Crossed: A Historical Novel of the Disastrous Fourth Crusade and the Tragic Fall of Constantinople

by Nicole Galland

In the year 1202, tens of thousands of crusaders gather in Venice, preparing to embark for Jerusalem to free the Holy City from Muslim rule. Among them is a lowly vagabond Briton, rescued from damnation by a pious knight who burns with zealous fire for their sacred undertaking. And so they set sail, along with dedicated companions—and with a beautiful, mysterious Arab "princess" whom the vagabond liberates from a brutish merchant. But the divine light guiding their "righteous" campaign soon darkens as the mission sinks ever deeper into catastrophe, disgrace, and moral turpitude—as Christians murder Christians in the Adriatic port city of Zara, tragic events are set in motion that will ultimately lead to the shocking and shameful fall of Constantinople. Impeccably researched and beautifully told, Nicole Galland's Crossed is a stunning tale of the disastrous Fourth Crusade—and of the hopeful, brave, and driven who were caught up in and irrevocably changed by a corrupted cause and a furious battle beyond their comprehension or control.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Medieval, Novels, Italy, Middle East

672 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Nicole Galland writes critically-acclaimed novels in several different genres. She is mostly know for historical fiction, but recently teamed up with Neal Stephenson to write the New York Times bestselling, time-travel-themed The Rise And Fall of D.O.D.O. (HarperCollins, 2017). She'll be releasing its sequel, Master of the Revels, in February of 2021.

Her historical novels (all published by HarperCollins or imprints) include: The Fool's Tale; I, Iago; Revenge of the Rose; Godiva; and Crossed: A Tale of the Fourth Crusade. Her debut, The Fool's Tale, was a "Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers" selection.

Nicole has written two contemporary comic novels, Stepdog, and On The Same Page.

With a collective of six other authors (including Neal Stephenson and Greg Bear) Nicole co-authored the Mongoliad Trilogy (published by 47N), and under the pen name E. D. deBirmingham, also wrote the Siege Perilous, a Mongoliad sequel.

Galland is a "Shakespeare nerd" at heart. With actress/director Chelsea McCarthy she is the co-creator of Shakespeare for the Masses at the Martha's Vineyard Playhouse, and writes a tongue-in-cheek column for the Martha's Vineyard Times.

Reviews

[Toonvanelst · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first rated this book, I gave it three stars. It was a good read for sure, and the 600 pages were finished at break neck speed. But there was just something about the history altering character of historical romans that kept lingering in the back of my mind.

Now I changed my rating to five stars. Reading Jonathan Phillips's The Fourth Crusade And The Sack Of Constantinople made me change my opinion on Galland's novel. Though she does alter some facts, she gives a very good representation of how the Fourth Crusade was a long string of accidents leading to an outcome that nobody could have forseen. I am convinced that when readers finish the book they will be left with a good understanding of a largely misunderstood part of history.

Crossed: A Tale of the Fourth Crusade is the next best thing to a history book about the Fourth Crusade. Galland did her research and the chronicles are followed minutely at some points.

Sadly, there is also a lot of bawdyness and a huge array of unnecessary sex scenes.

[Barbara Ardinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a terrific historical novel. The Crusade is the one where, led by the Venetian Doge and venal representatives of the pope, the western European army attacked and sacked Constantinople, which was still a Christian city. It was done out of greed. The protagonist is an unnamed musician (he's probably Welsh) who rescues a woman he thinks is an Egyptian princess from a Venetian merchant and attaches himself to a fictitious German knight to take her home. The princess is really Jewish, the knight is noble but dumb, and the papal army is more interested in whoring sacking Christian cities than anything else. None of the famous medieval crusades were righteous, but at least the other ones didn't turn into affairs of Christians killing Christians. Compare today's jihads, in which Muslims are bombing mostly other Muslims. So much for holy war. Some things never change.

[Liam Ostermann · Rating 1 out of 5]

A fun novel based in and around the Fourth Crusade - and if you don't know anything about that then google it before deciding on whether to read the book - it is quite good - but its point of view is predictable - of course the fourth crusade was a bad idea and awful things happened - I didn't expect this book to explain or put it is perspective - its a novel - but it was predictably from a late 20th, early 21st century point of view and a result was all a bit flat. I am sure many people will enjoy it and if you know nothing about the sad events of the fourth crusade this is a nice fictional account. But honestly I would give it a miss.

[Cathy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got about 1/3 through and just ran out of energy for this book. Most of the characters didn't appeal to me much except for the "Princess". It wasn't enough to keep me going.

[Alyssa Palombo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a truly masterful example of historical fiction. Impeccably researched and engagingly written, I loved every page of this one!

[Christine Hair · Rating 1 out of 5]

I put this book down around page 160 or so to read something else. The fact that I never went back to it says something. I just could not get into this book no matter how much I tried. I thought the subject was interesting, I just couldn't seem to care about the characters. I had too many other books to read to try to slog through this one. I was saddened too, because I liked two of her others books very much.

