The last templar

by Raymond Khoury

Paper Book, 2006

Status

Available

Call number

823.92

Series

Last Templar (1)

Genres

Historical Fiction

All Topics

Fiction

Publication

New York : Signet, 2006.

Description

The first thrilling novel in Raymond Khoury's New York Times bestselling Templar series. In 1291, a young Templar knight flees the fallen holy land in a hail of fire and flashing sword, setting out to sea with a mysterious chest entrusted to him by the Order's dying grand master. The ship vanishes without a trace. In present day Manhattan, four masked horsemen dressed as Templar Knights stage a bloody raid on the Metropolitan Museum of Art during an exhibit of Vatican treasures. Emerging with a strange geared device, they disappear into the night. The investigation that follows draws archaeologist Tess Chaykin and FBI agent Sean Reilly into the dark, hidden history of the crusading knights--and into a deadly game of cat and mouse with ruthless killers--as they race across three continents to recover the lost secret of the Templars.… (more)

Media reviews

Lire

Vous avez aimé le 'Da Vinci Code' ? Vous allez adorer 'Le Dernier Templier'. Vous avez détesté le 'Da Vinci Code' ? Vous allez adorer 'Le Dernier Templier' ! Sans blague : ce roman d'aventures reprend effectivement certains ingrédients du best-seller de Dan Brown mais il les accommode à une

sauce autrement plus intelligente, autrement plus relevée aussi.

Show Less

— 1 more

Elle

Il y a dans ce roman tous les ingrédients d'une grande réussite littéraire (...) Mêlant histoire et fiction, complots moyenâgeux et enquêtes du FBI, [il] est tout simplement palpitant.

User reviews

LibraryThing member TadAD

This book is fairly obvious in its attempts to cash in on the The Da Vinci Code popularity by cloning the formula, complete with historical secret that will destroy the Catholic Church and fanatic Catholic hitman. The action is fairly by-the-numbers with the author throwing in just about every

cliché he can think of, including the storm of the century just as the treasure is to be recovered. The romance is completely tepid and unbelievable...sort of, "Yeah, I know you drove off and left me at the mercy of the sniper so that you could become famous, but let's not let little things come between us." The moralizing interrupts the plot just as tediously as it does in Dan Brown's book—the only difference being that we get both sides of the argument and, thus, twice as much.

The ending of the thriller is not very fulfilling. Of course, given the previously-mentioned moral debate that occupies so much of the novel, it's hard to see the author ending with anything other than the very predictable resolution. The actual ending of the book in the epilogue was, however, enjoyable.

Even the basic premise of the plot...that exposing the Catholic Church as a fraud would somehow cause all mankind to abandon religious squabbling and unite in a rationalist world...somehow overlooks the fact that many of the world's religions would feel quite vindicated if this were so and redouble their fervor.

I did, however, enjoy the brief flashbacks to the Templars who fled the fall of Acre.

Another commuting audio book: Richard Ferrone was only fair as the narrator. He's one of those who thinks melodrama in the voice heightens the story. In my opinion, he was mistaken in this thought.

Show Less

24 more

LibraryThing member bcquinnsmom

The Knights Templar are a group which has for years (even before I read Foucault's Pendulum) fascinated me so a book that features the Templars is something I'm going to read. And the opening scene is probably one of the better ones I've read in any novel: At an opening of a Vatican Treasures

exhibit at the Metropolitan museum, with a multitude of dignitaries present, a group of four horsemen dressed in the garb of the Templars make their way on horseback up the steps to the museum and then continue inside. They smash the place up and one of them removes an object. One witness to the whole thing is Tess Chaykin, an archaeologist who is there with her mom & daughter. After the event, she contacts the FBI and tells them that she heard one of the men say "veritas vos liberabit" (the truth will set you free) as he reached for the object. Not only that, but three of the four horsemen are found murdered; tie the two together and add another strange archaeologist to the mix and you have a world-wide hunt for something hidden by the Knights Templar in the 14th century. The book is interspersed with flashbacks from one of the Templars and goes back and forth between the two times.

I really enjoyed the first part but toward the middle of the book the story just began to lose steam. Highly improbable (and that's okay, but this was like bang bang bang improbable) and personally, I just didnt' think the Templars' secret was built up to enough considering the opening. I think I would buy another book by this author -- but he needs to let the suspense build more if he writes another mystery/suspense type novel.

I will say that it was no DaVinci Code ripoff, which was good. In fact, there was actually nothing in common with the DaVinci Code in this book. So don't think in those terms if you've read Dan Brown's book. It's okay, and I'll leave it at that; I wouldn't dissuade anyone from reading it.

Show Less

LibraryThing member neiljohnford

This book's rubbish don't buy it.

If you do buy it don't bother to read it. The characters are badly drawn and inconsistent. The story is non-sense. The ending is predictable and left me with the feeling "what was the 'effin point then". crap crap crap crap crap. That's alot of crap.

LibraryThing member whitebalcony

I almost thought this was going to be an OK story before I got to the cheesy feel-good ending.

