An interesting premise. The author writes a speculative fiction based on Cervantes meeting an actual errant knight on whom he had unknowingly based his work, using the stories of his friend Pedro. Pedro had frequent unexpected encounters with the mad old man, and his stories to Cervantes inspired the novel. Meanwhile, Cervantes's success was earning him the enmity of some powerful and unscrupulous people who would stop at nothing to bring him down. Peopled with a wild cast of secondary characters, the novel is a quick, easy read. The writing simulates the writing of Cervantes's time, but is modern enough that a 21st century reader won't get lost in it. Highly recommended for light summer reading. I won't vouch for the historical accuracy of any of the details; I haven't read a biography of Cervantes. ( )

A Charming, amusing book. The main character is Miguel Cervantes at the time he was writing & publishing serially Don Quixote. A mad old soldier much like Quixote is another character in what is really a parallel story. The book, an homage to Cervantes & Don Quixote, addresses many of the same issues as the original, but still manages to be delightfully original itself. ( )