The King's FIfth

The King's Fifth by Scott O'Dell is an adventure, travel, and historical fiction book set in the time of the conquistadors. There is a new world full of adventure, mystery, and maybe gold. There are also many who dared to take it.

Esteban de Sandoval sits in the impregnable prison of San Juan de Ulua. He looks up at the stars and thinks of when he was free, on a gold hunt in the New World. The court will soon pass sentence. But, do they want him convicted or do they simply wish for the gold which Sandoval has hidden somewhere across the sea?

I would give this book four out of five stars, because I really got into it in the second half. However, the first half seems to structurally push you away with very long drawn out speeches of the characters. Still a wonderful read. You just have to actually concentrate on the book to read it.

*****
AK