The Youngest Templar: Keeper of the Grail, Book 1
by Michael P. Spradlin
Published by G.P.Putnam’s Sons
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Reviewed by Michelle Kerns
Fifteen-year-old Tristan has lived with the brothers of St. Alban’s Abbey in London since he was left as an infant on the abbey steps with nothing but a woolen blanket and a note: “Brothers: We bestow onto you this innocent child. His life threatens many. Remind him that he was loved, but safer away from those who would wish him harm. We will be watching over him until it is time.”
Tristan is certain he will never discover the secret of this past. However, when Sir Thomas Leux, the head of a visiting group of Knights Templar, asks Tristan to accompany him as squire to the Holy Land in battle against the Saladins and Saracens, Tristan soon learns that the key to his mysterious past – as well as his future – may lie within the Knights Templar and their most preciously guarded treasure: the Holy Grail.
The Youngest Templar blends the best of historical fiction and adventure with a riveting coming-of-age story. Through Tristan’s eyes, readers experience the medieval England of the 1100s, as well as the bravery and desperation of the Crusaders in Outremer. Spradlin artfully manages to weave in despicably believable villains, honorable enemies, and two characters that will bring a smile of recognition your face: a hulking Dover blacksmith nicknamed Little John, and a talented archer named Robard Hode returning from the Holy Land to his home in Sherwood Forest near the shire of Nottingham.
Although a reader as young as ten could enjoy The Youngest Templar, adults will find much to appreciate in this lyrically written book as well. And since it is only the first of a trilogy, there will be plenty more to enjoy from Mr. Spradlin in the coming years.
Armchair Interviews agrees.
Author website: http://www.MichaelSpradlin.com