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The Templar Knight: Book Two of the Crusades Trilogy (The Crusades Trilogy #2)
by
Jan Guillou
A knight in the Holy Land. A woman in the frozen north. A war that kept them apart . . .
The second volume in the internationally bestselling trilogy begun with The Road to Jerusalem--the critically acclaimed epic "destined to become a classic" (Sharon Kay Penman)
Exiled to the Holy Land for two decades, Arn Magnusson has risen in the ranks of the Knights Templar, serving as...more
The second volume in the internationally bestselling trilogy begun with The Road to Jerusalem--the critically acclaimed epic "destined to become a classic" (Sharon Kay Penman)
Exiled to the Holy Land for two decades, Arn Magnusson has risen in the ranks of the Knights Templar, serving as...more
Hardcover, 480 pages
Published
May 4th 2010
by Harper
(first published 1999)
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I was a bit worried about the pace of the first book in the series. It plodded along at times, and despite the title, Arn never made it to Jerusalem.
This book, however, definitely met and exceeded my expectations. The pacing is far better. Years have passed before the start of this book, and many years pass through the course of it. We're only provided with the most important points, with brief interludes of history to help explain the scenario.
Perhaps more important than the actual Templar Kni...more
This book, however, definitely met and exceeded my expectations. The pacing is far better. Years have passed before the start of this book, and many years pass through the course of it. We're only provided with the most important points, with brief interludes of history to help explain the scenario.
Perhaps more important than the actual Templar Kni...more
"The Templar Knight" continues the story of Arn Magnusson, now a Knight Templar serving near Jerusalem; he is the Master of the garrison of Gaza. He is aided by his sub-ordinate and Sergeant, Armond De Gasgogne who is close to becoming a Knight himself.
The book alternates between the perspective of Arn and his bethrohed, Cecelia Algotsdotter who is confined in Varnhem, a convent in Sweden. Cecelia suffers harsh treatment at the hands of the Abbess Rikisa, who is loyal to the Sverker clan. A clan...more
The book alternates between the perspective of Arn and his bethrohed, Cecelia Algotsdotter who is confined in Varnhem, a convent in Sweden. Cecelia suffers harsh treatment at the hands of the Abbess Rikisa, who is loyal to the Sverker clan. A clan...more
This swashbuckling adventure is the second installment of the author's Crusades trilogy. The hero and heroine are separated; each carrying out penance. The hero is living as a Templar knight in the Holy Land, while the heroine is living in a Scandanavian convent. Both face challenges, especially as Saladin gathers his forces for an assault against the Crusaders, and the Christian empire in the Holy Land rots from within. The characters are mostly likable, and the plot is fast-paced. The author a...more
Oct 23, 2011
Christina
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
crusades,
historical-fiction
An enjoyable tale. I liked the way the male and female story lines whent back and forth. I also enjoyed the character development and especially Celcelia Blanca's personality. Although, I do think it's clear the book was written by a man and not a mom. I am not sure how Celcelia rosa could pass any day with out feelings of horrible lose for the child taken from her. Nthe reunion is well done, but in think more time should have been spent on her feelings of loss for the child and just longing for...more
This is a fascinating historical and fictional work! I really enjoyed learning about life in the 1100's in the convents and monesteries of Norway, Sweden, and Finland and in particular with this book, the life of the crusaders in the holy land. The way the author weaves his story of the main character Arn around all of the pivotal events and politics of that day both in Jerusalem and Europe is amazing. He makes the characters so compelling that as you are reading about Arn's life in the holy lan...more
PROTAGONIST: Arn Magnusson, Templar Knight, and Cecilia Rosa, convent resident
SERIES: #2 of 3
RATING: 4.0
WHY: I received this book for review and thought for sure that it would not be my cup of tea, as I am not really in to historicals. After I read it for a while, I realized that it wasn't even crime fiction; but by then, I was involved in the book. The second book in a trilogy, the focus shifts from Cecilia Rosa who is serving a 20-year penance in a convent for being an unwed mother, under an e...more
SERIES: #2 of 3
RATING: 4.0
WHY: I received this book for review and thought for sure that it would not be my cup of tea, as I am not really in to historicals. After I read it for a while, I realized that it wasn't even crime fiction; but by then, I was involved in the book. The second book in a trilogy, the focus shifts from Cecilia Rosa who is serving a 20-year penance in a convent for being an unwed mother, under an e...more
Trilogian ensiosassa oli pääosassa Arnin kasvutarina. Temppeliherrassa seurataan hänen kaksikymmenvuotista palvelustaan Temppeliritarina pyhällä maalla. Tarina seuraa myös hänen elämänsä rakkauden, Cecilian, edesottamuksia pohjolan luostareissa. Koko trilogian kantavia teemoja ovat rakkaus, kaipuu ja kunnia. Tässä toisessa osassa keskitytään ennen kaikkea kunniaan. Tarina pitää hyvin vahvasti otteessaan ja kokonaisuutena tämä toinen kirja on aivan yhtä hyvä kuin ensimmäinenkin.
May 06, 2012
Jeanette
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
those interested in the Crusades in the 12th century and religion
Recommended to Jeanette by:
0
I found this book to be an interesting and thought-provoking account of the Crusades. Guillou's discussions and interaction between Arn, the Knight Templar, and Saladin offer interesting insight into the struggle between Islam and Christianity that continues today.
Apr 19, 2013
Angel Serrano
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
821-115-3-literatura-sueca
En el año 1177 se produjo un milagro. Saladino es atacado por unos bandoleros en un camino solitario. Pero antes de que lo maten aparecerá Arm de Gothia, caballero del Templo, que matará a los agresores sin saber que ha salvado a su adversario más temido.
