I'm sorry guys, I wanted to love them, but having just emerged from ploughing through Sinai Tapestry and Jerusalem Poker I have to come out; I loathe them. Intensely irritating characters with no separate voices (with the possible exception of 'O'Sullivan Beare' and his diddly-dee-dee Oirish cant)and a monstrously repetitious narrative. Was no-one else driven to throw down the damn book after reading the same old story about blasted 'Strongbow' coming from a different mouth but in the same language for the umpteenth time?
The history of the region was well-related and there were some powerful insights into the motivation of the groups coexisting in the Holy Land, but such were for the most part lost amid a morass of infantile characterisation and pointlessly extravagant plotlines.
Furthermore, there was a regular return to the theme of underage sex, which was rather unnecessary, in my view.
But what do I know? I guess I'm going to get slammed royally by the other posters to this board, and maybe you're all right. Or maybe there's a good reason why Whittemore is not terribly well-known ...