Julian Rathbone
1997, Little, Brown & Co.
The Last English King is a historical fiction novel that tells the tale of the last two English (i.e. Anglo-Saxon) kings before the Norman conquest in 1066. We get to read about the last few decades of Edward the confessor's life as well as Harold's rise to power and eventual demise.
The Characters
The story is told mainly through the recollection of Walt, one of Harold's retainers. Years after the invasion, Walt is a wayfarer in the Mediterranean, sharing his story with a Quint, a traveler and amateur philosopher.
The two characters present wildly different perspectives, as Walt is a down-trodden Englishman who can only be described as a broken man, while Quint is optimistic and argumentative.
They eventually come into the service of a wealthy Jewish trader that seems to keep changing names throughout the story.
The Setup
Since the main story, that of the Norman Invasion, is told through recollections, we sometimes get isolated accounts of particular events in Edward's, Harold's, or Walt's lives that may have decade-long gaps between them.
As well, there are entire chapters dedicated to the "present-day" narrative of Walt and Quint going about their travels.
At first, this back and forth can be a little disorienting, but eventually the parallels between the present-day events and Walt's account become clearer.
What I Liked
There is a lot of ground to cover between the end of Edward's reign and the Norman Invasion, so I liked that there were gaps in between the accounts. Otherwise, the novel would be three times as long as it is.
The nods to contemporary sensibilities and media (there are a few references to rock songs, for example) make it easy the chapters easy to digest.
The dichotomy between the two main characters, Walt and Quint offers a well-rounded perspective on the events of the Invasion, as well as good variety in the present-day happenings.
What I Didn't Like
There isn't much, honestly. I could go on about how there are some inferences and assumptions that the author makes about historical figures, but that's the name of the game.
I did find, however, that some of the characters, especially Quint, were a bit too contemporary for my liking. There is a part where Quint refers to Freud when debating with someone. That was a bit jarring. Spoilers, oops.
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