In the year 1095, Pope Urban II declared war on the infidel. Kings, princes, and lords throughout Europe have joined the Crusade. To Murdo Ranulfson has fallen the duty of guarding his family's interests while his father and brothers fight to win Jerusalem. But when corrupt clergy prove enemies rather than protectors, Murdo must leave his native Scotland in search of his father. In the company of monks and warriors, he journeys far beyond the rolling fields of home, beyond the fabled Constantinople and the brooding walls of Antioch, to the Holy Land and the sword points of the Saracens. There, where blood, suffering, and human evil at its most horrifying are shot through with rays of the miraculous, he obtains the relic that will guide his life and the lives of his descendants for centuries. And there he grows from a callow youth to a man, trading cynicism for faith and selfishness for the heart of a leader. Steeped in heroism, treachery, and the clamor of battle, The Iron Lance begins a remarkable, masterfully woven epic trilogy of a Scottish noble family fighting for its existence and its faith during the age of the Great Crusades -- and of a secret society that will shape history for a thousand years. In an ancient church in rural Scotland, a Scottish lawyer beholds visions of an ancient past--the journey of Murdo, an ancestor whose fight for his family's home sets him in the thick of the Crusades. . . . Embittered by his betrayal by crooked clergy and by the theft of his family's lands, Murdo leaves his native Scotland in search of his father. In the company of monks and warriors, he embarks on a journey that takes him far beyond the rolling fields of home, beyond fabled Constantinople and the brooding walls of Antioch, to the Holy Land and the sword points of the Saracens. There, where blood, suffering, and human evil at its most horrifying are shot through with rays of the miraculous, he encounters the Iron Lance--the actual weapon that pierced Jesus on the cross. And there he grows from a callow youth to a man, trading anger and cynicism for devotion to Christ, and selfishness for the heart of a leader. He returns at last to his home to right a bitter wrong, and to establish a kingdom where faith can dwell in peace. Steeped in heroism, treachery, and the clamor of battle, The Iron Lance begins a remarkable, masterfully woven epic trilogy of a Scottish noble family fighting for its existence and its faith during the age of the Crusades. Stephen R. Lawhead is an internationally acclaimed author of fantasy and imaginative fiction. His works include Byzantium, the Song of Albion and Dragon King trilogies; The Pendragon Cycle, an Arthurian epic; and the science fiction novels Empyrion I and II and Dream Thief In the year 1095, Pope Urban II declared war on the infidel. Kings, princes, and lords throughout Europe have joined the Crusade. To Murdo Ranulfson has fallen the duty of guarding his family's interests while his father and brothers fight to win Jerusalem. But when corrupt clergy prove enemies rather than protectors, Murdo must leave his native Scotland in search of his father. In the company of monks and warriors, he journeys far beyond the rolling fields of home, beyond the fabled Constantinople and the brooding walls of Antioch, to the Holy Land and the sword points of the Saracens. There, where blood, suffering, and human evil at its most horrifying are shot through with rays of the miraculous, he obtains the relic that will guide his life and the lives of his descendants for centuries. And there he grows from a callow youth to a man, trading cynicism for faith and selfishness for the heart of a leader. Steeped in heroism, treachery, and the clamor of battle, The Iron Lance begins a remarkable, masterfully woven epic trilogy of a Scottish noble family fighting for its existence and its faith during the age of the Great Crusades -- and of a secret society that will shape history for a thousand years. Stephen R. Lawhead is an internationally acclaimed author of mythic history and imaginative fiction. His works include the first two books of the Celtic Crusades, The Iron Lance and The Black Rood, Byzantium the Pendragon Cycle, The Song of Albion, and Dragon King trilogies, as well as the science fiction novels, Empyrion I and II and Dream Thief.