Just One More Paragraph: ROAD FROM THE WEST by Rosanne E. Lortz Tour & Review

Welcome to Day 13 of the "Road from the West" blog tour. I am thrilled to be part of this tour, as Rosanne E. Lortz is a true lover of history and her book perfectly illustrates that. Make sure you return on Wednesday, Sept. 28 as Rosanne will return with an insightful guest post and a giveaway. You won't want to miss it!

ROAD FROM THE WEST
BOOK I of the CHRONICLES OF TANCRED
Author: Rosanne Lortz
Publisher: Madison Street Publishing
Paperback: 374 pages
ISBN: 9780983671909
Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis:

A tale of Courage, Conquest, Intrigue, and Honor

You know the Knights Templar, you know Richard the Lionheart—now learn the story that started it all in the adventures of the First Crusade.

Haunted by guilt from the past and nightmares of the future, a young Norman named Tancred takes the cross and vows to be the first to free Jerusalem from the infidels. As he journeys to the Holy Land, he braves vast deserts, mortal famine, and the ever-present ambushes of the enemy Turks—but the greatest danger of all is deciding which of the Crusader lords to trust. A mysterious seer prophesies that Tancred will find great love and great sorrow on his journey, but the latter seems intent on claiming him before he can find the first. Intrigues and passions grow as every battle brings the Crusaders one step closer to Jerusalem. Not all are destined to survive the road from the West.

My Thoughts:

It is obvious from the beginning of this book that Rosanne Lortz loves history. She brought to life the Crusades, but not the "popular" Third Crusade with Richard Coeur de Lion, but instead, starts at the beginning with the First Crusade. This rare treat gives the reader a look at the beginning and the reasons many joined to fight, and because of extensive research that is apparent, also allows the reader to become familiar with Godfrey of Bouillon, Peter the Hermit, and of course main character, Bohemond who was the son of Robert Guiscard. and his nephew Tancred.

Rich with history, this tale is told with a prose that will keep the reader captivated throughout the story, transporting them back to the late 1090's. A time when knight and farmer fought for what they believed in. Some were fighting for God and the Church while others were looking for forgiveness and still others for riches in both wealth and political gain.

With that said, I found this take refreshing. Lortz did not focus so much on the gore of fighting, although there were fights, but on the trek, the lives and survival of large amounts of knights and soldiers. I never fully comprehend the extent these men traveled and what they endured while getting place to place, and then being fit or healthy enough to fight when they were enduring the elements and trying to cope with the lack of food. She created a story that was realistic both in setting and characters. Some, like Tancred, I have grown quite fond of, and was sad to see this book end. I will be impatiently waiting for the for the next book in the series: Flower of the Desert to be published.

Truly a brilliant novel, this book would appeal to both the historical fiction lover as well as the reader that just wants a good story about a flawed hero.With no sex and minimal gore, this book would be a great resource for home school high school students.

About the Author:

Rosanne E. Lortz "Rose" is a medieval enthusiast, a history teacher, a book addict, a mom to two baby boys, and a native of Portland, Oregon. She graduated from New St. Andrews College in 2005 with a B. A. in Liberal Arts and Culture and worked as a high school teacher for several years teaching classes in English, history, literature, and music. She married David Spears in December of 2009 and they were blessed with twin boys, Adam and Oliver, in November of 2010. When she's not waking up with the twins at 3am, Rose is at work on her latest book, Road from the West, a novel set during the First Crusade and scheduled to be released on September 2, 2011.

To learn more about Rosanne or her work, you can visit her website at: http://rosannelortz.blogspot.com/
You can also find Rosanne on Twitter and on Facebook. Curious what Rosanne's bookshelf looks like? Have a peek at Goodreads

Road from the West Tour Schedule

Friday, September 2nd

Review at The Maiden's Court

Monday, September 5th

Author Guest Post & Giveaway at The Maiden's Court

Tuesday, September 6th

Review at Debbie's Book Bag

Author Guest Post & Giveaway at From the TBR Pile

Wednesday, September 7th

Review at The Calico Critic

Thursday, September 8th

Review at Unabridged Chick

Monday, September 12th

Review at Broken Teepee