Knights of the Black and White (A Templar Novel)

Jack Whyte was born and raised in Scotland, but has lived in Canada for the last forty odd years. He is the author of several novels and this book is the first in a trilogy about probably the most famous Order of knights, ever to come through the pages of history, the Knights Templar. Although the books are a work of fiction they are based solely on the truth as we know it about the Order. Why they were formed after the First Crusade and why they continued to grow, both in power and influence from their small beginnings as escorts for pilgrims traveling through the Holy Land. These knights began from lowly beginnings becoming one of the most powerful and richest bodies in Europe, until finally the French King ordered them to disband. Burning their leader at the stake and sending many of those who managed to avoid punishment, into exile This first book in the trilogy starts at the beginning of their history and the author blends the historical truth with his own powers of story telling until they are entwined as one single entity. He weaves a magical tale of hardship, chivalry, jealousy and much more. It is all their with the backdrop of the 12th century Holy Land. It is a story well worth reading and I am now eagerly awaiting the second book Standard of Honour which is due out early in 2008.

Not only does Mr. Whyte spin a good yarn, his attention to detail is amazing. He lays out the factual data about life, politics and such in vivid detail while not turning it into a history text and the characters are "real" people not just superficial cut outs stuck into a story. He makes great use of the literary license to combine several of the "possible" theories regarding the Knights into an engrossing story centered around the historical facts. Be warned, this is one that causes you to forget things like dinner (be there in a second), bed (just a few more pages) and other non essential activities while you ride, fight and live alongside Sir Hugh and his brothers. And as always: Would I look at any other books by this author in the future? YES! Would I spend list price on it again? Yes.

I accidentally stumbled across this book. I bought it (in paperback) because I'm interested in the Templars' story. I'd never read Jack Whyte's books before. I found it a great read and very well written. I'm somewhat mystified by others' complaints about the book, though, and since those who complained weren't really very explicit about what it was that they didn't like, I hope I can explain exactly why I DID like it in order to be helpful to those thinking about buying it and who might enjoy it, as I did. (I suspect that the complainers may have been like those who rejected "The Da Vinci Code" out of hand because they were so shocked at the suggestion of a relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene that they couldn't handle it. Actually, this book does not take the same tack, but may be equally shocking to those of fragile faith.) First, I thought Mr. Whyte took a very interesting approach to the Templar story, one that was different from the tack taken by "The Da Vinci Code" and its imitators. (Nothing wrong with that -- those books are entertaining in their own way, but they are not focused on the Templars, per se.) Whyte's story starts with the men who went to take part in the first Crusade and later founded the Templar Order, particularly Hugh de Payens. Whyte fills in a surprising and interesting backstory about another ancient, secret Order behind the scenes which provided the motivation for the men who later founded the Order. In Whyte's story, these men didn't go to the Crusades, found the Templars, then later stumble across secrets in the foundations of the Temple Mount -- they went to the Crusades with the intention of finding something on the Temple Mount and already were in possession of information about what they might find and where they might find it. They founded the order that later became known as the Templars as a means for them to accomplish their secret purpose -- since it allowed them to hide in plain sight what they were actually doing. That's quite an interesting take on the story. Second, I liked the development of the whole plot line of the book. The character of Hugh de Payens is an interesting portrayal of a very serious, taciturn, principled man of action. Although some reviewers complained about "talky" passages being too long, I disagree. I thought that the passages in which his elders in the secret order explain to Hugh their beliefs and his duties are necessary. (There were lots of people who complained about the character Morpheus's "talky" parts of the film "The Matrix," too -- but I disagree about that, as well. Sometimes you just have to have someone tell you the information that is the "set-up" for the story or belief system that the new person -- and over his shoulder, the reader -- is learning about.) I thought this was a reasonable way to do it, and I liked the "re-cap" as well, meaning that after the first round of informative explanation about the secret order as they join up, Hugh

I found Jack Whyte's first book in his new series to be a page-turner and very well-written. It is well-grounded in the history of the period, even if it does deal in a fantasy. I can suspend my knowledge of the historical Templars to enjoy a fantasy about them and he is not the first to write such a pastiche as exemplified by Katherine Kurtz's efforts. I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the series, due out in December of 2007. It is already on my Wish List. Standard of Honor

If you are a fan of the Templar myth you will love this book. It does an amazing job of retelling these tales of old, and even though its fiction making it seem so real by fitting the characters so perfectly with what they really would be like in that time.