12 JANUARY 1929, Page 29

KING OF SHADOWS. By Margaret Yeo. (Sliced and Ward. 7s

6d.)-Students of history will disagree as to the validity of Miss Yeo's claim that her hero, James the Pretender- caricatured, according to her, by Thackeray in Henry Esmond -was inspired in his attempts for the throne of England by a sincere religious enthusiasm that warred with his natural desire for tranquillity. But Miss Yeo - is so persuasive an advocate and weaves so delicately the web of romance, that we are willing, for the time being, to =yield our judgment to hers, and to enjoy for its own sake a very charming story.