LibraryThing member theportal2002

Fantastic Book, similar to the Da Vinci Code but with a story all on it's own. I will look for more books from this author.

LibraryThing member conradrader

Very action oriented, and written in a screenplay format, not surprisingly since the author is a screen writer. All right but there are better Templar books out there.

LibraryThing member tinas37

I was always interested in the DaVinci Code concept, but just couldn't pick up a book & get into it. I read this as part of a book club and reluctantly started it - it took quite a while for me to get into it. However, once the storyline was started & characters introduced, I couldn't put it down!

I enjoyed the suspense, underlying love story.... I liked how it was written - would make a great movie!

Show Less

LibraryThing member smknuth1

Khoury lacks inventiveness and courage in his writing and most critically in his resolution. The historical information is interesting, the story moves smoothly and quickly, but the ending disappoints beyond belief. I was mad that I spent time reading this because the ending was not surprising as

suggested but revolting!

Show Less

LibraryThing member msleighm

Without a doubt liked better than Angels and Demons or Da Vinci Code. It's a good ride.

LibraryThing member rsegoly

I read some of Dan Brown's books, did not like it a bit, not to mention the movie (De Vinci), but this book is quite different, more realistic and the plot is well built.
Very recommended.

LibraryThing member GeraniumCat

This book started in such a lame and derivative fashion that I abandoned it after about 20 pages. I can't imagine going back to finish it, and it will probably be taken to a charity shop. I only bought it as train reading, but the writing style is dull and reminds me of the website that "generates"

Da Vinci Code clones.

Show Less

LibraryThing member jennyk81

This book was alot like the Da Vinci code, but along with the story of the secrets of the Templars and Christianity, there is a person out of malise trying to bring down the Roman Catholic Church. Good read, but very similar to other tales.

LibraryThing member ulfhjorr

Khoury is a screenwriter, and that becomes painfully clear as he includes just about every Hollywood cliche in a single chase scene: from the hero cop who takes (and makes) a leg shot to stop a suspect, to the chase car barely avoiding a delivery man but crashing through his crates of produce, to

the too-fast car careening around a corner and bearing down on the oblivious innocent pedestrian.

But really, the worst part of the book was the Hollywood ending where the bad guy dies and our heroes live happily ever after, miraculously spared even the moral quandary they found themselves in through that death.

Show Less

LibraryThing member mramos

The book starts off at a fast pace and catches your attention. But the further you read the more you can tell this is the first time the author has written a book. And he does not have a natural talent for it.

The story takes us back and forth between the present and the past as he tries to use the

mysterious Templar History in both subplots. We start in present day as Knights ride into a Vatican exhibit at the New York City Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Knights takes an object with them. Our subplot is the flash back to 1291 Acre where the Templar's Stronghold is being destroyed by the Muslim onslaught. And one Knight escapes with a chest on the only ship left intact in the harbor.

This was a good try and I look forward to the next book as the author learns to keep his writing at the same quality as the first third of this novel was written. And he needs to not force plots but let them develop naturally. He tries to add a twist. The book is worth reading for the beginning if nothing else.

Show Less

LibraryThing member gophergolfer

I thought this was a terrible book. A knockoff of the Da Vinci Code. ( I think I'll write a book like the Da Vinci code, only with a Monsignor, member of the Curia, hired assassin, and maybe a member of the CIA as well.) Gag, gag, gag

LibraryThing member wyvernfriend

Archaeologist - check
Secret that could topple the church - check
secret catholic group out to preserve secret - check
chunks of exposition to fill in history - check (but at least this involved debate not preaching)
Government agent wrestling with conscience - check

no, it's not the Da Vinci Code, it

is a lot smoother, but the preaching about how religion is opium to the masses was a bit much. Maybe it's just me that gets irritated with the religion is a cod thing, but authors using books to push their own philosophy often irks.

Show Less

LibraryThing member mwtemple

Ugh, I did NOT like this book. I picked it up at the Las Vegas airport so I would have something to read on the plane -- I was looking for a page-turner that would keep me interested and basically just pass the time until I got home. This book did not do the trick. I didn't like the writing, didn't

like the plot, and didn't like the characters. I didn't even like the ending -- I kept reading to the end just because I had to see what happened, and I was somehow disappointed, even though I didn't appreciate the rest of the story. I saw this as a cheap knockoff of The DaVinci Code, and just overall didn't like it.

Show Less

LibraryThing member DaddyPupcake

All I can say is that I'm glad I got this book from the library and did not buy it. The story started out good but there was no mystery after the first couple of chapters. I thought it was entertaining but definitely not much of a mystery.

LibraryThing member madamejeanie

The book opens in 1291, with a young Templar Knight fleeing with his
mentor from the burning city of Acre as the West loses it's hold on the
Holy Land. They are carrying with them a small chest that contains the
secret of all secrets and must carry it back to the Order's Grand
Master. But the ship they

are sailing on vanishes without a trace.

