The Sword Of The Templars (2009) - Plot & Excerpts
I could not recommend this book any less. There are perhaps a few historical lessons to be learned but with the way it is presented you would be much better off (and i'm sure better informed) with a work of non fiction. The plot itself is very patchy and far too fast paced as the characters skip through countries in the blink of an eye, the authors lectures on the historical context make up a very large portion of the book and an equally large portion to dull descriptions of both people and environments. I am not interested in what the ceiling looks like. There is very little in the way of character development, the main protagonists get very repetetive and every minor character they meet seems very unpleasant whatever their role with sneering waiters, unpleasant maids and disgruntled secretaries.Constant quotes to popular culture like Johnny Depp and as many references as possible to people like Shakespeare and E.A.Poe are unnecessary, the author seems quite determined to impress on the reader just how intelligent and well rounded he is. All in all it made for very bad story telling and the ending could not have come any sooner. Lieutenant Colonel John Holliday is happy teaching history at West Point. When his Uncle Henry dies, he discovers a medieval sword hidden in a secret drawer and is almost immediately approached by Henry's lawyer, claiming that Henry stole it. When the house is burned down and the sword almost stolen, Holliday, and his neice Peggy, are determined to find out the truth. They are drawn on a treasure hunt that takes them to England, Israel, France and Portugal, persued by both the Catholic church and a Modern Nazi wanna be.In the vein of 'The Da Vinci Code' this book is a good enough adventure and a bit of entertainment, as long as you don't take it too seriously. So many of the 'clues' just pop into the characters heads or appear from nowhere, that you don't have a chance to make your own conclusions or solve the mystery first - a mystery that when it comes, is nothing really original or awe-inspiring. Saying that, I really did enjoy the read and it won't stop me tracking down the sequel at some point.
What do You think about The Sword Of The Templars (2009)?
Have read the entire series up to 8Good easy compulsive reading
—naj
Fairly predictable story line. Just OK.
—rachopoptwil
