"This is the third part of Helena P Schrader's Templar trilogy (the
other two are The Cypriot Knight and Sir Jean of Acre) and deals with
the destruction of Templar order. If you haven't read the other two
this is not a great problem as they are all standalone novels and in
this case Schrader has left the best until last in my opinion. Sir
Percival de Lacy gets arrested with the other Templars while he is
travelling through France and after being tortured escapes. He
fortunately falls into the hands of a former crusader who was once a
novice Templar and who was part of the crusade led by St Louis. Now he
has a granddaughter called Felice who soon falls in love with the
Englishman and gets caught up in his adventures.
As with the earlier two volumes this is a historically accurate and
absorbing tale, replete with adventures and thrilling happenings,
romance and some very well-realised characters that fairly leap off the
page. Schrader has wisely kept her cast of characters down so she can
concentrate on developing them and the result is a psychologically
perceptive novel that stays in the mind long after. Schrader is a
master at describing memorable scenes whether it is the torture of her
hapless protagonist and his companions with its devastating mental and
emotional aftermath (brilliantly described), daily life in the early
14th century for those great and poor with its squalor, color and
vibrancy or the places visited by the characters and the result is a
novel that stays in the mind long afterwards and surely cannot fail to
disturb, enchant and absorb readers. Worthy of being on this classics
page - go find a copy."
"The English Templar is the rousing conclusion of the Templar
Trilogy. It is an excellent book, the tale of Percival de
Lacy, an English Templar traveling through France. In a
stroke of great bad luck, he is captured by the Inquisition, and
imprisoned. He is tortured until he confesses to heresy, but
manages to escape. With the help of Felice de Preuthune and
her grandfather, Geoffrey (father of our last hero, Jean) he begins
working to free his fellow Knights Templar, and restore the order to
its honorable place.
Percy and Felice are
noble characters, easy to love and root for. Percy, in
particular, is instantly sympathetic because of his horrible
suffering. The two are drawn to each other, but because Percy
is a monk of the Knights, and Felice a nobleman's daughter, their
romance would seem to be doomed from the beginning. With the
help of wise Geoffrey, however, the star-crossed lovers have a few
moments of peace.
I rate this book 5 of
5 stars. It is among the best historical fiction I have ever
read. The setting is detailed, the daily lives of each
character come alive, and the romance was delightful. I can't
recommend this book highly enough-even without the background of the
first two it is an excellent read."