[Elaine Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I seriously stayed up until midnight finishing this book. Unfortunately, I'm way too tired this morning to write much about it, except that it's got a lively narrative voice, although the narrator has an ahistorical feel (to me anyway), there's lots of twists & turns, and I almost cried near the end.

[Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing. It turned a serious subject-the disastrous Fourth Crusade-into an entertaining, informative page turner. And it was all thanks to Galland's invented Gregor of Manz and his motley entourage. These characters were wonderfully written, each and every one-Gregor himself, the pious knight who just wants to go on a pilgrimage and who's irritated by all these stops along the way; his half-brother Otto who is in love with a prostitute he shares with the whole tent and is up for anything as long as there's fighting; Liliana, the prostitute who loves her job and loves it all the way into Boniface's tent while dispensing wisdom beyond her years; Jamila, the onceArab princess now widowed Jewess who spouts sarcastic remarks about the pious Christians and their faith while helping to plot crazy schemes devised by the best character of them all-the Briton. The whole story, minus Gregor's journal entries, is told from the perspective of the Briton, a wandering jack-of-all-trades that manages to assume responsibility for the moral spirit of the crusaders (especially Gregor). By the end of the story, I still don't know his name-it's just the Briton. He and Jamila made such a great team that I'm hoping that vague ending in the forest gave him his happily-ever-after. Loved every page and learned quite a bit about this Crusade that never made it anywhere near Jerusalem and instead toppled the Greek Byzantine city of Constantinople.

"Your Jesus was merely trying to reform Judaism, not unlike the Karaite sect more recently, or the Shi'a within Islam. His final supper was the Jewish Passover feast, was it not? It was not a separate faith until the fellow named Saul spent too much time out in the sun and suffered hallucinations. He was so disturbed he even got his own name wrong."

[Jamila's] questioner was disquieted by this answer; the bishop looked mortified. "Where did you hear such a thing?" Conrad demanded.

"Barzizza's priest tried to educate me," she said. "He didn't say it that way, of course, but it did not take much insight to realize that your religion was founded by somebody with sunstroke."

[Lauryn Turk · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want a sarcastic and witty narrator that tells it as it is and encourages chaos around every corner, you have found the right novel. A take on the Fourth Crusade from the 1200’s that fits a different groove and an entirely different narrative. An interesting look at something so historical.

[ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicole Galland wrote this story in the point of view of a man we only know as the Briton. He was a musician and therefore a sensitive man, accustomed to the friendship of women. For the time period and setting, I thought this would be unusual. The Briton is also somewhat a jester, with clever quips and a quick witted mind. When set against the backdrop of the serious pilgrimage of the fourth crusade, the Briton is quite entertaining. Another character, the German knight Gregor, writes in a journal in order to give a different perspective and explain things where the Briton was not present. Galland uses other literary devices to keep readers interested as well - especially foreshadowing. I could imagine the book being released as an episodic piece in a magazine using the foreshadowing. Readers get some of the Briton's background throughout the book, making him a bit less mysterious as it goes. There is one drama and situation after another within the group of crusaders. Galland uses some real historic figures, but the main group of characters are a group the Briton travels with, including a well connected knight, his soldier brother, some servants, a prostitute and a woman the Briton is rescuing. The language is modern rather than period, although some "old-timey" words are used to remind us this took place in the early 13th century. The Briton's sarcasm and sense of humor made me wonder what humor was like back then, and how modern this type of humor is. The crusade was supposed to fight the infidels in Jerusalem, but the journey was sidetracked to Zara then Constantinople in order to make enough money to pay the Venicians for the use of their ships and supplies on the trip. There is much battle and war; the crusaders never did make it to Jerusalem. I thought Galland made the history very entertaining, and it was helpful that she included a note that explained what was true historical fact. There were some love stories and rather a happy ending, so it was not all drama and war.

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am kind of a fanatic for the history of the Fourth Crusade. I've read more non-fiction books on it than any non-professional historian has any right to. That interest and knowledge was in both the pro and con columns while reading this novel. The pro is that my intense interest in reading any historical fiction depiction of the period kept me reading when the other elements weren't so engaging. The con was that my knowledge of how the story ends resulted in a growing sense of dread as I neared the novel's and, by extension, the crusade's finale. It took me a while, but I finished it.

The characters are pretty well sketched and definitely have an arc over the course of the novel. Of those, the evolution of Gregor of Mainz (not even the main protagonist) was most interesting. The overall plot was a little weak, but I think that weakness was mostly to do with choosing to hew pretty closely to the historical record. The actual history of this crusade is so astonishing, mystifying and heartbreaking that it was perhaps inevitable that any plot attached to it would be a little superfluous seeming. Her POV characters occasionally felt like little more than Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, viewing events that unfold without their input or understanding.

In the end, I found the novel satisfactory. I know the circumstances in which I engaged the novel are not common, so I think I can recommend this novel to anyone with an interest in medieval history, but perhaps not so much specific knowledge of the events depicted.

[Otavio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly Heroic

The nameless hero, called the Briton, manipulates events far above his station by taking on the persona of an idiot musician. His friends are a motley crue, representing the wide variety of Pilgrims on Crusade. Many adventures ensue.

