''Heretic'' is the third novel in ''

The Grail Quest ''The Grail Quest'' is a historical fiction novel series written by Bernard Cornwell dealing with a 14th-century search for the Holy Grail, around the time of the Hundred Years' War. The stories follow the adventures of the fictional Thomas o ...

'' series by English author

Bernard Cornwell Bernard Cornwell (born 23 February 1944) is an English-American author of historical novels and a history of the Waterloo Campaign. He is best known for his novels about Napoleonic Wars rifleman Richard Sharpe. He has also written ''The Saxon ...

, first published in 2003. Set during the first stage of the Hundred Years' War, the novel follows Thomas of Hookton's quest to find the

Holy Grail The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracu ...

, a relic which may grant decisive victory to the possessor.

Plot summary

''Heretic'' begins with a bloody battle outside Calais in 1347, a short time before the city fell to the English. The sympathetic Thomas of Hookton is bending every sinew at the service of his master, the Earl of Northampton; after risking his life time and again, Thomas finds himself commissioned to track down the most sacred relic in Christendom, the

. He travels to Gascony, seat of power of his nemesis, Guy Vexille. With his cunning, Thomas is able to take control of a fictional fortress town and there meets Genevieve, a local woman about to be burned at the stake for witchcraft. Thomas saves her, however the action costs him dearly for he is later excommunicated. As he realises he is losing respect and approval amongst his men, Thomas is forced to abandon the fastness and begins journeying through Gascony with Genevieve. Rejoining with his band of archers later in the plot, Thomas conducts a fierce guerrilla war against Vexille, and yearns for a face-to-face encounter. But then Thomas is routed and finds his campaign in shreds, facing the twin enemies of the church and the

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pe ...

Characters

* Thomas of Hookton - protagonist, illegitimate son of a priest, archer in the English army * Robbie Douglas - Captured Scottish noble, Thomas' friend * Guy Vexille, Comte d'Astarac - Thomas's cousin, his father's murderer and the antagonist * Sir Guillaume d'Evecque - French knight who fights for Thomas, also father of Thomas' previous lover Eleanor * William Bohun - English commander and Thomas' boss. * Sir William Douglas - Uncle of Robbie Douglas * Sir Thomas Dagworth - English military leader in Brittany * Cardinal Louis Bessières - Corrupt French Cardinal and Papal Legate to the French court, who aspires to become Pope * Charles Bessières - Louis's younger brother, a mercenary leader * Genevieve - a French woman suspected of witchcraft and later Thomas's lover.

References

{{reflist Thomas of Hookton novels 2003 British novels Fiction set in the 1340s Novels set in the 14th century HarperCollins books