Fid S Crusade

"One of the most refreshing and lively takes on the superhero genre I’ve seen in years." -- Hugo award-winning author Tim Pratt Even supervillains have lines they dare not cross. If only the same could be said of heroes... For more than two decades, the sight of Doctor Fid's powered armor has struck terror into the hearts of hero and civilian alike. But when a personal tragedy motivates Doctor Fid to investigate a crime, a plot is uncovered so horrific that even he is taken aback. Haunted by painful memories and profound guilt, the veteran supervillain must race against time if he is to have any hope of confronting the approaching threat. Every battle takes its toll...but the stakes are too high for retreat to be an option. Read the supervillainous sci-fi action-thriller that is the winner of the 'Science-Fiction / Fantasy / Horror' category in the 2018 Publishers Weekly BookLife Prize, a finalist in the 13th Annual National Indie Excellence Awards, and a B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree!

A supervillainous tale of rage, grief, guilt and violence. Also, of humanity rediscovered. For more than two decades, the sight of Doctor Fid's powered armor has struck fear into the hearts of hero and civilian alike. And yet-despite his hard-earned experience and the length of his criminal career-Doctor Fid can still be surprised by the depths to which his enemies might sink.Follow Doctor Fid's adventures as he investigates crimes so heinous that even the veteran supervillain is taken aback. With every unearthed atrocity, it becomes increasingly apparent that the world is in peril...and that the public's faith in their super-powered guardians is sadly misguided.In the end, it may take a villain to save the planet from those entrusted with its protection

Much has been written and much has been omitted when it comes to the Crusades; especially in modern parlance. Many talking heads in recent times have conjured up the specter of the Crusades as if it should be a source of great shame and disgust for Western Civilization. And with even President Obama drawing odd parallels in light of the beheadings of ISIS; many are wondering once again what all of this “Crusades talk” is all about. Inside you will read about... ✓ Backing Up Byzantium ✓ All Out Holy War ✓ The Kingdom of Heaven ✓ The King’s Crusade ✓ The Self-Defeating Crusade ✓ The Final Crusades ✓ The Post-Crusade World The Crusades took place over a thousand years ago, and yet we currently live in a modern day world of unspeakable terror. Islamic extremists are disrupting the entire planet, murdering, raping and enslaving everyone they encounter. Committing brutalities on a scale that rivals some of the worst abuses of the dark ages and yet people still point to the Crusades as if it is supposed to mean something. Ok, that’s fine. If detractors wish to point their finger and call out history, let’s find the truth, and let’s find out what really happened.

An extensive study of the strategy and technology employed by the Franks and Muslims as they fought each other in the Holy Land. Sieges played a key role in the crusades, but they tend to be overshadowed by the famous battles fought between the Franks and the Muslims, and no detailed study of the subject has been published in recent times. So, Michael Fulton’s graphic, wide-ranging, and thought-provoking book is a landmark in the field. Fulton examines the history of siege warfare in the Holy Land from every angle—the tactics and technology, the fortifications, the composition of the opposing armies, and the ways in which sieges shaped Frankish and Muslim strategy at each stage of the conflict. The differences and similarities between the Eastern and Western traditions are explored, as is the impact of the shifting balance of power in the region. The conclusions may surprise some readers. Neither the Muslims nor the Franks possessed a marked advantage in siege technology or tactics, their fortifications reflected different purposes and an evolving political environment, and, although there were improvements in technologies and fortifications, the essence of siege warfare remained relatively consistent. Essential reading for medieval and military historians. “A lavishly illustrated text full of original photographs of sites, many of which are inaccessible and hard to find images of, guides the reader through the strategies, tactics and weaponry of offense and defense in the Latin East.” —The Society for Medieval Archaeology “This is a book you will read once and continually return to not only as an invaluable reference but as a cracking good read.” —Michael McCarthy, battlefield guide

In April 1204, the armies of Western Christendom wrote another bloodstained chapter in the history of holy war. Two years earlier, aflame with religious zeal, the Fourth Crusade set out to free Jerusalem from the grip of Islam. But after a dramatic series of events, the crusaders turned their weapons against the Christian city of Constantinople, the heart of the Byzantine Empire and the greatest metropolis in the known world. The crusaders spared no one in their savagery: they murdered and raped old and young - they desecrated churches, plundered treasuries and much of the city was put to the torch. Some contemporaries were delighted: God had approved this punishment of the effeminate, treacherous Greeks; others expressed shock and disgust at this perversion of the crusading ideal. History has judged this as the crusade that went wrong. In this remarkable new assessment of the Fourth Crusade, Jonathan Phillips follows the fortunes of the leading players and explores the conflicting motives that drove the expedition to commit the most infamous massacre of the crusading movement.

