The mystery cannot be solved like other cases where witnesses are interviewed and the crime scene is investigated, because Grant is bedridden with a broken leg and can only solve this mystery by reading history books and other documents. Grant uses other people while investigating unlike his other escapades where he goes about almost single-handedly.

Organization

The organization of the book is clear although it is from an omniscient point-of-view, writing from a third person making us see inside her characters and enabling us to understand them. Several of the characters are seen through Grant's eyes but he is not the only narrator of the story.

The author has a unique way of unfolding the historical facts through banter and dialogue at times being humorous and fascinating subject matter making the readers to be glued to her story. The story takes a twist from being just a detective story or historical fiction to become a historical investigation that is performed by fictional characters in a spellbinding and enjoyable manner.

Prejudice of the author

Prejudice is portrayed in various instances in the book. The author portrays that Alan Grant was obsessed in proving Richard's innocence. The types of sources that Thomas Moore used he dismissed them as rumors and hearsay. But these were the same sources he used in finding his perceived truth. There was lack of accurate information because the investigation was of a case that happened long time ago, and hearsay or rumors were the only source of information. Thus the author through his main character Alan Grant has a preformed opinion based on insufficient knowledge, and the obsession of proving that King Richard the third was innocent.

Author's conclusion

The author comes with a conclusion based on Alan's Grant findings that King Richard the third was not responsible for the death of his nephews. He had nothing to gain from their death, and thus creating no motive and coming up with a conclusion that he was not responsible. It is also established that Henry the seventh had vested interest in the murder of the two boys since he had no right to the crown and would benefit if they died.

According to the author, it is important...

Close attention should be on hidden meanings and other things that the writer has not made obvious to the reader. We should not always focus on the words that have been used but try and understand what the writer is trying to say.
As explained in Daughter of Time, all materials that Grant read were different from his perception of Richard the third. This can be attributed to the attitude of the writers towards Richard. A good example in the novel is where Thomas Moore accounts of Richard the third, came from John Morton who was Richard's bitter enemy.

Thus Thomas's account is considered biased. It is important to realize that some things about history may be written with biased opinion and it is vital to be able to distinguish what is credible and what is not (Bookrags). A broader perspective should be based on facts as opposed to the given story.

Effect of time on history

History is at times affected by the time in which it was written as opposed to the times in which the events took place. According to the book, writers wrote about the story created a negative image of King Richard because the relied on hearsay. The writers like Thomas Moore did not witness the happenings but they came up with stories based on unfounded allegations. If this story would have been written when the King was still alive or people who could give witness were alive, the story would have been more accurate and credible.

Personal accounts and various documents in some instances are overlooked or disregarded because they cannot be considered to be justifiable because of bias opinions of the writer. This can be discouraging to readers and mostly to historians, since they cannot know for sure what really happened and the only way to find out is through reading from the writers.

Works cited

Richards, Rebekah. Summary of Josephine Tey's the Daughter of Time. Feb 3, 2010.

October 22, 2010.

http://www.suite101.com/content/summary-of-josephine-teys-the-daughter-of-time

BookRags. The Daughter of Time. 2005. October 22, 2010.

http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-the-daughter-of-time/quotes.html