The Last Templar

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Author: Raymond Khoury

Genre: Action/Adventure, Mystery

Rating: **** (4 Stars)

Summary:

The Last Templar consists of two stories told in parallel, one during the Crusades, the other in the 21st Century. The ancient story begins with the Muslims driving the Christians out of Jerusalem at the end of the Crusades. Several of the Knights Templar desert the battle and board a ship with a mysterious treasure they must take back to France. The book periodically flashes back to their story as the plot unfolds.

The modern story begins in modern Manhattan outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Vatican has, for the first time, released a number of long-buried items from its archives and loaned them to the Museum for its Treasures of the Vatican exhibit. On opening night, with crowds of people waiting to get in, four men dressed as Crusader knights and armed with submachine guns raid the museum, stealing many of the priceless artifacts.

Tess Chaykin, an archaeologist, is ideally positioned to witness one of the knights stealing a “multi-geared rotor encoder,” an early, yet sophisticated encryption device invented during the Crusades. Driven by her archaeologist’s instincts, but not wanting to bother the FBI until she has something substantive, she begins to investigate on her own, becoming convinced that there is a link between the robbery, and the Knights Templar, a group that protected pilgrims to the Holy Land during the Crusades, but supposedly became extinct hundreds of years ago.

While trying to find out more, Tess is kidnapped by the mastermind of the robbery. She escapes with copies of documents that contain clues to the location of an ancient manuscript that, if found, could shake the very foundations of Christianity. Tess and Sean Rily, one of the FBI agents on the case, set out to find the mysterious manuscript. In the process, they find themselves in competition with shadowy enemies, some of whom want to reveal the document, and others who want it to stay buried forever.

My Thoughts:

I listened to The Last Templar on CD while commuting in Los Angeles. The story was compelling enough that I sometimes wished traffic would move slower, so I could find out the next plot twist before arriving at my destination. I was a little disappointed with the ending, but I can’t say why without spoiling it, so I’ll let you find out for yourselves.

Besides the ending, the book is exciting and full of surprises. Khoury is good at revealing just enough to whet your appetite and keep you on the edge of your seat. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Potentially Offensive Content:

Action violence, profanity, mild sexual content, religious controversy.

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