The Lost King

Critics Review

• In almost the exact spot where Langley had first become convinced she was standing on top of Richard’s grave, a careful flick of a trowel revealed the leg bone of what would turn out to be the remains of the king, complete with the twisted, scoliosis spine so compellingly placed centre stage by Shakespeare. Now the remarkable story of King Richard’s life and death – and the amazing journey of the intuitive woman who never gave up believing that she would one day find his body – has been brought together in this fascinating and informative book

  Lancashire Evening Post

• A history-making book which I had trouble putting down

  Historical Novel Society

• It is being called once of the most significant finds in archaeological history, shedding light on a king’s last resting place and solving a 500-year old mystery over his death

  Daily Telegraph

• Archaeologists described the find as one of the most significant ‘in recent times’ and said history books will be rewritten

  Daily Mail

• Jones’s historical chapters are measured, reasonable and elegantly written

  Sunday Times

• [Philippa Langley] has just written a compelling book with historian and friend Michael Jones . . . It is cleverly constructed: in alternate chapters she tells the story of her quest, while Michael details the life of Richard colourfully. It reads like an up-all-night thriller

  Mail on Sunday

• This is the year that Richard III rose up from his unmarked grave in a Leicester car park, and this is the book that describes the painstaking quest for the king’s body, and the battle that destroyed him. Philippa Langley pursued his remains, Michael Jones pursued his reputation and together they have written a book which explains and defines the battle where he died, the grave that was lost, and the legend that followed him. This book is about an important excavation indeed, of the body from a lost grave, and of a king from a long libel

  Philippa Gregory

• The King’s Grave . . . reveals the remarkable story of how the remains came to be unearthed. And the result is a compelling portrayal of one of this century’s most important archaeological discoveries

  BBC History Magazine

• History at its most fascinating

  Books Monthly magazine

• [A] page-turner

  Current Archaeology

• Langley’s invaluable contribution to the investigation is undisputed; she envisioned, facilitated and drove it for years. Her confidential, breathy, diary-style chapters recreate the immediacy of the dig for the reader . . . The Search for Richard III makes for compelling reading

  TLS

• Interesting [and] engaging

  Daily Express

• The King’s Grave tells two remarkable stories in alternating chapters

  Wall Street Journal

• Fascinating

  Bookseller

• Jones’s cogent and nuanced narrative provides the historical ballast to Langley’s search

  Guardian