May We Feed the King
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By Rebecca Perry
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AN OBSERVER BEST DEBUT NOVELIST 2026
She is a curator, who spends her time dressing the rooms of historic buildings to bring them to life. But in the lush private quarters of a medieval palace, she finds herself so transfixed by the reign of an almost-forgotten King that the edges of her life begin to blur.
He is a reluctant ruler with no hunger for power, rushed to the throne after the untimely deaths of his older brothers. But it isn’t long before whispers begin to fly around the court. And with the growing belief that the King is not fit for the throne comes the idea that another might rule in his stead.
May We Feed the King dances between the lives of a historical subject who risks the future of his kingdom and a woman who turns to the past to hide from her present. Laced with desire and longing, it is a playful, stirring meditation on history and storytelling: on what makes a King ‘Great’, and a life meaningful.
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Playful, witty and thought provoking historical fiction with a difference. It asks how we know history by giving us glimpses of life in a medieval palace; and it asks questions about power, who has it and how should/could it be used? A truly original historical novel written with a deceptive simplicity.
