Customer Reviews

Brethren

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Be warned.

To open BRETHREN is to become trapped. From the beautiful excerpt of THE BOOK OF THE GRAIL in the Prologue, to the barbaric grandeur of the Mamluk-Mongol clash in Ayn Jalut in Chapter One, to the chase and murder in Saint-Martin's Gate of Paris in Chapter Two, Robyn Young's debut novel will ensnare you and will not let go until the final page is turned. As a work of historical fiction, it succeeds in being both an educational read and one that simply bears a very compelling story.

Will Campbell is a young man who is sworn to the Temple and eagerly wants to be knighted. He and his friend, Garin, who tend to find themselves in more trouble than they should, each follow a rough path toward knighthood. Will's father has gone to the Holy Land and is raised and mastered by Owein, who is tough but fair. Garin is mastered by Jacques, who is tough and seems to hold to the belief that to spare the rod is to spoil the child.

Jacques and Owein grow more concerned when they learn that the Book of the Grail has been stolen. Within that tome lies secrets that could unravel all that the Templars have worked for and expose something they've hidden that could change the world itself. Of equal concern is the movement of the Mamluk army of Kutuz, who has successfully defeated the Mongols and driven them back from the Holy Land. The need for a new Crusade is growing more obvious, yet the one thing standing in their way is dwindling coffers. King Henry III has been borrowing from the Templars but has yet to repay.

Yet all of our concern is not for Will and the defenders of Christianity. Young deftly shifts the viewpoint to that of Baybars and the Mamluk army and gives us insight into their motion, their motives and their own problems. Baybars, a victorious general for Kutuz, is angered when he is denied a requested reward for his service. Paying off members of the army, Baybars assassinates Kutuz and proclaims himself Sultan. This done, he turns his attention toward the remaining Christian strongholds in the Holy Land and begins to undo years of tentative peace.

That Young can so easily maneuver readers from one army and one view to the next without pulling them out of the story is a great testament to her ability as a storyteller. Her characters, those of historical fact and those of her own design, are so perfectly crafted and so unique in presentation that they seem to act out on the page instead of being mere words strung together. Following Will on his quest to achieve his knighthood --- including his failures, his anguish, and his friendships with Garin and Elwin --- is intensely personal, and being able to connect with him, which is vital, is an easy success. Baybars, as the enemy of the Christians and the murderer of his own Sultan, does not come across as a mere cookie-cutter villain. He is a fully developed character, and while we would love to hate him, we come to understand his views and his desire as the story is told from his side. While we may not agree with him or his ideology, it makes us less able to hate.

In a historical novel of such epic scope as this, one would fear falling into the trap of being buried beneath a tidal wave of facts. Another great credit to Young is the strength of her narrative, which continues to read at a quick and heart rate-inducing pace; while giving historical knowledge it does not do so at the expense of advancing her chosen story. There are some moments of an overload of information. One in particular takes place during a conversation between Jacques and Hasan, where conversation is used as historical bookending to make a point, but the comments Jacques makes would not need to be done were the two engaged in true conversation. It is information Hasan would no doubt have known. Readers do gain information but it seems dumped upon us in that moment. These moments are extremely few and easily can be forgiven considering the strength of the remainder of the work.

Approximately 12 years pass over the course of BRETHREN, incorporating the time up to and including the Ninth and final Crusade. The majesty, brutality and romanticism of that time are so beautifully painted on the page that it is often difficult to separate the fact from the fiction, and we as readers are dropped into the very center of history to experience the events from within. A last acknowledgment to the quality of BRETHREN is in its power to encourage investigation. While engrossed in the book, it came as no surprise to find time also being spent in reading up on the Ninth Crusade over coffee, broadening the knowledge of the time, widening the canvas Young began painting, and giving a fuller appreciation for all she accomplished in putting together this incredible tale.

--- Reviewed by Stephen Hubbard

Robyn Young's epic novel of the Knights Templar, "Brethren," is the first part of a trilogy. It spans the years from 1260 to 1272 AD. The settings include London, Paris, and various locales throughout the Middle East. Young utilizes an old-fashioned storytelling style, with an omniscient narrator providing much of the background information. The central figure is Will Campbell, an apprentice in the Knights Templar, an order that was formed in the twelfth century after the First Crusade. According to Young's notes, the knights "followed both a religious rule and a strict military code." Although their initial mission was to protect Christians visiting the Holy Land, the Knights Templar evolved into "one of the wealthiest and most powerful organizations of their day," wielding great political, economic, and religious influence.

