Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11047 in Books
• Published on: 2001-06-04
• Binding: Paperback
• 484 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Following the phenomenal success of the Sharpe novels set in the Napoleonic Wars, Bernard Cornwell has turned his storytelling talents to another great moment in English history, the Hundred Years War between England and France throughout the 14th century. Harlequin is the first book in Cornwell's Grail Quest series, which chronicles the adventures of young Thomas of Hookton, "a big, bony, black-haired country boy". Thomas rejects the church in favour of the life of an archer in France after his village is brutally sacked by the French. The young Thomas fights back against the French with his bow, and "in that one instant, as the first arrow slid into the sky, he knew he wanted nothing more from life". He vows to seek revenge on the plains of France, and recover the holy relic of St. George stolen from his village by the sinister "harlequin" with whose destiny Thomas finds himself inextricably entwined. The rest of the action moves at a hectic pace across the violent and bloody battlefields of northern France, as Thomas falls for a beautiful French widow nicknamed "the Blackbird", makes a mortal enemy of the "poor, bitter and ambitious" Sir Simon Jekyll, and follows the ensign of King Edward III and his heroic son, the Black Prince. Harlequin is a fast-paced and graphic recreation of the Hundred Years War, despite a rather gratuitous fixation on rape and pillage. The action comes thick and fast, although it remains to be seen if Thomas of Hookton has the wit and flair of Cornwell's other great heroic creation, Richard Sharpe. --Jerry Brotton

Synopsis
Thomas of Hookton is one of those archers. When his village is sacked by French raiders, he makes a promise to God: to retrieve the relic stolen from Hookton's church. Escaping his father's ambitions, he becomes a wild youth who delights in the life of an army on the warpath. Driven by his conscience and protected by his fearsome skills, he enters a world where lovers become enemies and enemies become friends, where his only certainty is that somewhere, beyond a horizon smeared with the smoke of fires set by the rampaging English army, a terrible enemy awaits him. This enemy would harness the power of Chistendom's greatest relic: the Grail itself. Here, in the first book of a new series, the quest begins. It leads him through the fields of France, to the village of Crecy where two great armies meet on the hillside to do battle.

About the Author
Bernard Cornwell worked for BBC TV for seven years, mostly as producer on the Nationwide programme, before taking charge of the Current Affairs department in Northern Ireland. In 1978 he became editor of Thames Television's Thames at Six. Married to an American, he now lives in the United States.

Customer Reviews

AWESOME
This is one great novel. Fans of Sharpe will see some similaritis in the character, but nonetheless an excellent read.

Fantastic!
Okay, I read this book a couple of years ago now. And how glad I did.

Originally I bought Heretic, and wondered after a couple of pages who these people were. I realised I had bought the second in a series, so needless to say a purchase was made and I started on Heretic. A very, very good read. Cornwell's excellent writing style is evident as always - easy to read. In some ways Cornwell's excellent prose is a crime, suddenly you take a quick break to get a drink and you realise that you've just consumed 50-odd pages... 'but I thought I'd only read ten' you complain to yourself, feeling almost cheated.

This book has a purpose to it, it sets up the story, tells you who is who and entices you with substantial force to buy the next in the series - the characterisation is excellent, as you would expect of Cornwell. (It has been a couple of years since I read it... but for the want of details, I can still vividly remember this books quality).

This book has, it is fair to say, cost me hundreds of pounds. Without it I would not have been hooked by Cornwell, which means I wouldn't have bought all of his books. Every one of which is consumed in about a tenth of the time I usually take to finish a book.

Good Medieval Adventure!
Harlequin centres around Thomas of Hookton, an archer who joins the English army in France, after his father is murdered, and an ancient relic, is stolen from the church, when his village is plundered by French bandits.

I found this book a fascinating read. The 14th century is brought vividly back to life in its pages, as various battles are fought, based around true events, and the strategies and weaponery used are described very well.

Thomas also makes friends, enemies, and has love interests along the way. The mixture of fictional, and factual characters, is very well done, and makes the story that more interesting. An enjoyable read.