Volunteering to deliver a secret message lands young Tormod, a Scot, on a journey through 1307 France and Spain. After delivering the message, he falls into the job of safely guiding his superheroes, the Knights Templar, and becomes apprentice to the virtuous and strong knight Alexander. Alexander, like Tormod, experiences visions of the future and knows that Tormod has endangered both their lives. They run from King Philippe le Bel of France, protecting a dangerous, vision-enhancing carving. In the course of his travels, Tormod taps into his mystical powers, which change as the plot suits. Tormod is funny and kind, but the antique sound of his language may put readers off. He's a very considerate narrator, though, frequently stopping to explain this or that medieval detail—a technique that enlightens but also utterly destroys the fourth wall. Riddled with consistency problems, the book jumps from event to event with little regard to transition. Though Tormod's world is foreign to readers, debut novelist Black spends no time building it, even as the adventure moves along. The concept is appealing, but the execution fails. (Fiction. 12 & up)

Young Tormod longs for adventure, but as a farm boy living in early-fourteenth-century Scotland, that's not likely. Then a mysterious figure gives him a parchment to deliver, and Tormod realizes that adventure has found him. Soon Tormod finds himself at sea with his mentor, Alexander, a member of the Knights Templar, who shares with Tormod a propensity for visions. First-time novelist Black sets up an action-filled plot that neatly skips across countries and moves about in time and space. Although some of the religious and historical background may not grab readers (and as the author acknowledges in a note, a bit of the history has been manipulated), much of the rest will. Tormod makes a worthy protagonist, filled with doubts, yet determined to succeed once his path becomes clear.

Gr 6-9 It is 1307 in Scotland, and 13-year-old Tormod is rushing through the night to fetch a tinderbox to light the Beltane fire for his village when a Knight Templar interrupts his errand to send him on another that is even more pressing. Tormod spends the entire tale rushing from one place to another in the company of Sir Alexander as they follow a map without knowing what lies at the end and are pursued by the French king's soldiers. The constant chase is exciting at first but begins to grind, particularly after Tormod loses two toes in a mishap and must still continue his flight on foot. The historical setting is well drawn, and additional interest is added by visions that both Tormod and Alexander receive, although the images seem to be invariably of death and doom. Their dialogue is written in a pseudo-brogue, so there are many examples of "ye" and "o'" (for "of") but otherwise their speech is modern. The visions and the Templar theme may interest readers but they may be drawn up short at the cliff-hanger ending. Eric Norton, McMillan Memorial Library, Wisconsin Rapids, WI

Scotland, 1307: after a seemingly chance encounter with a Knight Templar, young Tormod is swept away from home into a quest involving French treachery, papal politics, and a mysterious, powerful carving. Historical but for its protagonist's visions of future events, this debut fantasy has a stale setup but is refreshingly frank about the nastier aspects of medieval life and war.

In Black's impressive debut, first in the Book of Tormod series, the Knights Templar weren't merely a crusading religious order—they possessed powers ranging from precognition to mind control and used them to fight the excesses of King Philippe of France. Tormod, a Scottish teenager, occasionally has prophetic visions, but has learned to keep this information to himself. After a chance encounter with the knight Alexander, he is drawn into an adventure that eventually takes him to mainland Europe. Along the way, Alexander trains Tormod in combat, his special powers and the history of the Knights Templar. The action is frequent and often brutal, but never feels out of place. Black gives Tormod a strong and clearly Scottish voice that readers will quickly comprehend. There are moments that seem dubious, but they never impede the fast-paced plot. A captivating mix of history, fantasy and religion, the novel is a solid adventure that makes good use of its historical setting. Ages 12–up. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Feb.)