A FORBIDDEN RELATIONSHIP TURNS A YOUNG PLOUGHMAN INTO A WARRIOR ON AN ILL-FATED CRUSADE TO JERUSALEM. In the year 1096, the Kingdom of France is set ablaze by righteous fire. Men, women, brigand, and knight - with a promise of forgiveness of sins - answer the pope's call to retake Jerusalem. In a village along the Oise River, Anseau of Valois, a young ploughman, has defied his Church, enraged his lord, and disappointed his father. His forbidden relationship with Channah, a Jew, forces him into the service of a bishop. The bishop trains Anseau to chronicle a ragtag pilgrim army marching to reclaim Jerusalem. Completing this offers him absolution and a way back to Channah. However, after distinguishing himself in battle, Anseau proves himself a leader and becomes ensnared in the politics and subterfuge of a wayward campaign. Should Anseau survive, he must fight friend and foe, ally with the most unlikely of companions, and lead a resistance against the formidable Sultan of Rûm. Meanwhile, Channah and her family come under attack by a different band of crusading pilgrims, and though Anseau doesn't know it, his fate and the fate of his army rests with Channah's ability to persevere and win the graces of an emperor "Archers to the front!" Godfrey ordered when he had returned from the short deliberation. Over a thousand archers stepped through the ranks of cavalry and foot-soldiers to take their position within striking range of the town's walls. Each man carried twenty arrows in hand and stuck them into the ground at their side. Boy runners were ready to retrieve more arrows from the arrow bags once the archers had spent their twenty. "What in God's name is Peter doing?" Anseau asked Sir Reinold. "It appears we are preparing for war. The Lord must favor you, young sir." Sir Reinold winked and slapped Anseau on the back. "But our quarrel is with Saracens, not Christians." "Peter believes that we are God's mighty hand of vengeance. We avenge what is unjust wherever we find it. The Hungarians' disgrace cannot go unpunished." "This pleases you?" "I would not have taken the cross if I did not think I was doing the will of God. I think the question is if it pleases you, young sir." Anseau thought about the question as he witnessed the beginnings of his first siege. He would have to relate in his chronicles that Peter's first battle was against Christians and not Saracens. To Anseau, that was a disgrace. There must be ulterior reasons Peter had for attacking. He took out the silver cross around his neck and kissed it, wondering how many times his father had done something similar. "1066 was a catalyst for Saxon and Norman alike: that fateful day in October upon that bloody battlefield affected the lives of many people in many ways, for many years. The People's Crusade accompanies a cast of richly-woven, believable characters as they confront the moral dilemmas of conquest, and the conflict of religious faith. A thoughtfully written, intriguing novel."--Helen Hollick: author of Harold the King (UK) / I Am the Chosen King (US) "The People's Crusade is a fresh, interesting novel featuring a strong storyline and original characters that feel and act like real people."--Publishers Weekly Booklife Prize "Plenty of books have been written about the Crusades era... Few succeed in capturing the atmosphere and purpose of the times like The People's Crusade."--D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

In the book "The Story of the Crusades," E. M. Wilmot-Buxton retells and describes the most famous events from the crusades. This book revolves around the rise of Islam to the adventures of Bohemond and Richard the Lionheart to the ultimate fall of Constantinople. It is centered around faith, belief, righteousness, and other virtues to embrace.

From an internationally renowned expert, here is an accessible and utterly fascinating one-volume history of the Crusades, thrillingly told through the experiences of its many players—knights and sultans, kings and poets, Christians and Muslims. Jonathan Phillips traces the origins, expansion, decline, and conclusion of the Crusades and comments on their contemporary echoes—from the mysteries of the Templars to the grim reality of al-Qaeda. Holy Warriors puts the past in a new perspective and brilliantly sheds light on the origins of today’s wars. Starting with Pope Urban II’s emotive, groundbreaking speech in November 1095, in which he called for the recovery of Jerusalem from Islam by the First Crusade, Phillips traces the centuries-long conflict between two of the world’s great faiths. Using songs, sermons, narratives, and letters of the period, he reveals how the success of the First Crusade inspired generations of kings to campaign for their own vainglory and set down a marker for the knights of Europe, men who increasingly blurred the boundaries between chivalry and crusading. In the Muslim world, early attempts to call a jihad fell upon deaf ears until the charisma of the Sultan Saladin brought the struggle to a climax. Yet the story that emerges has other dimensions—as never before, Phillips incorporates the holy wars within the story of medieval Christendom and Islam and shines new light on many truces, alliances, and diplomatic efforts that have been forgotten over the centuries. Holy Warriors also discusses how the term “crusade” survived into the modern era and how its redefinition through romantic literature and the drive for colonial empires during the nineteenth century gave it an energy and a resonance that persisted down to the alliance between Franco and the Church during the Spanish Civil War and right up to George W. Bush’s pious “war on terror.” Elegantly written, compulsively readable, and full of stunning new portraits of unforgettable real-life figures—from Richard the Lionhearted to Melisende, the formidable crusader queen of Jerusalem—Holy Warriors is a must-read for anyone interested in medieval Europe, as well as for those seeking to understand the history of religious conflict.