Customer Reviews

Order in Chaos (Templar Trilogy)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

In 1307, King Philip IV of France declares all Knights of the Templar as outlaws. With the support of Pope Clement V, the monarch orders his armies to arrest all the knights and confiscate their treasure. They are to kill any who resist and torture those caught so reveal the hidden cache. The Pope directs the Holy Inquisition against the Templars.

The double prong assault leaves the Templars with little protection. Those still free are rodents hiding in holes. Warned by the Grand Master, Templar knight Sir William St. Clair leads some of his peers and Widow Lady Jessica Randolph to Scotland where King Robert Bruce offers them sanctuary in return for them joining his side against the English and rebels allied with their enemy. Knowing their time is over, William releases his men from their sacred vows and after the battle at Bannockburn pledges to find the mythical Merica.

The final tale of the Templar saga (see KNIGHTS OF THE BLACK AND WHITE and STANDARD OF HONOR) comes across more as a historical account rather than an action-packed medieval suspense thriller. Readers learn in great detail re what and why the Pope and the French king conspired to destroy the religious order. Still fans who relish deep doses of realism that feel as if you are there will enjoy Jack Whyte's fascinating final account that is filled with early fourteenth century betrayals, counterplots and little action as William and his followers discuss freedom more than fight for freedom.

Harriet Klausner

I have to agree with Visitante and JGC1010's reviews. I felt that the addition of both the American storyline and the Jessica storyline were distracting and took away from the overall quality of the book. I thought the first two books of the series were very well written and entertaining, and I was looking forward to more of this in the third book, but I was disappointed. When the story got off the two distracting storylines and focused on the Templar story elements, it was as good as before. Unfortunately, that was not often enough. If you are a fan of this trilogy and feel the need to buy this book, at least wait until it comes out in paperback so you do not feel as ripped off later. Or, check it out at your local library for free.

The part about traveling to America distracts from the interesting historical fiction of the reasons for the assault on the Templar brotherhood and their legacy, whereas the insertion of the secret non-Christian Zion Brotherhood undermmines the historical believability of the Templar story.

Others have already said much of what I thought of Order in Chaos. Repetitive and long-winded, yet, this was actually my favorite of the Templar series. Take out the love story, and a tauter, more manageably-sized story emerges.

Mr Whyte fully displays his talent for developing characters, and painting a vivid picture of his settings. The story bears his trademark deliberate pace, and is thorough - incorporating many elements of Templar lore we've come to expect since the publication of The Da Vinci Code, plus an interesting main story on the downfall of the Temple (even though told & retold too many times in my 900-page paperback). The Bush-ian "Merica" story line doesn't contribute much in the way of plot or story pages. As a nod to Templar in America theories, it's fine, but it's not developed enough to be more than a way to use up excess ink. Why Mr Whyte chose to pursue the Lady Randolph thread rather than play the Templar mythology further is somewhat of a mystery.

Mystery and lore is why we buy this kind of book. I feel this review would have contained additional stars had Mr Whyte concentrated on that rather than his oddly-conceived love connection - maybe even a good mechanism for turning his trilogy into a quartet.

I'm a huge history buff. When I saw this book about the Templars, I was quite interested in reading it as I have a few non-fiction books about the Templars. I was sorely disappointed. I found numerous typos, dropped words from sentences, and just not a good flow of the words. The idea of travel to America by Templars just was a bit much to even try to believe in. I like historical fiction, but I was not happy reading this book at all. I had thought I would enjoy reading Mr. Whyte's books, but I don't plan on reading any of his other books. Even "Uther" I was disappointed in - for the same reasons. Numerous typos, dropped words, missed punctuation, etc.

Mr. Whyte is an excellent writer and an historical pleasure to read. It's a little slow in its reading because it is so descriptive.

What I particularly loved was the way he took so many of the legends and alleged ties in Templar history and wove a truly believable tale of the Order. He brought in the Order of Sion, how the Templars may have sailed to America (explaining the medieval structures and carvings in America), the whereabouts of the lost treasure and why it could be at Rosslyn, what they may have found under the temple mount in Jerusalem and how it impacted history, and how they appeared at the Scottish battle of Stirling Bridge. These ties were cohesive and possible.

William Sinclair was a "hunk and a hero", a strong leading character. The leading lady was a little "ballsy" for her time, but she was Scottish (frequently depicted to be assertive, clever, and leading) and no pushover. Sir William was an honorable and trustworthy man that we only seem to see in times gone by; industrious, focused, loyal to friends and cause.

It can be read as a stand alone novel; it is some years past the time of the second book.

I highly recommend this book for those who enjoy great historical writing and am pleased to add it to my library.

I don't normally bother to review books but this one has earned a special exemption for being one of the worst reads I've had in a long time. While Order in Chaos starts out promisingly enough with intrigue and suspense, it soon bogs down into micro trivia about the daily lives of Templars, beard lengths, food and the completely manufactured sexual tension between the main character and his "lady". Honestly, this reads more like a cheap romance novel than anything remotely like what it promises in the first few chapters. You keep thinking, something big is going to happen but it never does. Even something like "and they all got killed by lightning" would have been a more satisfactory ending.

The ONLY reason I finished it was because we were on a long trip and I had nothing else to read. Heck, a copy of Vanity Fair would have been better than this drivel. Jack Whyte, you should be ashamed for wasting trees. So many words and so little to say.

Loved it! I'd been looking for it for awhile, to finish the trilogy. It was super, interesting, and a good read. I highly recommend it.

Mayb

"Order in Chaos" is third in the Templer series written by Jack Whyte. I've studied the history of the Knights Templer and find that Whyte's historical mentions are right on the mark. True, the three stories are fiction but there is a great deal of provable history and a great deal of suppostion that is supported by known facts.
The Templers were stabbed in the back by the very church they helped to build into a world leader. That's a known fact.
Yes, it is probable that Templers arrived in the continent we now call North America several decades before Columbus left Spain. There is serious information to support it.
I enjoyed the whole series and give Hack Whyte high marks for serious research.
Dave
[...]

The culmination of the Templar Trilogy doesn't disappoint! There are a few slow parts, but if you've already read the first two (if you haven't, you should) then you know the routine. Lots of cool historical references that make it seem that much more realistic. Just a great book.