Reviewed by J.L. Abbott

Reviewer Rating: ***** Stars
Title: The Threshing Floor
Category: Historical Fiction (Medieval Conspiracy)
Author: E.L. Noel
Publisher: CrossroadsPub
ISBN: 1-58338-351-4
Release date: June, 2000

The drama and pageantry of the Crusades spread out before the reader in a colorful, vivid tableau in E. L. Noel's The Threshing Floor.  This book has it all:  conspiracy, intrigue,  romance.  And it swirls around a main character the reader will really care about.

Sir James Greybold of Glastonbury, Knight of the Weeping Tiger, Commander of Knights, Jerusalem is, above all, a noble man.  His belief in honor and truth are especially notable in a time of deceit and betrayal.  As he leads his men into battle on behalf of the Knights Templar, the vicious enemy-the Saracens-are the least of his troubles.  A plot to assassinate a Saracen leader, twists around another target, this one within Christian ranks.

Greybold is caught in the center of it all as his masters exploit his ethics and use his integrity and moral code of conduct against him.  He prevails in the end, but not before he balances on the brink of death and destruction.

Noel's attention to medieval historical detail is superlative.  The reader is thrust into the violence of the Crusades, to the point where one feels you need only reach out to grasp a handful of desert sand.  Writing style and technique are sophisticated, powerful, and, at times poetic.  Characters are vividly drawn, pacing is tight and tense.  Noel  creates suspense locking the reader into a tight  grip.   Release is only achieved at the novel's highly satisfying close.

This is a spectacular read. Truly five-star material.

Copyright © 2001 by  J.L. Abbott