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Tournament of Time
In England, Jessica and her two brothers meet the spirits of the Princes in the Tower and struggle to solve their centuries-old murder mystery while trying to deal with English hostility from their classmates toward foreigners.
125 pages, Paperback
First published October 30, 1994
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About the author
Elaine Marie Alphin
27 books29 followersI was born on 30 October 1955 in San Francisco, California, and attended Lafayette Elementary School in San Francisco. Then my family moved to New York City, where I attended William H. Carr Junior High School. This is a school picture of me from my junior high school days. After that we moved to Houston, and I went to Westchester High School and on to Rice University.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 5, 2021
When her father accepts a one-year position as a professor of Tudor Studies at the University of York, Jess and her two brothers are forced to move there. The other girls at school make fun of Jess as a “stuck-up American” and she is desperately homesick. Her brothers fare no better at their boys’ school.
After an outburst during a history class, Jess flees and is drawn to All Saints Church in York. There, she weeps her heart out and her sobs are interrupted by a small voice telling her that her tears won’t help. “ Truly, I know—I wish to go home, too.” The voice belongs to Neddy, the spirt of Richard III’s son, who is trapped in a stained glass window. Neddy explains that he lived and was buried at Middleham, but then things changed. Someone, he knows not how, pulled him out and locked him in a glass image of himself. When Neddy says he only wants to go home to Middleham and he knows that his Papa wants him home, another voice screams, Usurper ... Tyrant’s son! Murderer’s son!”
Neddy shouts back to Cousin Edward that his Papa was no murderer. For also trapped in stained glass panels are the spirits of the haughty, arrogant Edward V and the much friendlier spirit of his younger brother Dickon. At this point, Jess’s brothers Trent and Evan come into the church and they also hear the voices, and have a special affinity for the spirit of the child who is comparably aged: Trent with the Edward V; Jess with Neddy; and, Evan with Dickon.
That night at home, there is a terrible lightening storm and Jess is visited by a dark, threatening spirit warning her the spirits in the glass images are not her friends and to leave them alone. She believes that it is the murderer’s spirit. Trent —who seems to have taken on Edward’s spirit, assumes it must be Richard of Gloucester.
The three children return to the church and learn from Edward and Dickon that they were murdered at Sheriff Hutton—not at the Tower of London, and that their spirits, too, were entrapped in the glass images. Edward believes the murderer was his hated uncle Richard of Gloucester, although Dickon does not. The three homesick children promise to help these homesick spirits escape from the glass and go home.
The three children begin to believe that the spirits are trying to take them over as near fatal accidents happen to Trent at Sheriff Hutton and to Jess at Middleham. Evan believes that the only way to get rid of the spirits is to take them where they want to be. Since Edward thinks he belongs in London, Evan manages to take the three glass panels from All Saints Church and brings them to London. (They will eventually take Neddy’s panel to Middleham.). However, they discover when they are in the Henry VII chapel at Westminster Abbey that it is the murderer who wanted them delivered to him so he can destroy them. (Hint: I guess you can figure out who the murderer is?)
With two English friends that they have made, the children set off to bring the glass images to Sheriff Hutton, for it is Edward V’s tomb that is there—not Neddy’s. The murderer chucked Neddy out to make way for his cousin to make people believe that the princes were murdered in the Tower by their uncle. Edward says he belonged in London where he would have been crowned king. Dickon tell his brother he is wrong. “Five hundred years ago we belonged there, but only for a short while. You cannot pick your home like a whining babe—home is where you belong, where your friends are, where a family cares for you and worries over you. We were together [in Yorkshire], and our uncle cared for us and his people were kind to us. Our home was in Yorkshire. And that is where our home is now. We must rest here.”
But the malevolent spirit of the murderer stalks the children, both living and dead, to prevent them from carrying out their plan which might lead to the discovery of his guilt. However, he is challenged by another spirit who wishes to protect them, none other than Richard of Gloucester.
The book is not without some flaws. For instance, in the first couple of pages, Jess’s history teacher talks about the abdication of Edward VI—it was Edward VIII who abdicated, not Henry VIII’s son. The hocus pocus is a little heavy-handed—but it is a book aimed at children after all. But the rousing ending where Richard appears and defends the children against the murderer more than makes up for these shortcomings.