Will is a troubled young man who has had a serious rift with his father, James. Will's father leaves abruptly to wage war against Baybars Bundukdari, the Muslim leader of the Mamluk Empire. Baybars is a fierce, brilliant, and uncompromising warrior, a man who wishes to rid the Middle East of all Christians. Will longs to become a knight and fight side-by-side with his father, but his desires are thwarted time and again. He falls in love with a beautiful and courageous young woman named Elwen, but they have many obstacles to overcome before they can be together.

"Brethren" is a thoroughly researched and sweeping tale about an era that eerily resembles ours. Islamic fundamentalists declare Jihad against their Western enemies. Clashing armies cruelly cut one another's soldier's down in bloody confrontations. Powerful men engage in conspiracies, betray one another, and resort to violence to achieve their aims. Not much has changed since the thirteenth century, it seems. For fans of historical fiction, "Brethren" is a primer about knighthood, royalty, and Christianity in the years before the Last Crusade. The battle scenes are spectacularly exciting and gory. Young certainly knows her weaponry and it is horrifying to read about the cruelty with which Baybars and his men dispatch their enemies.

However, does Young succeed as a writer of compelling fiction? Although she has the history part down pat, she is less skilled at creating three-dimensional characters. Her villains are predictably dastardly, her young heroes are stereotypically callow and long-suffering, and the dialogue that they speak is stilted and artificial. Although a whole spectrum of human emotions is on display, including selfishness, venality, ambition, altruism, and fanaticism, the members of the novel's large cast are mostly "types" rather than realistic individuals. At almost five hundred pages, the book meanders a bit and the finale takes a long time to play out.

Still, Young's central theme is as relevant today as it was back then: many horrific acts are carried out in the name of religious and nationalistic causes. Many leaders are quick to wage war but reluctant to make peace with those who do not share their beliefs and customs. For readers who are eager to learn what lies ahead for Will and his fellow knights, the sequel, "Crusade," is scheduled for publication in 2007.

While Robyn Young may have rigorously researched exactly who was where during the 1260s, she failed to invest similar efforts in researching the medieval mind. It doesn't really bother me when authors switch events around and monkey with chronology for the sake of a good story. What drives me insane is having characters raised on misery, disease, the Church and death, communicate with each other as though they'd just left their therapist's couch. The idea that all these knights were running around Outremer giving vent to their daddy issues and frustrated gay crushes, pining over whores with hearts of gold and crying about how they've never been loved is ridiculous. It's the very worst of touchy-feely revisionist history - trying to enforce twentieth century values on thirteenth century heroes to make them more palatable - and it's laughable.

In 1260 two dedicated men, believers in the righteousness of their religious cause, join opposite sides in the Holy Land war. In the Kingdom of Jerusalem, Egyptian Sultan Baybars Bundukdari commands forces dedicated to the Prophet Mohamed with fervor to rid their homeland of the invading western infidels. In London, Knights Templar Sir William Campbell joins the western army crusading to take back the Holy Land from the Muslim horde.

At the same time these two committed individuals begin the trek towards religious combat and more in the Holy Land, a theft in Paris of the Book of the Grail could prove even more confrontational and definitely impact the two adversaries. This tome describes the heretical plan to radically change the world in the image of the top secret Knights Templar sect the Brethren. Thus on 3 September 1260, three events in three different locations that tenuously tie together will impact religion and people, if successful, as much as Mohamed, Moses, and Jesus have.

Above is the opening sequence to one of the best Templar tales on the market in recent years. Robin Young easily switches perspective predominantly between the two enemies so that readers fully understand the motivations of both sides. The story line is fast-paced filled with historical tidbits and the preparation for battle and the skirmishes, but also has a romantic sidebar between the idealistic Templar and the Sultan's niece and a mystery as William seeks to find the Book of the Grail. BRETHREN is more than just an epic adventure of the Knights Templar; it is a terrific thirteenth century thriller.

