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In the summer of 2003 I was at a birthday party. It was a good party, the food wonderful and the company interesting. Then I made the mistake of saying that I was a medieval historian. That usually causes people to nod politely and change the subject. However, this time two men whom I had never seen before approached me. They wanted to tell me all about the Templars. I was puzzled for several reasons. Telling a medieval historian all about the Templars is rather like telling a surgeon where the appendix is. However, I did learn a lot of things I never knew mostly about the Templars after the suppression. THAT’S like explaining what happened to the dinosaurs after they became extinct.
I was beginning to think I had fallen into an alternate reality.
Finally some kind soul directed me to The Da Vinci Code. I had been sent an advance reading copy but had been too busy to get to it. Now I did. Suddenly I understood. I thought the book was great fun, about places I knew well and topics I had spent years studying. But I was aware that many things had been altered for the sake of the plot. After all, this was not only fiction but set in the future.
However, so many people began asking me about different parts of the story that I realized that not many people have my background. Let’s face it, medieval history has never had a big following. Rather than answer the questions one at a time, I’ve put them all together in one book. The format is like an encyclopedia; look up only what interests you. Since I’m also a fiction writer, I’ve put in lots of footnotes to show that I’m not making it all up this time. There are also lists of books for further research if you are really into a specific topic.
This is meant to be a companion to The Da Vinci Code. Many things were mentioned in passing or simplified to fit the story. The Real History fills in the gaps, and also gives bits of information that I thought were fun.
The book will be out in January of 2005. Until then, I thought I’d put a few things on the website that I couldn’t fit in along with pictures that I took of some of the places, like the Louvre, St. Sulpice, the Temple Church in London and Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland. So check in every week or so and see what I’ve added. Of course, the best parts will have to wait until you get your copy of The Real History Behind the Da Vinci Code.
It should be in bookstores around January 4, 2005. Meanwhile if you'd like to book
a speaking engagement or interview for this book, please contact
Maggie.Kao@us.penguingroup.com
For Levendeur novels or any of my mysteries, please contact Jodi Rossoff, publicist, Tor/Forge Books FAX: 212-388-0191 -
E-mail:jodi.rosoff@tor.com
Sharan
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This sudden interest in the Templars was confusing, but maybe these guys belonged to some secret medieval study group. I shrugged it off. Then, a few weeks later, the same thing happened at a book signing!