After an outburst during a history class, Jess flees and is drawn to All Saints Church in York. There, she weeps her heart out and her sobs are interrupted by a small voice telling her that her tears won’t help. “ Truly, I know—I wish to go home, too.” The voice belongs to Neddy, the spirt of Richard III’s son, who is trapped in a stained glass window. Neddy explains that he lived and was buried at Middleham, but then things changed. Someone, he knows not how, pulled him out and locked him in a glass image of himself. When Neddy says he only wants to go home to Middleham and he knows that his Papa wants him home, another voice screams, Usurper ... Tyrant’s son! Murderer’s son!”
Neddy shouts back to Cousin Edward that his Papa was no murderer. For also trapped in stained glass panels are the spirits of the haughty, arrogant Edward V and the much friendlier spirit of his younger brother Dickon. At this point, Jess’s brothers Trent and Evan come into the church and they also hear the voices, and have a special affinity for the spirit of the child who is comparably aged: Trent with the Edward V; Jess with Neddy; and, Evan with Dickon.
That night at home, there is a terrible lightening storm and Jess is visited by a dark, threatening spirit warning her the spirits in the glass images are not her friends and to leave them alone. She believes that it is the murderer’s spirit. Trent —who seems to have taken on Edward’s spirit, assumes it must be Richard of Gloucester.
The three children return to the church and learn from Edward and Dickon that they were murdered at Sheriff Hutton—not at the Tower of London, and that their spirits, too, were entrapped in the glass images. Edward believes the murderer was his hated uncle Richard of Gloucester, although Dickon does not. The three homesick children promise to help these homesick spirits escape from the glass and go home.
The three children begin to believe that the spirits are trying to take them over as near fatal accidents happen to Trent at Sheriff Hutton and to Jess at Middleham. Evan believes that the only way to get rid of the spirits is to take them where they want to be. Since Edward thinks he belongs in London, Evan manages to take the three glass panels from All Saints Church and brings them to London. (They will eventually take Neddy’s panel to Middleham.). However, they discover when they are in the Henry VII chapel at Westminster Abbey that it is the murderer who wanted them delivered to him so he can destroy them. (Hint: I guess you can figure out who the murderer is?)
With two English friends that they have made, the children set off to bring the glass images to Sheriff Hutton, for it is Edward V’s tomb that is there—not Neddy’s. The murderer chucked Neddy out to make way for his cousin to make people believe that the princes were murdered in the Tower by their uncle. Edward says he belonged in London where he would have been crowned king. Dickon tell his brother he is wrong. “Five hundred years ago we belonged there, but only for a short while. You cannot pick your home like a whining babe—home is where you belong, where your friends are, where a family cares for you and worries over you. We were together [in Yorkshire], and our uncle cared for us and his people were kind to us. Our home was in Yorkshire. And that is where our home is now. We must rest here.”
But the malevolent spirit of the murderer stalks the children, both living and dead, to prevent them from carrying out their plan which might lead to the discovery of his guilt. However, he is challenged by another spirit who wishes to protect them, none other than Richard of Gloucester.
The book is not without some flaws. For instance, in the first couple of pages, Jess’s history teacher talks about the abdication of Edward VI—it was Edward VIII who abdicated, not Henry VIII’s son. The hocus pocus is a little heavy-handed—but it is a book aimed at children after all. But the rousing ending where Richard appears and defends the children against the murderer more than makes up for these shortcomings.
March 28, 2021
Tournament of Time
By Elaine Marie Alphin
Reviewed March 28, 2021
Tournament of Time is a young person’s book. Published in 2011, it a blend of fantasy and history. Coming in at 125 pages, it is quick and easy to read, and entertaining, too.
Jess Cooper is going through a difficult time. She and her brothers Trent and Evan have accompanied their parents to York where her father has accepted a one-year position as professor of Tudor Studies at the University of York, and Jess is having trouble fitting in. She misses her friends back in Texas. She doesn’t like going to an all-girls school. She doesn’t like having to wear the school uniform. And she doesn’t get along with her teacher and classmates. In short, she’s homesick.
One day, she lets her temper get the better of her and walks out of class after a verbal disagreement with the teacher. She leaves the school and wanders York for a bit, then remembers All Saints, an old church she and her brothers had previously come across. So she head to the church for privacy and a bit of a pity party.
Inside the quite, empty church, she lets go of her pent up emotions, crying her eyes out, when a voice says to her, “Pray, stop crying, it in no wise helps. Truly, I know—I wish to go home, too.”
To her amazement, it turns out she is speaking to a spirit trapped in one of the church’s stained glass windows. And this isn’t just any random spirit; it is the spirit of Neddy, Richard of Gloucester’s son Edward of Middleham.
