Knights of the Cross

US: Century, 2006. Paperback. Good. The crisis of the First Crusade is the powerful backdrop to this gripping n ovel of intrigue, sacrifice, savagery and holy war - from the author of The Mosaic of Shadows. The year is 1098: Having routed the Turks, the armies o f the First Crusade reclaim Asia Minor for Christendom. That is, until thei r advance is halted on the Syrian border before the impregnable walls of An tioch. As winter draws on, they are forced to suffer a fruitless, intermina ble siege, gnawed by hunger and taunted by the Turkish defenders. Then, whe n divisions appear between the leaders of the crusade and the men they lead ; and between the Westerners and the accompanying Byzantine forces, the ent ire crusade is on the verge of collapse. In the midst of the misery, a Norm an knight, Drogo, is found murdered. The ruthlessly ambitious Lord Bohemond , suspecting his rival Count Raymond, charges Demetrios Askiates to find th e killer. But as Demetrios investigates, the trail seems to lead ever deepe r into the vipers?f nest of jealousy, betrayal and fanaticism, which lies a t the heart of the crusade. Other forces are equally threatening: a great T urkish army is fast approaching to relieve the garrison of Antioch. Unless the crusaders can bury their differences and take the city, they will be cr ushed before its walls. Ever more isolated, Demetrios must ally with Bohemo nd if they are to have any chance of finding the key that will unlock the g ates of Antioch. But once inside, the crusaders will discover that their gr eatest trials have barely begun.