Taking the Cross
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Description
In the Middle Ages not all crusades were fought in the Holy Land. A two-pronged threat to the Catholic Church was growing within Christendom itself and Pope Innocent III called for the crusade against heresy to eliminate both the Albigenses and Valdenses, two movements that did not adhere to Church orthodoxy. Andreas, a knight who longs to go on crusade to the Holy Land, finds himself fighting against one in his French homeland. While Andreas wages war for the lives and religious freedom of his people, a battle rages within his soul. Eva, a young woman of a new religious order, discovers a secret message within a letter about the death of her father in the Holy Land. As she learns more of her father, she is forced to confront a profound and perilous spiritual inheritance for which she must fight. Eva hears of Andreas and senses her inheritance may lead her to him. Filled with battles of the flesh and the spirit, Taking the Cross reveals a passionate aspect of Medieval times where some fought ardently for the freedom of others.
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Product details
- Paperback | 250 pages
- 152 x 229 x 16mm | 422g
- 01 Oct 2014
- Koehler Books
- English
- Illustrations, black and white
- 1940192277
- 9781940192277
Review quote
The Albigensian Crusade proclaimed by Pope Innocent III in 1208 and launched in 1209 against heretic sects in Languedoc forms the backdrop for Charles Gibson s fascinating and highly dramatic debut novel Taking the Cross, which centers on a crusade fought not in the Holy Land but in the Church s own territories, against the Albigenses and Valdenses of France. Gibson s story centers on two main characters (alternating the narrative focus of chapters between them), a young knight named Andreas, and a young woman of faith named Eva. Gibson smoothly incorporates a large cast of figures from the time period, and although some of his narration is rather stiltedly old-fashioned ( The man called her name, but she saw him not, and so on), he maintains a solid amount of forward momentum through some abstruse and complicated subject matter. The turmoil of the Albigensian Crusade pitted Christian against Christian in the heart of Europe, and Gibson does a very good job of imparting a human dimension to the conflict. Historical Novel Society"
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About Charles Gibson
Charles Gibson has written for the inspirational book series "God Allows U-Turns" as well as for a Twin Cities newspaper. He has a long-standing interest in history, has spent many years researching the Middle Ages and the Crusades, and has traveled to the Languedoc region in France. He lives in Minnesota with his wife and sons.
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