And it turns out his isn’t the only spirit trapped in the stained glass windows. In addition to Neddy, there’s Edward V and his brother, Dickon. Neddy says he doesn’t know how he got here; he just wants to go back home to Middleham. Dickon expresses similar desires, not so much to go to Middleham, but to be released from the window.
Edward is a bit more of a snob, but then again he was raised thinking he would be king one day. As one person in the story says, “They treated him like a king when he (Edward V) was a kid, and I think he just turned into a spoiled brat. Maybe he would have grown out of it, if he'd had the chance to grow up.” Sounds like a reasonable explanation to me. He also blames his Uncle Richard for murdering him, and naturally that upsets Neddy, who insists his father would never have done such a thing.
Jess wonders if she’s imagining all this, but when her brothers come looking for her and find her at the church, they, too, hear the spirits talking to them. When the boys speak to the spirits, they development an attachment – Trent with Edward V, Evan with Dickon, and Jess with Neddy. In talking to them, Jess and her brothers learn that while Edward is sure it was his uncle who smothered them, they have no idea who the real murderer was or how they came to be trapped in the windows. All they want is to go home, and ask Jess and her brothers to help.
The kids’ father is happy that his children are showing an interest in history, especially a period he is familiar with, and they plan a family trip to Sheriff Hutton and Middleham – places the spirits in the windows spoke of. Before they go, there’s a violent thunderstorm one night and Jess is visited by a malevolent spirit.
“Through the uncovered skylight, Jess could see a vague form taking shape in the lightning flashes, a dark form, bending down toward her out of the night… "Go home!" the voice thundered, shaking the walls around her.”
Jess is sure this is the spirit of the murderer and at first thinks it is Gloucester…but is it?
And so we start on an adventure with Jess and her brothers, and two new friends they make, that takes them to the ruins of the castle at Sheriff Hutton, the church where tradition says Richard’s son Neddy is buried, to Middleham Castle, and to London and Westminster Abbey. Throughout their journey, trying to reunite the spirits to the places they belong, Jess and company have to deal with setbacks and vicious attacks by the murderer’s spirit, with the children coming to the conclusion that Richard of Gloucester couldn’t have been the perpetrator of such crimes. (Anyone want to guess the villain’s identity?)
Things come to a head when a new spirit shows up. It is All Hallow’s Eve, when spirits can cross from their world to ours, and this new spirit has come to set things to rights. And yes, there’s a sweet ending.
I found Tournament of Time a fast-paced adventure with ghosts and a nice dose of history. That the history involved the mystery of the Princes in the Tower and Richard III only made it that much better. The book’s intended audience is young teens, but this adult enjoyed very much.
There is one glaring error, though. Jess’s teacher continually refers to the abdication of Edward VI. Sorry, Teach, but you should know better, that it was Edward VII who abdicated. Edward VI was Henry VIII’s son and died young. But that had little to do with the story itself (other than to serve as the history assignment given to Jess) and so didn’t interfere with the plot.
By Elaine Marie Alphin
Reviewed March 28, 2021
Tournament of Time is a young person’s book. Published in 2011, it a blend of fantasy and history. Coming in at 125 pages, it is quick and easy to read, and entertaining, too.
Jess Cooper is going through a difficult time. She and her brothers Trent and Evan have accompanied their parents to York where her father has accepted a one-year position as professor of Tudor Studies at the University of York, and Jess is having trouble fitting in. She misses her friends back in Texas. She doesn’t like going to an all-girls school. She doesn’t like having to wear the school uniform. And she doesn’t get along with her teacher and classmates. In short, she’s homesick.
One day, she lets her temper get the better of her and walks out of class after a verbal disagreement with the teacher. She leaves the school and wanders York for a bit, then remembers All Saints, an old church she and her brothers had previously come across. So she head to the church for privacy and a bit of a pity party.
Inside the quite, empty church, she lets go of her pent up emotions, crying her eyes out, when a voice says to her, “Pray, stop crying, it in no wise helps. Truly, I know—I wish to go home, too.”
To her amazement, it turns out she is speaking to a spirit trapped in one of the church’s stained glass windows. And this isn’t just any random spirit; it is the spirit of Neddy, Richard of Gloucester’s son Edward of Middleham.
