This is Frances Burnett's best. She also wrote Little Lord Fauntleroy, The Little Princess and The Secret Garden. But this one has more substance to it than any of those, much as I liked them.
Marco Loristan and his father, and his father's faithful attendant Lazarus from his days as a soldier, are Samavians in exile. Samavia is a small country apparently in the Alps, which has had a bloody 500 year history of civil strife. It started when a king of the Fedorovitch dynasty, who had been wasteful and self-indulgent, was killed and his son, Prince Ivor, could not be found. Indeed, it was speculated that his own father had ordered him killed. So the two largest houses, Maranovitch and Iarovitch, began a fighting over the crown that lasted, growing hot and then cold, for some 500 years.
In fact, Ivor Fedorovitch was attacked but not killed, and sought refuge in a monastery near the border, where he rested and healed up, and realized that he could not return to the capital without a substantial army to route out the usurpers, and at 16, he was too young for that.
So Prince Ivor came to be known as the Lost Prince, who traveled incognito and who passed the secret of his royal claim down from father to son. We learn this story at the beginning of the book, but for some reason Burnett continues the myth that "nobody knows" who the Lost Prince is, but that there always will be one. He will be trained by his father to be prepared to assume the thrown whenever Samavia should call for him.
Now, we learn this story at the beginning, and we learn also that Marco's very dignified and intelligent father has been training him for all these years to live up to the oath he made as a very young child: "The sword in my hand -- for Samavia! The heart in my breast -- for Samavia! The swiftness of my sight, the thought of my brain, the life of my life -- for Samavia. Here grows a man for Samavia. God be thanked."
Marco and his "aide-de-camp," a crippled boy who is never given any other name than The Rat, are sent across Europe to pass the message along to a secret society that "The Lamp is Lighted," a signal for those who have been stock-piling weapons and supplies. When he finds the people he was meant to pass the message to and they uniformly say "God be thanked," they are in awe of Marco, bow to him and treat him with the highest respect.
And yet Burnett chooses to pretend that the readers do not realize that Marco's father, Stefan Loristan, is in fact the direct descendant of Ivor Fedorovitch and ought to be king. Perhaps she thought it would be good for the readers to guess right long before Marco himself did. But we understand that Marco is a very intelligent lad, and so it does not add up that he didn't add it up.
In spite of this one anomalous blind spot in Marco, this is a marvelous story of adventure, one at least as appropriate for adults as for children. Indeed, I think the concepts involved would confuse a child who is not a strong reader already.
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Join or create book clubs
Choose books together
Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
| Price | New from | Used from |
|
Audible Audiobook, Unabridged
"Please retry" |
$0.00
| Free with your Audible trial | |
| Paperback, January 1, 1996 | $6.63 | — | $1.38 |
|
Audio CD, Audiobook, CD, Unabridged
"Please retry" | $81.00 | $47.00 |
|
Textbook Binding
"Please retry" |
—
| — | $98.00 |
- Read with Kindle Unlimited to also enjoy access to over 4 million more titles
-
Audiobook
$0.00 - 1 New from $15.99
- 12 Used from $1.38
- 1 Used from $47.00 1 New from $81.00
- 1 Used from $98.00
Discover the latest buzz-worthy books, from mysteries and romance to humor and nonfiction. Explore more
Similar items that may deliver to you quickly
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
About the author
Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Reviews with images
Submit a report
A few common reasons customers report reviews:
- Harassment, profanity
- Spam, advertisement, promotions
- Given in exchange for cash, discounts
When we get your report, we'll check if the review meets our Community guidelines. If it doesn't, we'll remove it.
Sorry, there was an error
Please try again later.
Top reviews from other countries
Henk Beentje
... less exciting for new readers! Dated 1915 thriller
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 5, 2012
