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Loading... The Prince of Mirrorsby Alan Robert Clark
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Two young men with expectations. One predicted to succeed, the other to fail... Prince Albert Victor, heir presumptive to the British throne, is seen as disastrously inadequate to be king. The grandson of Queen Victoria, he is good-hearted but intensely shy and, some whisper, even slow-witted. By contrast, Jem Stephen is a renowned intellectual, a poet and a golden boy worshiped by all. But a looming curse of mental instability is threatening to take it all away. Appointed as the prince's personal tutor, Jem works to prepare him for the duty to come. A friendship grows between them--one that will allow them to understand and finally accept who they really are and change both of their lives forever. No library descriptions found. |
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It isn't perfect; some of Clark's writing is a bit too florid, with an excess of adjectives. But the main thing is that it enters very convincingly into Prince Eddy's mind; and not only his but also those of members of his family, and his friends. It tells his story from early childhood until his premature death, and really gets across how difficult it was for him to survive in a milieu so different from that which suited him. The theme of sexuality is sensitively and openly handled; and all the characters are treated sympathetically even if their flaws are on display. Achieving a credible new slant on royal characters is not easy, but Clark succeeds. I now intend to read 'Valhalla', Clark's book centred on Mary of Teck, who is an important character at the end of Eddy's life. ( )