Justin Cartwright's 15th novel opens with a pair of epigrams, one the definition of fiction from the OED; the other a typically ruminative quote from WG Sebald: "It is frightening to realise how little we know about our species, our purpose and our end." These are bold statements of intent. They suggest a work of studied seriousness, of an exploration of identity and history, as well as the nature of fiction itself. What follows, however, is rather more playful – and ultimately more perplexing than this might suggest.
Richard Cathar's father, Alaric, was a drug addict but with a particular obsession with Richard the Lionheart. With Alaric dead and a long-term relationship over, Richard decides to follow his father's research and hunt for the last resting place of the True Cross. While in Jerusalem he falls in love with Noor – a Canadian-Arab – and begins a love affair that sees him close in on the truth about his father, and become embroiled in international espionage.
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