Product Description

First of an exciting new trilogy from the author of Byzantium, The Iron Lance is set at the time of the first Crusade in 1099. Amidst visions of the ancient past, a 19th century Scottish lawyer glimpses the harrowing pilgrimage of an ancestor! In the year 1095, Pope Urban II declares war on the infidel. Kings, princes, and lords throughout Europe take up the cross and rush to join the Crusade. Murdo Ranulfson is left behind to guard his family's interests in the remote Orkney Isles while his father and brothers join the fight to win Jerusalem. But when all the family's lands and possessions are confiscated, Murdo follows the Crusade with the hope of finding his father and redeeming their land. His epic journey leads him to the heart of the civilized world, where the Emperor Alexius and the Lords of the West are engaged in a battle of wills that threatens the survival of the Holy Roman Empire. Steeped in heroism, treachery and the clamour of battle, The Iron Lance begins an epic trilogy of a Scottish family fighting for its existence and its faith during the age of the Great Crusades.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #133697 in Books
• Published on: 1999-08-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 592 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Stephen Lawhead is best known for his "Pendragon Cycle" of Arthurian fantasies. His previous novel Byzantium moved him into historical rather than mythological fiction; The Iron Lance confirms this change. It is the story of the First Crusade told by a youth from the Orkneys, a group of islands off the north coast of Scotland.

At 14 Murdo Ranulfson is too young to go on a crusade. But when he and his mother are thrown off their own land by soldiers of Prince Sigurd of Norway, who has claimed the Orkneys, Murdo travels to the Holy Land to fetch back his father and brothers to reclaim their land. He witnesses at first hand the horrors of the Crusade, particularly what Lawhead calls "the rape of Jerusalem".

In common with Lawhead's earlier works there is a strong Christian element to the story, but here the emphasis is on the spirituality of the Celtic monks Célé Dé contrasting with the venality of the Catholic Church of the time. The main story is framed in the late-19th century narrative of a secret religious order descended from the monks, and from Murdo. This is a powerful and well-told story. Lawhead brilliantly captures better than most American writers what feels like the true essence of medieval Britain and Europe. --David V. Barrett

Review
Praise for Byzantium: 'Fantasy writing doesn't get much better than this' The Express 'This is a rip-roaring adventure story; the pace rarely flags. There's scheming, murder and betrayal aplenty' Interzone 'Amusing and interesting' Locus 'A vivid historical setting and a credible and satisfying plot' Publishing News

About the Author
Born and raised in America, Lawhead moved to the UK, to Oxford, in order to research into Celtic legend and history. He lives in Iffley with his wife, writer Alice Slaikeu Lawhead, and their two sons, Ross and Drake.

Customer Reviews

Good Story, Too Long . . .
Nearly 600 pages. Within which the IRon LAnce of the title barely makes an appearance. The synopsis on the rear of the book - and therefore on Amazon - is misleading in the extreme. The hero of the book never actually gets his hands on the lance until the last 100 pages or so. True, it is refered to now and again - but only in a brief and cursory way.

I think, therefore, that the book is being mis-represented by the publishers. Don't get me wrong. It's a good read, just not "what it says on the tin."

What you get is a broad-ranging and all encompassing story of the crusades and a good few of the people - both historical and fictional for the purposes of this story - who were involved.

I once heard someone say that the Crusades were one of the Catholic Church's biggest mistakes. If this novel is in any way historically accurate - in particular in it's depiction of Jerusalem being invaded and sacked - then I would have to whole-heartedly concur. Brutal is the word which springs to mind. Heart-sickening is another.

The story is told from the point of vew of a family in Orkney, and also that of a man in 19th Century Edinburgh. It takes some getting used to, but in the end the jumping back and forth the 4 or 5 times is quite rewarding.

Mr LAwhead goes into a bit too much detail for my liking, and I found that the story sometimes lagged in places. I found myself once or twice wishing - like the main character - that things would move on apace(!)

In the end tho' a satisfying read, if not without faults. A good intorduction to a period of history which is tended to be glossed over in some respects. It is shameful what was done - and has been done elsewhere - in the name of Christ and God. I say that as a believing Christian myself.

Superb
A great tale about the first crusade in all its success and failures. Readers must remember this is a work of fiction as regards the ending but it still gives a plausable way in whic it could end the way it does, (i do not wish to give too much away), a well woven novel interweaving two storylines very well. Interesting characters prepel the plot forward well. A worthy read!

This book brings to life the crusades.
This book tells a wonderfull enrich story that works on many differnt levels. There are basicly three elements of story working at the same time that form one story by the end of the book. The accounts of the cursades is one a reader will never forget. Rich in history and fiction. Never read Lawhead start with this one.