Anthony Horowitz, a first-class children’s novelist, has written a cracking historical adventure in the tale of one Thomas Falconer, an impoverished wretch whose destiny is crossed with that of Elizabeth I in The Devil and his Boy (Walker Pounds 9.99).
A wild escapade it may seem, but Horowitz has drawn many characters and some events from historical record and his thrilling text is enriched with layers of cultural and sociological references from the time.