King of Jherusalem and Defender of the Holy Sepulcher, Baldwin walks the sword’s edge between the quarreling barons of his Court and the jihad of Islam. Between the two, however, a sinister presence lurks—a cabal of heretics who will stop at nothing to see its dark designs come to fruition. Baldwin is young, courageous, and a leper. In the midst of mounting political tensions and war, a beautiful woman befriends the lonely sick king—a woman who claims she is an immortal saint. Basing his story on extensive research very skillfully deployed, Rezer brings the world of 12th century Jerusalem to life, and to that historical research he adds some intriguing elements of mysticism that feel very much of a piece with the fanatical strains of mysticism running through the era. Above it all there is the character of Baldwin himself, a winningly convincing fictional recreation of one of the most fascinating figures of the Middle Ages. Strongly Recommended. ~Steve Donoghue, Historical Novel Society Reviews February 2015 [Editor's Choice Selection] The complex and distant world of the Middle East in the times of the Crusades is the setting for this historical novel. It is also billed as "a medieval fantasy." In Jerusalem in 1176, 15-year-old Baldwin IV, a Christian, ascends the throne of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. In the tumultuous times that follow, the young Baldwin, afflicted with leprosy that claims his life in 1185, mounts a losing struggle against enemies within and without attempting to preserve his beleaguered kingdom. ~ JC Martin, AZ Daily Star ***Author's Preferred Edition.*** This 2014 Edition has been edited, reformatted, and re-released as a newly branded series. Scott R. Rezer was born in 1963 in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, and enlisted in the United States Air Force after graduating from high school. He and his wife have two grown children. They live in the Desert Southwest. He is the author of three books; Shadow of the Mountain: A Novel of the Flood; Love Abideth Still: A Novel of the Civil War; and his first novel, The Leper King, an historical fantasy of the Crusades.