Defender of Jerusalem: A Biographical Novel of Balian D'Ibelin (2) (Balian D'Ibelin and the Kingdom of Jerusalem)

Book II of a three part biographical novel about Balian d'Ibelin. Hollywood made him a blacksmith; Arab chroniclers said he was like a King. He served a leper, but defied Richard the Lionheart. He fought Saladin to a standstill, but retained his respect. Rather than dally with a princess, he married a queen And founded a dynasty. He was a warrior and a diplomat both. "Defender of Jerusalem" follows Balian and his wife Maria Comnena through the turbulent decade leading to the fall of Jerusalem to Saladin in 1187. The Christian kingdom of Jerusalem is under siege. The charismatic Kurdish leader, Salah ad-Din, has succeeded in uniting Shiite Egypt with Sunnite Syria and has now declared jihad against the Christian kingdom. While King Baldwin IV struggles to defend his kingdom from the external threat despite the increasing ravages of leprosy, the struggle for the succession threatens to tear the kingdom apart from the inside. In the high-stakes game, one man stands out for his loyalty to the dying king, the kingdom, and Christianity itself. That man is Balian d'Ibelin