"Brotherhood of the Lion" is an exciting fiction novel about two deformed orphan boys growing up in an 11th century abbey. Life is hard for them, but their belief in magic allows them to uncover a hidden room within the abbey that not only transforms them but gives them incredible powers. When they uncover an evil plot to take over the abbey and possibly all of France, they must use their powers to set things right. Despite the challenges the young protagonists face, they both know that they are meant for greater things. Their belief in magic turns out to be the key that unlocks the door to a very special, hidden room within the abbey. Once in the room, they are transformed and powerful. Upon discovering that their nemesis plans to take over the abbey, and ultimately all of France, they jump into action and use their powers to battle the evil that confronts them. Join Remi and Andre on their incredible adventures as they try to save the abbey, France, and maybe even the entire world.
"Brotherhood of the Lion" is an exciting fiction novel about two deformed orphan boys growing up in an 11th century abbey. Life is hard for them, but their belief in magic allows them to uncover a hidden room within the abbey that not only transforms them but gives them incredible powers. When they uncover an evil plot to take over the abbey and possibly all of France, they must use their powers to set things right. Despite the challenges the young protagonists face, they both know that they are meant for greater things. Their belief in magic turns out to be the key that unlocks the door to a very special, hidden room within the abbey. Once in the room, they are transformed and powerful. Upon discovering that their nemesis plans to take over the abbey, and ultimately all of France, they jump into action and use their powers to battle the evil that confronts them. Join Remi and Andre on their incredible adventures as they try to save the abbey, France, and maybe even the entire world.
Bernard Robineau stood back and looked at the abbey, the construction of which had been begun by his father, a father who never lived to see its completion. The building of the abbey had taken more than thirty years to finish. He knew his father would have been proud of the outcome. He also would have been proud of his sonâs workmanship.
Bernard was an extremely handsome and muscular man with long dark hair which he kept tied back. He had spent his entire life, since he was a young child, learning the trade. His father, also a stone mason, had taught him everything he knew, taking him on as an apprentice. He honed his skills alongside him building the magnificent abbey. After the death of his father, Bernard continued his work. Now, here he stood looking at what once had been a dream that both he and his father had shared.
Bernard felt his wifeâs arm move around his waist as she drew him to her. She, also, was very proud of her husband and the amazing work he had done in constructing this magnificent abbey.
âBernard,â she whispered, âyour work is fabulous. You leave a legacy to the world.â Â Â Â Â Â Â After a few moments of silence she added, âPlease, Bernard, take me inside so that I may leave my own legacy.â
âWhat do you mean Agnes?â he asked. âWhat legacy? What do you mean?â
âJust take me in so that I may impart my power on this magnificent accomplishment.â
Bernard, unsure of what she intended, though fully trusting of his wife, led her into the abbey.
âJust lead me through the halls. I will know when we find the right place,â said Agnes.
For the next twenty minutes they walked through the passageways of the abbey. Occasionally, Agnes would stop and slide her hand along a cold stone wall, mutter something under her breath and then eventually walk away.
Finally, after rubbing her hand along the wall in a spot near a storage room at the lowest level, she raised her hand and simply said, âHere.â
Bernard watched as Agnes ran her finger in a large arch pattern along the partition, again muttering something unintelligible. Reaching up, and again, using her finger, she traced what appeared to be words above the spot where she had previously marked the arch.
âCreaĹŁi pentru-mi un portal de viata. StÄpâneĹte magic spiritul Ĺi bea-l cu puteri secrete,â chanted Agnes, each word becoming louder and louder.
Bernard stepped back gazing at his wife as if he had never seen her before. What was she doing? Had she truly lost her mind? He shivered as a cold and powerful wind gusted down the passageway and spun around her. As he rushed to Agnus, she dropped to the stone floor trembling.
When he was lifting his unconscious wife, he suddenly froze. There, upon the wall where she had placed her fingers were the words, Crede, Ĺi IntroduceĹŁi transforma. He stared at them incredulously. The letters had been etched into the stone as if he himself, a stone mason, had carved them, yet he knew they had not been there a few moments ago. Holding has wife against him with one arm, he touched the carvings with his own fingers to prove to himself that they actually did exist.
