Morning, everyone!
Thanks for having me here today and letting me talk about my new
paranormal release IMMORTAL HOPE and the legend that it’s based on, the Knights
Templar.
CENTURIES AGO,
Templar knights defied the archangels
and unearthed the copper scroll, revealing the gates to hell. Cursed for their
forbidden act, they forever roam the earth protecting mankind from evil. But
darkness stalks them, and battles they fight bring them ever-closer to eternal
damnation. One promise remains to give them salvation – the return of the
seraphs.
Embittered by his purpose,
Merrick du Loire must honor an ancient pact and bring peace to his cousin’s
soul. When he stumbles upon history professor Anne MacPherson, he discovers she
possesses a sacred artifact that marks her as a seraph. Duty demands he set
aside his personal quest and locate the knight she’s fated to heal. As he
struggles with conflicting oaths, Anne arouses buried hope and sparks forbidden
desire that challenges everything he’s sworn to uphold.
Anne has six weeks to complete
her thesis on the Knights Templar. When Merrick takes her to the Templar
stronghold, he presents her with all she needs—and awakens a soul-deep ache, he
alone can soothe. Yet loving Merrick comes with a price. If she admits she's
destined for him, her gift of foresight predicts his death.
IMMORTAL HOPE is the product of a lot of research and a lot
of speculative fiction. We all know, per
history, that the legendary knights went to the Temple Mount and found something in the tunnels beneath. What that something in has ranged from the
treasure of Jerusalem to the essence of Christ and those myths, those legends,
have firmly rooted themselves into our culture.
But when I designed IMMORTAL HOPE and the companion books in
the series, The Curse of the Templars,
I didn’t want to travel the path Dan Brown and so many others have. I didn’t want to speculate on what the
knights found – even though that question is used to ground the reader
throughout IMMORTAL HOPE itself.
What fascinates me more as a historian is what happened to
the Knights Templar.
Here’s the facts:
They were founded between 1118 and 1119.
They built mesmerizing Cathedrals.
They acted as ‘bankers’ for nearly every European throne. They were rich and powerful with members
claiming kingships. They owned their own
navy fleet, built roads and trade routes, their battle skills were invaluable. In short they had strength and power,
physically and politically, and enough numbers throughout their network to
found their own country.
Then, after existing for two hundred years, they virtually
disappeared. The night before hundreds
were arrested, an entire fleet of ships, ripe with the Order’s wealth, vanished. Templar members and leaders
were arrested and tortured into confessions.
Leaders held in Chinon were pardoned in secret… and then executed
anyway.
Why, is the driving premise in IMMORTAL HOPE. Anne MacPherson, the heroine, speculates it
related to the Church feeling threatened.
There are other theories about what may have happened to
them, but scholars are leaning more and more toward the Templar being a threat
to the French Throne and the Church.
Still, the mysteries surrounding them leave history ripe for
speculation.
-
Some people believe the Knights Templar took refuge in
Portugal, becoming the Knights of Christ
-
Theories amass that the members of the Templar quietly
joined ranks with the Knights Hospitaller
-
Speculation exists that the Templar united with the
King of Scotland, sharing the mutual ban of excommunication, and took refuge in
the North (Rosslyn Chapel verifying this)
-
Treasure hunters believe the Knights Templar journeyed
to North America and hid their treasure here (Oak Island Money Pit)
-
Historical record indicates a strange turn of events in
Switzerland around this time when a mighty fighting force entered, and
Switzerland became the ‘closed’ country it is today.
I tend to believe the latter – that the knights moved into
the mountains. They had the banking skills,
the political connections, the power to defend their territories, the know-how
to operate at governmental levels.
But what about you?
Do you believe the legends? One
in particular perhaps?
Or do you believe in the truth, according to Merrick du
Loire, cursed commander of the North American Knights Templar:
The Curse
In
1119, nine knights rode with Hughes de Payens to the Holy Land, becoming the
Knights Templar. All were bound by marriage or by blood. Eight were recorded
over time. The ninth vanished into history.
Beneath
the legendary Temple Mount, the knights uncovered holy relics, including the
Copper Scroll—a document written by Azazel’s unholy hand. For their forbidden
digging, the archangels exacted a sacrifice. The knights would spend eternity
battling the demons of Azazel’s creation, but with each vile death they
claimed, a portion of darkness would enter their soul. In time, they would
transform into knights of Azazel, warriors veined with evil, destined to fight
against the Almighty.
Yet
an ancient prophecy remained to give them hope. When darkness raped the land,
the seraphs would return. Female descendants of the Nephilim would carry the
light to heal their dying souls.
Centuries
have passed. Azazel’s might grows to intolerable limits. With the acquisition
of eight holy relics, he will gain the power to overthrow the Almighty.
Six
Templars stand above the rest in duty, honor, and loyalty. But each is haunted
by a tragic past, and their darkened souls rapidly near the end. As they battle
both the overwhelming power of evil and the nightmares of lives they left
behind, the seraphs are more than tools to victory.
They are salvation.
Thanks again for having me here today!
~Claire
TWITTER: @ClaireAshgrove
Claire
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