reveals how he was both the hope of a dynasty and an integral cause of that dynasty’s collapse.
Michael Hicks is Professor of History at King Alfred’s College, Winchester. He has written extensively on medieval England and is regarded by many as the leading expert on the Yorkist dynasty. ( )