Customer Reviews
Fine biography of an unfairly forgotten figure - By: Duncan, 10 Aug 2008 
Ian Mortimer does a grand jobin shining a light on a dark corner of English history. I first came across the notorious Roger Mortimer years ago as a kid when my father took me on a guided trip to 'Mortimer's Hole', Roger's hiding place at Nottingham Castle. There wasn't much said about Roger, just that he murdered King Edward II & ruled the realm before being undonein 1330 by the young Edward III. Ian Mortimer puts flesh on his bones here, with a meticulously researched account of his life with some compelling detail [such as Roger's grandfather keeping Simon de Montfort's head as a souvenir]and well drawn portraits of Roger & his supporting cast - Aymer de Valence, for example, emerges as a fascinating character.
Ian Mortimer convincingly puts Roger's alleged villainy into context & makes us sympathise with him & the actions he took against an incompetent & inadequate ruler. The self-interested & sort-sighted acts of Edward II & the other members of the ruling order remind us that a corrupt political elite is far from a recent phenomenon.
The book is excellent throughout, but perhaps Ian Mortimer overeggs the pudding with his insistent support for the conspiracy theory that Edward II survived his stintin Berkley Castle & lived on for yearsin exilein Italy. I suppose this does help to put a new angle on the story & there just may be somethingin it, but I don't think the evidence as displayed here is really convincing. Similar stories have been circulated about a number of historical figures [Richard II during his usurper Henry IV's reign & Richard Duke of York during Henry VII's time], but all make more sense as opportunist political plots. Edward II's alleged survival doesn't seem to me any more likely. But whether you buy the revisionism or not, this a well-written & fascinating book.
Excellent - By: Frozenmop, 09 May 2008 
This is an amazing story brilliantly told. Its got all the ingredients of a soap (gay lovers, affairs, estranged family, murder...) but is a true story. I loved reading this book. Only downside was when I had finished it!
Yay! - By: A. N. Tighe, 16 Feb 2008 A real page turner- I couldnt put it down. Well done Ian Mortimer!
He makes Roger Mortimer more human & goes into incredible detail on his early life. I started reading this book thinking that R Mortimer was a traitor who deserved his death but now upon finishing it- have an enormous amount of sympathy.
Good but flawed... - By: Two Tone, 24 May 2004 
This is a well-written & researched account of a periodin English history that has been somewhat overlooked but I think that the author strains credulity when he moves off what is known from the documents & states speculation as fact.
His assumumption that the relationship between Isabella & Roger was a love affair rather than a political marriage of convenience seems both a jump too far & irrelevant (particularly as he specifically avoids speculation as to whether or not Edward himself was gay). More importantly, his thesis that Edward II didn't diein Berkeley Castle doesn't seem convincing (to me at least).
Nevertheless, worth reading.
Bloody good read! - By: LYNN E GILL, 03 Feb 2004 "The Greatest Traitor" gives new meaning to how to get a head! It also provides great insight into lifein medieval England, with all the politics & intrigue of a gay king, Roger's escape from the Tower of London & his liasion with Queen Isabella, & the colorful method of doingin King Edward II. Ian Mortimer has taken an interesting man & era, & written a compelling book that is impossible to put down.
