The Templar Legacy

A Novel

By: Steve Berry

Narrated by: Paul Michael

Length: 15 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Exciting . . . hard to put down without reading one more page.”—The Florida Times-Union

The ancient order of the Knights Templar possessed untold wealth and absolute power over kings and popes . . . until the Inquisition, when they were wiped from the face of the earth, their hidden riches lost. But now two forces vying for the treasure have learned that it is not at all what they thought it was—and its true nature could change the modern world.

Cotton Malone, one-time top operative for the U.S. Justice Department, is enjoying his quiet new life as an antiquarian book dealer in Copenhagen when an unexpected call to action reawakens his hair-trigger instincts—and plunges him back into the cloak-and-dagger world he thought he’d left behind.

It begins with a violent robbery attempt on Cotton’s former supervisor, Stephanie Nelle, who’s far from home on a mission that has nothing to do with national security. Armed with vital clues to a series of centuries-old puzzles scattered across Europe, she means to crack a mystery that has tantalized scholars and fortune-hunters through the ages by finding the legendary cache of wealth and forbidden knowledge thought to have been lost forever when the order of the Knights Templar was exterminated in the fourteenth century.

But she’s not alone. Competing for the historic prize—and desperate for the crucial information Stephanie possesses—is Raymond de Roquefort, a shadowy zealot with an army of assassins at his command.

Welcome or not, Cotton seeks to even the odds in the perilous race. But the more he learns about the ancient conspiracy surrounding the Knights Templar, the more he realizes that even more than lives are at stake. At the end of a lethal game of conquest, rife with intrigue, treachery, and craven lust for power, lies a shattering discovery that could rock the civilized world—and, in the wrong hands, bring it to its knees.

©2006 Steve Berry (P)2006 Books on Tape

First time with Berry. Ready for more

Would you consider the audio edition of The Templar Legacy to be better than the print version?

Can't say. Haven't read print version.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Templar Legacy?

Stephanie's Discovery that son was alive and living in Monastery

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

OK

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. Listen while running on treadmill

Any additional comments?

Kept my interest

A good story

Overall this is a good book. It has enough action to keep it interesting and a lot of history. This work is very imaginative and I enjoyed it.

Great story but poor characters

I really like the plots and story but at times it’s boring and I cannot tell which characters are who. Berry is like an off-brand Dan brown & Michael Crichton who can keep you glued to a book.

Steve Berry a true realistic fiction writer

This novel is the first Steve Berry novel I've had the chance to listen to has it showed the realistic and ground to current understands of the world threw a more simplistic theory of Christianity lay avoiding faith based ideas and beliefs. I've also seen lots of novels use Templars in them but this was different from the mold has made them more a shadow of there famous history or conspiracy say about them it makes them has a group with just practice there faith and trying to find awsys to survive in a mordern society where religious power is less prominent with masses. Do theys where good points for a novel in originality it didn't sit will my beliefs in the afterlife from Christian teachers but that's me so no hard feelings I guess.

An atheist’s dream

If you’re an atheist or agnostic, this is your read. Others may enjoy a suspense-filled romp.

Just the overall story

I have always been fascinated by the Templer stories. This is a whole other type of story one that Nicolas Cage would star very well in reminded me very much of one of his movies. Not fond of the poetic liecening with the story of the resurrection but that’s just me.

Some good, mostly bad

The historical part of the book was great…right up until, what would be considered by a massive number of people, the sacrilege near the end. There’s fiction then there’s trying to destroy the faith of hundreds of millions of people; this is the latter.
Unfortunately, you have to get through what is arguably one of the worst narrators ever just to get to the disappointing parts. The exciting parts were spoken as if on tranquilizers. No emotion whatsoever.
Then there’s the voice of Stephanie. And that was the best part of that character! The most unlikeable, no, easily hated ‘good’ characters I’ve ever known. The book would have worked without her with minor changes. And the book would’ve been better as is with…anyone else narrating!

Fictous

If you keep in mind that this is fictitious, based around some history and some just made up facts the story is interesting and well done. Even though not catholic, I found it to be anti-catholic and theologically very narrow. The author seems to be playing on the whole Gnostic gospel movement for revisionist history. I have read other stories using the some of the basic premises and found them more believable fiction. Some will enjoy, some will be offended and some with knowledge of history and theology will be baffled by the interplay between fact and fiction. The authors notes are important part of this book to understand what is fiction and what is history.

Distortions

The book presents incorrect "facts" about what is written in the Bible to weave an otherwise good story.

Knights Passed

As myself a Knight of Columbus, it was entertaining. Enjoyed it very much, listen to it twice.