There is more action is this second book. A lot of text is dedicated to the politics of the knighthood as well as the region. The story (for me at least) starts to get bogged down in some these details. Still an interesting read.
I really liked this book because it encourages me to dwell on how to reason the existence of God, but also because it makes me feel Swedish.
Templar's, Mary Magdalene, the Jesus Line. All of it and any of it. It's my passion and obsession
The wait if FINALLY over. It's been translated into English!!! And with that introduction I may safely say that the wait was worth it. This book was well researched and written. Not only was Arn's story rich and full of depth, but the convent life of Cecilia was also very intriguing. Sometimes I couldn't wait to get out of the holy land with Arn where the royal court was intriguing and generally ruining things to get back to Gudhem to see the latest evil plan of Abbess Rikissa and how Cecilia Bl...more
Spændende læsning, men kunne være skrevet mere levende.
Sep 17, 2012
Hristina Ivanova
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
favorites,
historical
I liked this book much,much more than the first one.The Arn and Cecilia chapters were equally interesting so for me it was definitely a page-turner.Jumping on to the final novel now :)
A lovely surprise--I picked up book 1 on a lark and thoroughly enjoyed it. Book 2 was good, too. The translation from Swedish can sometimes be a bit mechanical, and Guillou sometimes falls into a rather pedantic history lesson. But by and large I enjoy the characters and appreciate the religious history. I've just downloaded the ebook to my iPad and started into book 3. Following Arn's progress from innocence to knowledge (without losing his faith and integrity!) is a lovely experience.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Love this series!! It was a while since I'd read part 1 so I had to remember some of the story, but overall this was a great story on it's own, and certainly left me anxious for the last book. The story is broken in parts between Arn & Celia, back & forth following their lives, and equally interesting. Some parts in the Holy Land wars dragged a bit, but still quite a lot of new info about Templars & Jerusalem ... you'll like this one.
Uh ... yeaaah ... I don't know what I think about this. I mean, not that much happened but at the same time a lot of things happened. The writing style was so weird.
If you're interested in crusade-stuff, though, then I strongly recommend this series, it gives great inside on religion, and we even get to see some Richard Lionheart (that's what he's called in English, isn't it?) and some Ivanhoe, so that was pretty cool.
If you're interested in crusade-stuff, though, then I strongly recommend this series, it gives great inside on religion, and we even get to see some Richard Lionheart (that's what he's called in English, isn't it?) and some Ivanhoe, so that was pretty cool.
This is without discrimination one of the most entertaining books I have ever read. Ever. It might not have the best literary quality, but it's more than good enough, a solid text, and wondeful. It has a love story (which is primary without being so; it is an arch rather than the immediate plot), medieval Scandinavia, the Crusades, compassion, theology, practical politics, oh, and horses. It is love.
Ok. I have been getting a lot more reading done while waiting for the baby to fall asleep at night. Book 2 picks up with the characters after one of the main characters from the first book heads to Jerusalem to serve as a Knight Templar. I really enjoyed this book and my biggest disappointment was seeing that the 3rd book in the series is not due to be published until the end of June.
Jan 04, 2008
Björn
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Björn by:
dad
Shelves:
swedish
This is a fun historical fiction series set in medieval Sweden. I read it in the original Swedish, so I can't say if the translation is any good, but the story is engaging. It's in the mode of a standard fantasy in the sense that the protagonist is unbelievably adept at anything he tries, a regular renaissance man 600 years before his time.
well I read his crusades trilogy , my favorite is a second part " Knight Templar" . All tale is about punishment which was imposed on two youth for having sex before marriage, may be funny nowdays but it was not in medieval realities. Lots of romanticism but also bloody battles, heroic people and of course struggle for Holy Land
jumpy - it goes back and forth. And it reminds me of dean koontz, how the main character is this attempted deep renaissance man who regularly finds himself in situations requiring him to act. A light read, maybe, but if you're going to read it by the pool or something, be ready to skip a page or ten here or there.
Oct 19, 2010
Bernie Charbonneau
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Any Historical Fiction Reader
Shelves:
library-book,
templar-lure
Fabulous!! Having read other Templar novels and trilogy's, I am finding this series very enjoyable. I found the first novel of the trilogy quite good but this second book is even better! I have the third reserved at the library and cannot wait to see what happens to our hero Arn. Highly recommended.
This book jumps between the crusade and the cloister. I particularly enjoy the crusade parts and the insight into how the Christian forces, including the Templars and the Hospitallers, lost the Holy Land to Saladin. Now on to the final book and follow Arn home.
Historically interesting, otherwise bit plain.
Uma boa continuação do primeiro volume, que nos proporciona uma visão detalhada do que era a vida dos Cruzados.
NOTA: o terceiro volume da trilogia, essencial para conhecermos o desenlace da história, não foi publicado pela Bertrand.
NOTA: o terceiro volume da trilogia, essencial para conhecermos o desenlace da história, não foi publicado pela Bertrand.
This book is written cleverly, covering both Arn's destiny in the Holy Land as a Templar Knight as well as his beloved Cecilia back in Sweden. Again, I enjoy the historical details, but the battle scenes are sometimes a little lengthy.
Great historical fiction. A very engaging read.
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Jan Oscar Sverre Lucien Henri Guillou (born 17 January 1944) is a Swedish author and journalist. Among his books are a series of spy fiction novels about a spy named Carl Hamilton, and a trilogy of historical fiction novels about a Knight Templar, Arn Magnusson. He is the owner of one of the largest publishing companies in Sweden, Piratförlaget, together with Liza Marklund and his common-law wife,...more
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