Fast forward to modern day Manhattan, where the Metropolitan Museum is
having a black tie opening night for a huge new exhibit called
"Treasures of the Vatican." Amid all the pomp and circumstance, TV
cameras and celebrities, four knights in armor on horseback ride down
the street, up the steps, and into the museum where they brutally attack
anybody who gets in their way. Archaeologist Tess Chaykin dives for
cover behind one of the display cases and watches in fascinated horror
as one of the horseman breaks the glass of the case and steals one piece
in particular, an ancient geared device. He utters a cryptic Latin
phrase and leaves with his treasure while the other horsemen load their
bags with gold and jewels. Tess teams up with FBI anti-terrorist
specialist Sean Reilly to investigate. As the story unfolds, they learn
that the object of their quest will change the whole world as we know it
-- proof that the Christian religion is based on a lie.

This book is bound to be compared to "The Da Vinci Code" because they
deal with basically the same premise -- that Christianity is based on a
lie. Dan Brown writes with much more suspense than Khoury, but Khoury's
literary style is different. It's not nearly so fast paced, and he
weaves a tangible tale by jumping backwards in history to the 14th
century, then back to present day as his story unfolds. The ending
wasn't very satisfactory, IMO, but it was probably the only ending that
he could have come up with. After all, mainstream readers can only take
so much. I give the book a 4.

Show Less

LibraryThing member cshigh

Fast paced and entertaining, but not very well written or as engaging as it could have been.

LibraryThing member Darla

Huh. Boy, I definitely read a different book than the majority of the reviewers on Amazon, who largely loathed it.

The story: there's a display on exhibit from the Vatican, and on the opening night, 4 horsemen dressed as Templars come riding up, decapitate one guard with a sword, then proceed to

destroy the exhibit, terrorize the guests, and steal many of the treasures.

One of the witnesses was archaeologist Tess Chaykin, who notices the leader only took one item: a sort of machine. She teams up with FBI agent Sean Ryan and they discover that the machine was a code device, and its use may uncover documents calling into question the history of the Catholic church.

Then one by one the thieves are being killed, and it's a race to find the machine and the documents with the thief on the one side and the agents of the church on the other.

It's kind of like National Treasure (which I loved). Lots of action and intrigue and the irresistible lure of secret societies and behind-the-scenes manipulation. I'm a huge sucker for this sort of story. It even has a romance. What more could I ask? Seriously, I read most of this book with a huge grin on my face, it was just so fun and exciting.

So why the difference between my reaction and the Amazon reviews? You know I had to read through a whole bunch of them to try to figure it out.

* First objection: it's too much like The DaVinci Code. Well, only in the background premise that the Catholic church is covering up something and has agents who'll keep the secret at all costs. That's not an idea that originated with The DaVinci Code--any large and powerful organization is going to spawn stories like that. Besides, I enjoyed this one much more--The Last Templar was a more dynamic, action-packed book, more fun to read.
* Second objection: it's not factually accurate. Well, no, it's not. It's fiction. But I do have to agree in parts here--it's unrealistic the way Dirk Pitt books are unrealistic. There's a diving scene, for example. 100 feet of water over a town flooded by a dam. No diving lights, but they can go into a submerged church building and see what they're doing. And there's a convenient piece of metal sticking out of a pillar they can use to pry up the floor... and removing it makes the entire building collapse. Very Hollywood, I agree. It's why I gave the book 4.5 stars instead of 5.
* Third objection which only a few reviewers really outright said, but which you could read between the lines of quite a few of the reviews: the implied criticism of the Catholic church. Obviously, this didn't bother me a bit, not being a fan of organized religion. But to clarify things, I didn't think Khoury was writing about actual facts. Do I think that there's a document somewhere proving that Jesus wasn't divine? No, I don't. Even if there were, I don't think it would have as great an effect as the characters in the book feared--it's all about faith, isn't it? People have a great capacity to dismiss all kinds of facts in the face of faith, so why not that one, too. I do think there's probably quite a bit of truth in how the book describes the assembling of the Christian Bible, though possibly not in the details. And to tell you the truth, that part was surprisingly sympathetic to the church. But again, I didn't read this as nonfiction, and I don't really care whether or not it's true. It's plausible in the world of the story, which might as well be in a galaxy far, far away.

This is going on my keeper shelf, and I've put The Sanctuary in my Zooba queue.

Show Less

LibraryThing member TheoClarke

Pot-boiling light thriller in the wake of DVC. The first chapters are excellent but it soon becomes unremarkable.

LibraryThing member TheoClarke

Pot-boiling light thriller in the wake of DVC. The first chapters are excellent but it soon becomes unremarkable.

LibraryThing member michaeleconomy

Its like davinci code, except every 3 paragraphs he make a 9/11 reference.Action packed and fun, but not exactly enriching.

LibraryThing member jhoddinott

Overall I enjoyed reading Khoury's book. It is nicely paced and does a good job of weaving together a storyline set in the 13th Century with the main story set in the present day. However, the last third was increasingly implausible as the plot moved to its conclusion. I picked this up at the

library having just finished Robyn Young's very enjoyable 'Brethren', also about the Templars, but this book is not really in that league. The level of character development and fantastical plot feels more like a book tie-in with a movie rather than having the depth that I look for in a good novel.

Show Less

Fewer