Agnes moaned and began to slide down his body. Using both hands he scooped her up and carried her out of the abbey and back to their home, a nearby small stone building.
She was weak, very weak. It was as though life itself were being drained from her. Once, she had raven black hair framing an oval face with fierce green eyes. Now, Bernard gazed upon her and saw so many streaks of grey throughout her head. Her green eyes were glassy, looking more brown than green, and her face shockingly white, all color drained from it.
Occasionally, she would speak softly and Bernard would run to her, but he was never able to understand what she was saying. She appeared to be babbling incoherently.
Finally, after two weeks of lying in bed in this fashion, she succumbed to death. Bernardâs love had left him. He was alone.
During this time the abbey became inhabited by the Benedictine monks under Abbot Berno and ultimately under the authority of Pope Sergius III. Bernard continued to work on it adding sculpted ornate designs into the stone or creating some of the sculptures that would decorate the halls. In the lowest passageway where his beloved Agnes had collapsed, he etched a recessed figure of his beautiful wife in the smooth rock of the wall. He had never fully recovered from her death.
The abbot had been furious with Bernard when he saw the words carved in the wall and demanded that they be chiseled out at once. Abbot Berno had not understood what they said, but surely a strange tongue like that must be pagan and therefore had no place in his abbey.
Of course, Bernard had refused. He could not bring himself to remove what he was so sure his wife had traced into the stone with her finger. He watched with tears rolling down his face as one of the monks took hammer and chisel to the writing on the wall. All stood in amazement as the words and the stone itself appeared impervious to the effects of the tools.
Abbot Berno would try holy water, prayers and chants and still it remained. Then, he had a tapestry hung over the words only to find it reduced to ashes the next day. Ultimately, he would give up and just avoided that area altogether.
Bernard made a regular habit of visiting that passageway because it made him feel closer to Agnes. One day, as he stood in the hallway, he felt a cool breeze flow down the hall. He dropped to his knees. Appearing before him, he saw an archway with a large wooden door. He opened it and entered the room. As the door closed behind him, the archway vanished.
Roger Wellington Nasonâs Brotherhood of the Lion is an exciting work of historical fiction set in an 11th-century French abbey. For the two misshapen orphan boys who grew up in the abbey, life has always been difficultâparticularly when a certain monk is around. A new opportunity, however, allows them to discover a hitherto unknown room in the abbey and, with it, incredible powers. Not a moment too soon, the brothers have the opportunity to become heroes, helping the poor and confronting the evil that lurks within the abbeyâŚ
From the very beginning, the author is able to draw the reader into the spine-tinglingly magical world of Andre and Remi, combining realistic events with the supernatural. We can empathise immediately with characters who are treated harshly and with disdain everywhere they go solely because they are not perfect, in contrast with young, good-looking, or rich characters who are treated with honour and respect. Church corruption and the quest for power amongst those who consider themselves to be better than the masses are a major themeâmany aspects of which still ring true today.Â
Whilst the ideas and plot were sound, there were some aspects that held me back from a 4-star review. The dialogue was often stiff and formal, such as the lack of contractions being used in direct speech. This could, of course, have been the authorâs attempt to convey the way characters would indeed have spoken at the time, whether in English or as a direct translation of the French, where contractions do not exist; for the modern reader, though, it would perhaps be better to allow the speech to flow more naturally. In contrast to this slower pace of speech, I felt that the plot was slightly rushed in parts, particularly the denouement. More detailed descriptions and drawn-out events may have helped to immerse the reader even deeper into the world and help to build more; however, the fast-paced nature could also be praised, for the author does not take time away from events with unnecessary descriptions.Â
The aforementioned drawbacks aside, I thoroughly enjoyed the read, always being keen to know what happened next. The author undoubtedly has a lot of potential, combining a fantastic imagination with historical truths, and I look forward to reading his works in future!