Reviews
New York Times Book Review – The Notable Books of 2020 – November 2020
“Intrigue and espionage fuel this delectable novel… “…set during the twilight of the reign of Elizabeth I and featuring a Muslim Ottoman physician who is enlisted in the machinations surrounding the choice of the queen’s successor. Intrigue and espionage fuel this delectable novel set during the twilight of the reign of Elizabeth I and featuring a Muslim Ottoman physician who is enlisted in the machinations surrounding the choice of the queen’s successor.
Star & Tribune – Feb 9, 2020
“Minnesota native Arthur Phillips writes with such breadth, intelligence and wit one wonders how he’s able to fit his imagination between the covers of a book. …Phillips is back at it, plopping us with his fine prose into a time and place that is shadowy, esoteric and darkly entertaining.”
The Washington Post (Ron Charles) – Feb 4, 2020
“Ezzedine is an ingenious foil for exploring the treacherous territory of Elizabethan England. He’s essentially a Turkish Gulliver, continually astonished by the strange ways of these backward people who treat him with such condescension even while depending on his medical knowledge.
Phillips laces Ezzedine’s sojourn in England with melancholy wit, but the novel’s real energy comes from its exploration of two related industries that flourished under Queen Elizabeth: theater and spycraft. “
Wall Street Journal – Feb 14, 2020
“…a cunning tale of espionage and court intrigue … The King at the Edge of the World” evokes flashes of Hilary Mantel, John le Carré and Graham Greene, but the wry, tricky plot that drives it is pure Arthur Phillips… there’s always more than meets the eye in an Arthur Phillips novel. Come for the plot and verbal alacrity, but remember that the play’s the thing.
Library Journal – Starred review, February 4, 2020
The indefatigably imaginative Phillips, whose works range from Prague, about Budapest, to The Tragedy of Arthur, which contains a Shakespearean play written by Phillips, offers historical fiction with aching contemporary overtones. Highly recommended, especially for those knowledgeable about the period and for anyone who enjoys a truly original yarn.
Publishers Weekly
“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.”
