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| Review Title: | HERETIC |
| Review Date:
| 19 Aug, 2003 |
| Reviewed By: | Publishers Weekly |
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| Cornwell is a master of the historical action novel, and he outdoes himself again with this gripping third volume in his Grail Quest series, set during the bloody Hundred Years' War (The Archer's Tale; Vagabond). For years, English archer Thomas of Hookton has been searching for the Holy Grail. Thomas is not certain it ever existed, but obscure clues link his family to the mysterious vessel. In 1347, driven by his desire to plumb the truth of the Grail as well as to earn money from the plunder of French lands and property, Thomas and a small group of soldiers capture a castle in Gascony, the homeland of Thomas's father. Thomas hopes to hold the castle against the French, raid the countryside for loot and draw the attention of his evil cousin Guy Vexille, a French nobleman who murdered Thomas's father and who may have information about the Grail. Vexille appears, but so does the army of a local lord, sent to besiege the castle, and the vicious brother of a treacherous and cunning bishop who is determined to secure the Grail. Fighting honorably amid extreme brutality, Thomas is aided by loyal English archers, English and French men-at-arms, local bandits, a Scottish mercenary and a heretic girl with unusual powers. Out-numbered by his enemies, he faces the might of a huge cannon and the power of the Church's greed - not to mention the dreaded Black Death. Most daunting of all, however, is the decision Thomas must make when he finally discovers the truth about the Holy Grail. Graphic battlefield action, strong characters and sharp plotting are Cornwell's trademarks, and his fans will love this latest melee. |
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| Review Title: | HERETIC by Cindy Lynn Speer |
| Review Date:
| 20 Jan, 2004 |
| Reviewed By: | Gotta Write Network |
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In The Archer's Tale, Thomas of Hookton lost everything, and attempted to reclaim it by joining the army and becoming one of the most skilled archers anyone had ever had the misfortune of meeting. Revenge was the game, his desire to track down the man who had killed his father his most important goal. In Vagabond, Thomas was on a quest to find the grail for the Earl of Northampton, one that leads him to discover a lot about his own father and himself. Now, in the final book, Thomas is still on the trail of the grail...sent to Gascony, the homeland of his family, he needs to capture the castle of Asterac. It is hoped that his cousin, the very man who killed Thomas' father, will hear about Thomas' daring mission and come a calling to see what his cousin's up to...and what he knows about the elusive cup of the King of Kings.
The capture of Asterac goes off with much daring and ease...luckily for Genevieve, the beautiful heretic who's scheduled for burning the next day. Thomas refuses to let her be burned, not because she's beautiful, but because he can feel a great deal of empathy for her. In the last book, he, too, suffered torture under the hands of a Dominican Monk...and knows well that there's a possibility that she confessed only to spare herself more horror. Robbie Douglas, his best friend, wanted her for himself, and sees his friend's protection of her as a betrayal...and as he convinces himself that harboring a heretic casts damnation on them all, he helps create a rift between Thomas and his men that even the sensible Sir Guillaume can't heal.
As always, Cornwell creates a setting that is rich with historical detail and perspective. He explores the power of the church a little, and how the threat of damnation can become a powerful tool. In some ways he contrasts it with the plague, the Black Death as we call it now, not verbally or in any way you can take offense with him for, but in an almost implied theory. It comes through with the idea that contact with a heretic, with someone condemned to live their life outside the church and to hell when they die, can spread their fate, just as a plague victim can spread his disease. He also points out that not everyone in the church was as rabid as certain members of Church (in this case, the Dominican order) were.
It is also a setting of poverty and hardness...he never pretties things up for the reader, but shows them how they were. The accepting attitudes towards rape, towards raiding the country side...these are all things that come into play when people are forced to live in poverty, where the difference between living in a castle, with horn slatted lattices to keep the cold from coming in the windows, and in the woods with only a tree to block the wind on one side has everything to do with ruthlessness and nothing to do with deserving.
Cornwell's characters and adventures always captivate me completely. In some ways Cornwell's main characters...especially Richard Sharpe and Thomas of Hookton have a similar flavor, a feel to them that makes them recognizable as his creation. They're different, but there's something about them that assures you that if you like one, you'll like the other. This final book finishes up everything perfectly, leaving the reader satisfied...if a little wistful that the adventure is over. |
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