Crusader GoldBy David Gibbins
Headline Publishing 2006
Website
I have been a fan of Clive Cussler's Books, starring Dirk Pitt, for over 20 years. I have also been a fan of Indiana Jones for over 20 years as well. And just recently I found a new underwater archaeologist who is as good as (if not better than) Indiana and Dirk.
His name is Jack Howard, and he runs the IMU - International Maritime University based in Cornwall, England. I think I have found the new Indiana Jones. Jack Howard is the new Man of the Hour, in my book anyway.
In Crusader Gold, (the second book in the series) Jack and his team are on the trail of the Treasure from the Temple of Jerusalem. The temple treasures that were lost after the Romans conqured Judea in 70 CE and when the disapora began.
Jack tracks the treasure to Rome, and then to Constantinople when Rome fell. In 1204 Constantiniople was sacked and looted by crusaders. Jack's theory was that the looting was lead by the Varangians. Varangians were Norse mercenaries, from Scandinavia. The Norse founded the city of Kiev in Rus (Modern Russia), and it was not that far for them to travel down the Volga river to the Black Sea and end up in Constantinople. So Jack follows the Varangians back to the north. But instead of going east to Scandinavia, they went west to Iceland, Greenland, and even to the New world - L'anse Aux Meadows in Newfoundland. The trail then leads south and where the Varangians and the treasure end up is a new twist on history.
Last year I picked up the first book in this series. It's called Atlantis. In this novel, Jack and his team discover the true location of Atlantis. According to the Phaistos Disk. I wont say anymore, other than I really enjoyed this book. At the end of Crusader Gold, Jack makes a decison on what the team will be looking for next. This is one of my favourite mysteries of all time - because it has not yet been found. The Lost Tomb of Alexander the Great. The Lost Tomb by David Gribbin is due out in September 2008.
L'anse Aux Meadows 2
L'anse Aux Meadows 3 - wikipedia
L'anse Aux Meadows 4
1 comment:
Sounds like a great summertime read! And I'm always looking for another good, strong man like Indiana Jones or Dirk Pitt, lol! Thanks for the recommendation. I'm going to check these out.
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