Harriet Klausner

The Knights Templar are all the rage right now thanks to Brown & Hanks, which is good because now authors and readers are exporing a fascinating period in history that still affects us today. Young's adventure story of young William Cambpell is historical enough to attract history buffs yet fictional enough to reach a wider audience. Young tells a very good tale and manages to show us the Crusades from both sides. She remains true to titles and formal names and has clearly done the research to make the story authentic.

I gave it four stars instead of five because I think the story of the book could have been better, however the other stories more than make up for it.

I find it easy to spot debut books because they have a certain fragmented flow to them but this wonderful story of the Knights Templar from a new author has the style, grace, and flowing prose that you would only find with seasoned authors.

This is a fabulous read, richly detailed with defined characters, and a flowing storyline that grabs you on page one and simply doesn't let you go.

I eagerly wait book two in 2007 and I have no doubts that Robyn Young will write many more stories about this incredibly interesting history period.

I always worry that the second book in a trilogy will bog down or not measure up to the excitement of the first book but this second book in Ms Young's knights templar series doesn't disappoint. Though I think that the story is rushed at times I found the twist and turns very satisfying and found the conflict to be realistic and not excessively violent considering the time period. I look forward to the culmination in this series and I hope to read more from this exceptional historical fiction author.

Fans of historical fiction (especially ones interested in the middle ages and the crusades) will find this book to be mildly entertaining. Readers who do not share a love of the subject matter will find the book to be a disappointment.

This book is well paced, and the descriptions of the environment the characters are in are vivid. However, Baybars (the Muslim leader and chief villain) is two dimensional. The authors' use of foreshadowing is about a blunt as a 20 pound sledgehammer. The action sequences are short and do not convey a sense of warfare. Whole sieges are handled in a few pages. Lastly, the offhand attempt to provide a homosexual motivation for a minor character nearly 4/5 of the way through the book felt as though the author needed to come up with some reason for the minor character's actions but could not think of one.

Borrow this one from the library.

One of the best, if not the best, books that I have read in my life. I recommend to any reader wanting to explore the histories of the crusades through both fiction and fact. This book is incredible and anyone willing to disagree does not truly appreciate adventure and imagination.

Brethren is an epic, action-adventure novel written by Robyn Young. From the beginning of the story Young delves deep into the brutal conflicts of the thirteenth-century world filled with knights and ferocious clashing armies. This story is convincing and captivating for any audience, like myself, interested in a thrilling novel based in a time where warriors in shining armor clash in a war torn world.

When I first opened Brethren I expected a decent action story to fall asleep with. What I got was a well-written novel full of suspicion, intrigue and excitement that kept me reading for hours at a time. For me the most enthralling aspect of the novel was the wondrous and vivid descriptions of the cities and castles, including London, Paris and Egypt. Additionally, I liked the novel due to its development of the journey knighthood. Young creates a convincing and realistic view of the intense training, fighting and devotion it takes to make a boy a knight.

The story encompasses several unique stories and subplots including the coming age of a young boy into both manhood and knighthood and the rise of a slave to a warlord. The main protagonist of the story is a young boy named Will Campbell who at the beginning of the story is an apprentice training to be a knight. At the same time the author develops another character that would rise to dominance in a different world from Campbell. The second significant character is a Slave named Bayybars Bundukdari who through careful planning and cunning rises to be the Sultan of Egypt and threatens to wipe his world of the western people and its influences. The novel describes several romances in addition to the histories and murky pasts of several characters. The overlying plot is about a secret society based in the Knights Templar one of the most powerful and influential organizations in the thirteen-century. The organization becomes so powerful it has the ability to influence royalty and many other organizations. The action begins when an unknown thief takes a specific book, named the Book of the Grail, which describes the secret goals of the Templars. Later in the story Will and his mentor, an unpleasant scholar named Everard, will face death and danger to recover the book. In addition, the novel manages to include the royal family and a war of faiths between the Christians and the Islamic fundamentalists.

Young writes her story in a very vivid, descriptive manner. Her style of writing is very narrative and informative. Throughout the course of the novel she presents many different facts and chunks of information that help bring the story together, through her brilliant use of character interactions and conversations.

Of particular importance is Young's development of characters. Throughout the novel all her characters go through a spectrum of different emotions including, anger, joy and depression. Additionally, she presents several aspects of each character and gives insight into the minds of each justifying the commitment of each side in the upcoming battles between them. The Brethren is a unique historical fiction thriller that should enthrall anyone interested in epic tales.