A new series from Simon Turney is always worth a second look. He is a prolific author of historical fiction, and has created some fine leading characters. So this new tale has quite a lot to live up to.
The opening book is set in Spain during the wars of the reconquest, and the moors have the initiative. They have stalled the Christian armies, which are weakened and divided. Arnau of Vallbona is a minor nobleman and knight. During a battle, he sees his Lord – Berenguer of Santa Coloma – killed, and is a witness to the fact that another nobleman – Ferrer della Cadeneta – deliberately avoids saving the man.
Berneguer’s death means that he leaves a daughter – Titborga – as sole heir, and in this world of masculine power, the race is on to marry her to the right candidate. Della Cadeneta soon emerges as the favourite, but Arnau cannot forget what he saw on the battlefield. He has known Titborga for a number of years, and at her urging, vows fealty to her.
When she is ordered by the King’s representative to marry Cadeneta, Arnau travels with her, and during her journey to her future husband’s lands, he helps her and her maid to escape. They eventually seek refuge in a Knights Templar compound whose head is a formidable woman.
Arnau is forced to make some life-changing decisions very quickly, as his old world disappears, and he has to work out who he is, and who he wants to be. What follows is a story of honour, treachery and personal discovery for both Arnau and Titborga.
There are many stories written about the Knights Templar. Much of the supposed non-fiction written about them is highly suspect, and much of the fiction is pure fantasy. Here the author has taken some basic facts as the foundation of his story. There really was a Templar house in Spain with a female preceptor, who features large in this story. And she in turn admitted to the order one Titborga de Santa Coloma. As the author wryly admits he would have been unlikely to make up her name unless he was writing a comedy.
The feel for the times is, as usual, well handled. Spain is in turmoil. There is no clear division between Christian lands and Moorish lands. The Templars here have many moors as workers and tenants. But the religious split is treated differently by different groups, and the Templar acceptance of the moors makes them many enemies among the more fervent Christians.
The treatment of the Templars also seem well-handled. They weren’t supermen; they were often not popular with secular leaders, or, indeed local religious authorities. Their numbers were thinly spread throughout Europe, and although they were often part of a wealthy structure, each house was isolated, and dependent on support from others in times of trouble.
The story moves along at a perfect pace, and the outcome of events is often difficult to predict, as the author keeps us guessing. The main characters are well drawn, as are the various conflicts between all the parties involved. As usual, Turney is not afraid to kill off characters, no matter how interesting they might have proved to be.
There is one criticism, which I see has been picked up in some other reviews. The book cover is completely misleading, and doesn’t represent anything that happens in the story. It even takes away the impact of the title, when its meaning is made clear.
But apart from that, this is a promising start to a new series. It will be interesting to see how the author moves forward. Does he focus solely on Arnau, or does he develop one or more of the other characters as well? If experience is anything to go by with this author, he may surprise us.
This is a review of the Canelo 2018 Kindle edition.
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