"Knight of Jerusalem"
is out-of-date and out-of-print.
That's exciting because within the next three months I will be releasing a completely revised edition: "Balian d'Ibelin: Knight of Jerusalem"
It is now six years since I published "Knight of
Jerusalem,” the first part of what would be a three-part biographical novel
based on the life of the historical Balian d’Ibelin. The book was based on over
a year of intensive research, but, I admit, I rushed the release. I had read
that Sharon Kay Penman was writing an novel about Balian, and I didn’t want to
look like a “copy cat.” Furthermore, it was becoming obvious to me that I could
not cover Balian’s life in a single book, so I made the decision to chop the
book into three parts, and publish the first book asap.
It was a mistake.
The novel itself was flawed because it had not been
conceived as a stand-alone novel. The characters were inadequately developed
because I hadn’t written them to the end and learned about them in their
complete complexity. In addition, over the next years, I continued to research
the Ibelins and the crusader states. Not only did I discover new sources and
develop a deeper understanding of Middle Eastern and crusader society, but
scholars were publishing new books and articles throughout this period (and
continue to do so), many of which significantly impacted my interpretation of
the events described in this book. These made me revise some of my early
assumptions.
In consequence, I decided that “Knight of Jerusalem”
could not remain on the market the way it was. It had to be “killed” and
replaced by a new book that captures my more advanced appreciation of Balian,
his contemporaries, his society and his times. The results of this reworking of
old material are nearing completion.
The new book will be titled “Balian d’Ibelin: Knight of
Jerusalem” and remains the first book in the Jerusalem Trilogy depicting the
life of Balian d’Ibelin from 1170 to 1192 and the first book in the four-book
series that together constitute a comprehensive biographical novel of Balian. The
Last Crusader Kingdom is the fourth book of the series.
I will be posting updates about “Balian d’Ibelin” here on
this blog and on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/HelenaPSchrader/
You can also follow me on Twitter at: @HelenaPSchrader
Meanwhile, the award-winning second, third and fourth books of Balian biography are available for sale in paperback and ebook editions:
Meanwhile, the award-winning second, third and fourth books of Balian biography are available for sale in paperback and ebook editions:
Well, I loved Knight of Jerusalem, and the rest of the 4 books, but will look forward to reading the "revised" edition. I enjoy your books very much. Peter Cooney
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed Knight of Jerusalem very much, as well as the following three novels. I will certainly look forward to the "revised" edition!
ReplyDelete