The Blood Red Crescent [Hardcover]

Henry Garnett (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 188 pages
• Publisher: Lepanto Press (2004)
• Language: English
• ASIN: B001BZSSCK
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,578,195 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining story, appealing characters, March 4, 2007

By 

Florentius (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

The Blood Red Crescent is a great way to introduce young folks to one of the great turning points in history--the Battle of Lepanto. Before the battle, Europe was constantly threatened by the ever-growing naval power of the Turks. After the battle, Islamic naval power never again seriously threatened Christian Europe.

The plot is uncomplicated and the characters are appealing and completely sympathetic. This is a quick easy read well-suited for kids over age 10. Adults will enjoy it as well.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Turning Point In History---and a great story, May 6, 2010

By 

LME "The Discerning Viewer" (Central CA, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Blood Red Crescent (Paperback)

The plot and historical outline are given in the product description. What it does not tell you is that the characters are well-sketched and the fictional plot underlying the historical battle (that happens at the end of the book) is a great read. It may be a little confusing at first if one does not have some grasp of the era, but then the story kicks in and some of the historical details are secondary. It is wise to look up terms with which one is not familiar. Terms such as The Holy League and bodkin are not common today.

The story is told from the viewpoint of a Roman Catholic boy in Venice. It should not surprise anyone that Venice was Catholic at that time. Many of the major forces involved in the naval battle were from Italy, Spain, and Austria. Interestingly, the boy spends some time in a monastery for protection. That form of sanctuary played a role countless lives through the centuries and in this novel we get a glimpse of the wisdom, love, and mentoring that was received by those who inhabited a monastery for a time.

It is important for Westerners to have some grasp of just how much Western Europe was threatened by the Turkish Empire following the fall of Constantinople.