And it turns out his isn’t the only spirit trapped in the stained glass windows. In addition to Neddy, there’s Edward V and his brother, Dickon. Neddy says he doesn’t know how he got here; he just wants to go back home to Middleham. Dickon expresses similar desires, not so much to go to Middleham, but to be released from the window.
Edward is a bit more of a snob, but then again he was raised thinking he would be king one day. As one person in the story says, “They treated him like a king when he (Edward V) was a kid, and I think he just turned into a spoiled brat. Maybe he would have grown out of it, if he'd had the chance to grow up.” Sounds like a reasonable explanation to me. He also blames his Uncle Richard for murdering him, and naturally that upsets Neddy, who insists his father would never have done such a thing.
Jess wonders if she’s imagining all this, but when her brothers come looking for her and find her at the church, they, too, hear the spirits talking to them. When the boys speak to the spirits, they development an attachment – Trent with Edward V, Evan with Dickon, and Jess with Neddy. In talking to them, Jess and her brothers learn that while Edward is sure it was his uncle who smothered them, they have no idea who the real murderer was or how they came to be trapped in the windows. All they want is to go home, and ask Jess and her brothers to help.
The kids’ father is happy that his children are showing an interest in history, especially a period he is familiar with, and they plan a family trip to Sheriff Hutton and Middleham – places the spirits in the windows spoke of. Before they go, there’s a violent thunderstorm one night and Jess is visited by a malevolent spirit.
“Through the uncovered skylight, Jess could see a vague form taking shape in the lightning flashes, a dark form, bending down toward her out of the night… "Go home!" the voice thundered, shaking the walls around her.”
Jess is sure this is the spirit of the murderer and at first thinks it is Gloucester…but is it?
And so we start on an adventure with Jess and her brothers, and two new friends they make, that takes them to the ruins of the castle at Sheriff Hutton, the church where tradition says Richard’s son Neddy is buried, to Middleham Castle, and to London and Westminster Abbey. Throughout their journey, trying to reunite the spirits to the places they belong, Jess and company have to deal with setbacks and vicious attacks by the murderer’s spirit, with the children coming to the conclusion that Richard of Gloucester couldn’t have been the perpetrator of such crimes. (Anyone want to guess the villain’s identity?)
Things come to a head when a new spirit shows up. It is All Hallow’s Eve, when spirits can cross from their world to ours, and this new spirit has come to set things to rights. And yes, there’s a sweet ending.
I found Tournament of Time a fast-paced adventure with ghosts and a nice dose of history. That the history involved the mystery of the Princes in the Tower and Richard III only made it that much better. The book’s intended audience is young teens, but this adult enjoyed very much.
There is one glaring error, though. Jess’s teacher continually refers to the abdication of Edward VI. Sorry, Teach, but you should know better, that it was Edward VII who abdicated. Edward VI was Henry VIII’s son and died young. But that had little to do with the story itself (other than to serve as the history assignment given to Jess) and so didn’t interfere with the plot.
December 24, 2021
A wonderful YA historical fiction. I enjoyed it immensely. Just keep in mind that it was written for grade school level readers.
This book was on my shelf for a few years at least. Its an old stained former library copy, a paperback first edition from 1994.
An exciting story, full of suspense, even for this old library lady. I love learning history in fiction!
This book was on my shelf for a few years at least. Its an old stained former library copy, a paperback first edition from 1994.
An exciting story, full of suspense, even for this old library lady. I love learning history in fiction!
May 14, 2021
YA book by my high school friend, Elaine. Mike got a copy of this for me, and it is autographed.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 1, 2014
History Miss-tery
The Kindle sample was just a couple of pages; however, when the book opens in history class and not once but three times the history mistress states that Edward VI abdicated (he didn't - he died young), I don't have enough faith to plunk down the $2.99 for the rest of the book.
It sounds like a great premise, both as a ghost story and an historical Who-Done-It. But a Kindle Sample is supposed to give me an idea of what I'm literally buying into and this book obviously needs some factual editing to make purchase worthwhile.
Should such editing occur I would be glad to hear it and read it, as well as update this review.
The Kindle sample was just a couple of pages; however, when the book opens in history class and not once but three times the history mistress states that Edward VI abdicated (he didn't - he died young), I don't have enough faith to plunk down the $2.99 for the rest of the book.
It sounds like a great premise, both as a ghost story and an historical Who-Done-It. But a Kindle Sample is supposed to give me an idea of what I'm literally buying into and this book obviously needs some factual editing to make purchase worthwhile.
Should such editing occur I would be glad to hear it and read it, as well as update this review.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews