The King at the Edge of the World

Praise

“A rich, old-fashioned spy thriller set in Elizabethan England . . . Its plot is an intricate set of intersecting mechanisms and locks and keys, which, when they finally all fall into place, provide the reader with the gawping satisfaction of having been well and truly fooled . . . Sentence by sentence, the book blends the leanness of a taut thriller with the marbled fatness of Elizabethan prose.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
“Darkly entertaining . . . Phillips writes with such breadth, intelligence and wit . . . The novel is brilliant—textured, witty and Shakespeare-deep with palace intrigue, lust, conspiracy, xenophobia and Iago-level villainy.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune

“Arthur Phillips fans will recognize—and new readers will thrill to—the immersive mix of erudition, brio, and heart in The King at the Edge of the World. Phillips is an original—and in top form.”—Jennifer Egan

“Terrifically engaging . . . [a] rich historical novel.”—The Washington Post
 
“A rare combination of literary finesse and quick-paced plot—and another triumph from the versatile Phillips. . . . One is reminded of Hilary Mantel’s magisterial Wolf Hall but perhaps more pointedly of Graham Greene’s novels.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
 
“Highly recommended . . . truly original . . . The indefatigably imaginative Phillips . . . offers historical fiction with aching contemporary overtones.”—Library Journal (starred review)
 
“[An] inventively multilayered novel . . . evoked in exquisite language full of subtle shadings. . . . Readers will flock to the latest from esteemed bestseller Phillips, whose signature literary prowess and nimble imagination remain ascendant.”—Booklist

“Phillips masterfully renders the period and packs the narrative with surprising twists. This clever, serpentine novel recalls the historical dramas of Hilary Mantel and the thrillers of John le Carré, and will reverberate in readers’ minds.”—Publishers Weekly