Heinemann, London 1959

What a wonderful little jewel of a book! Josephine Tey must have been a very popular author at her time and this book shows exactly why.
Detective Grant is confined to a hospital bed because of a leg problem and bored to death. Although well-meaning friends have brought him a pile of novels to read, he is not in the least interested in any of them. When an actress and good friend brings him photos of famous people, Richard III among them, he is fascinated by the villain´s portrait and wants to know more about him.

With the help of his nurse he delves into popular history books, but they cannot give him the answer, why this king was such a scoundrel. The actress sends a young American friend to help him with his research. Together they discover that contrary to historical lore, Richard III was a benign ruler, albeit for a short time, untill he was killed by the later Edward VII.

The young American is so thrilled by their discovery that he plans to write a book about the real Richard III, only to find out that other historians before him have done exactly that, without being able to change popular views about the tragic king. The title of the book is the motto for the story: “Truth is the Daughter of Time”. A fascinating read, full of humour and humanity.