The Talisman
About this audiobook
Encamped in the Holy Land, the crusaders are torn by the dissensions and jealousies of their leaders. The army’s impotence is accentuated by the illness of their chief, Richard I of England. Meanwhile, a poor but doughty Scottish crusader known as Sir Kenneth, on a mission far from the camp, encounters a Saracen Emir. After an inconclusive combat, he strikes up a friendship with the Emir, who turns out to be Saladin himself. His alliance with the Moor will save him from more than one misfortune.
Carrying a mystical talisman, Saladin enters the camp of the crusaders in disguise and cures Richard. When Sir Kenneth is later falsely dishonored, Saladin is in a position to intervene in his execution and receive him as his slave. Presenting the knight with the talisman, Saladin then arranges a plot for Sir Kenneth’s vindication.
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About the author
Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832) was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time. Scott was the first English-language author to have a truly international career in his lifetime, with many contemporary readers in Europe, Australia, and North America. Some of his more famous titles include Ivanhoe, Rob Roy, The Lady of the Lake, Waverley, The Heart of Midlothian, and The Bride of Lammermoor.
Simon Vance, a former BBC Radio presenter and newsreader, is a full-time actor who has appeared on both stage and television. He has recorded over eight hundred audiobooks and has earned fifty-seven Earphones Awards from AudioFile magazine, including one for his narration of Scaramouche by Rafael Sabatini. A multiple Audie finalist, Simon has won Audie Awards for The King's Speech by Mark Logue and Peter Conradi, The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens, Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, Market Forces by Richard K. Morgan, and The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. Winner of the 2008 Booklist Voice of Choice Award, Simon has also been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009.