[Ben Chenoweth · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took a few pages to get into this historical novel, but by persevering, one encounters a very readable, at times gripping, and wryly humorous account of the Fourth Crusade. (As the author says in the afterword, if Monty Python had made a film of the Fourth Crusade, the tag line would be "No infidels were harmed".) The author brings out the politics, both civil and ecclesial, admirably. And the love story that has been interwoven into the narrative also has some touching, and some funny, moments. All in all, a great read!

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was really disappointed with this book. I was so excited to read it, when then I just could not get into it. I finally stopped on page 172. I just don't think pleasure reading should feel like so much work. I was never able to get into the storyline or relate to any of the characters. The history behind the story was interesting, but it took 172 pages for the crusade just to get to Zara. So slow moving; I don't think I could make it through another 450 pages.

[Tamara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was full of excellent details and very well researched. My one problem with it was that I, probably much like the crusaders, wanted it to move a little faster. By the time I got to the end, I found I didn't much care any more what happened.

I loved the Briton, and would have loved him even more if we had learned his name. Gregor was boring. Jamila and Liliana I liked, but wanted to know more about them, their histories.

[Chelsea Hardwick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is another random novel I got in a batch from my godmother. The Crusades are a fascinating and twisted area of history. Galland wrote this back in 2003, during the Iraq War as history repeated itself once more.

Told from the POV of an unnamed (by choice) Briton, we follow along from the pre-launch days of the Fourth Crusade. The Briton is lumped in with well-known German knight Gregor of Mainz, his rich half-brother Otto, Otto's mistress Liliana, and the two Richards (grandfather and grandson manservants). Soon enough they liberate Jamila, a pretend Egyptian princess. Gregor also balances out the narration with journal entries.

The story follows the main points and characters of the historical journey: Venice, Zara, and Constantinople. Boniface, Dandolo, Bishop Conrad, Alexios, and Baldwin of Flanders are all brought to life in earthy, irreverent detail.

With generous helpings of wit, sarcasm, and historical details alike, this book moved along at a good pace and made me chuckle many times. The characters discuss war, philosophy, religion, politics and faith itself. Entertaining and insightful. Plenty of colorful language but never strays into graphic territory. I'll definitely read more by this author.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

My second Nicole Galland novel, and I'm now a fan for life. Somehow, she manages to take an event in history that I didn't know much about (the Fourth Crusade) and that I'm already biased against (not a fan of the crusades in general, much like the MC) and make me invested in the events, cultures, and people through a small group of very real characters. It wasn't until partway through the novel that I realized the MC (the Briton) is Gwirion from The Fool's Tale- a character I loved from a book I loved, whose flaws make for an excellent personal journey in Crossed. Honestly, all of the characters in Crossed were compelling, and each on their own complex journey. Even the ones I really hated, I wanted to read more about. I can't recommend this author highly enough.

[Sapphyria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crossed is a well-written and descriptive historical novel. I just had a hard time really getting into the story. Maybe because I'm not that familiar with the time in history this book is set in or I couldn't get into the characters. Whatever the reason, this just wasn't the book for me. It took me almost three weeks to make my way through the book and I never take that long to read a book, regardless of the page count.

Lovers of historical fiction based in this time period will probably love it.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rollicking, fast-paced novel about the Fourth Crusade, which, even by the standards of a Crusade, was absolutely ridiculous (as the author says, if Monty Python were to plan a Crusade, it would look like this). This is the 13th-century Crusade so bogged down by politics and in-fighting among Christian sects that they never even make it to the Holy Land. Galland gives us a couple fictional narrators (one a devout pilgrim, one a skeptic) and moves things along briskly, though at 650 pages, it's definitely too long.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Galland is co author with Neal Stephenson onThe Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. I wanted to see what kind of stories she wrote. Not a fan of Byzantium or the crusades but she writes a wonderful tale of fictional characters interwoven with history. So, read this for the story, the history or the romance. You will not be disappointed.

[John Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engaging historical novel, featuring fun, interesting protagonists with a Forrest Gump-esque ability to be present at major events (and occasionally explain inexplicable historical events). The story does a good job of depicting how a series of mostly comprehensible human decisions culminate in one of the worst excesses of Western Christianity, and how the truly faithful and well-meaning might go along with it.

[Sylvie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know anything about the fourth crusade. What a convoluted story! Very entertaining. I very much liked the characters, especially "the Briton". The whole story is told (mostly) through his eyes, though we never learn his name or his history. The only thing we know about him is that he came from the British Isles seeking out "the Englisman" to kill him for what he had done to his (the Briton's) people. Ouf!

[Alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an impeccably researched, masterfully written book. Engaging and compelling all the way through. It makes me wish there was more historical fiction set in the medieval era being published these days. Galland has written a masterpiece in CROSSED, bringing the disastrous Fourth Crusade, and characters both real and fictional, to vivid life. This is truly historical fiction at its finest.

[Bob Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, a great read.

[Connie Romani · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gave up finally on this one. Too many others to read.

[Ankhowk · Rating 2 out of 5]

The action is so slow!

[Danielle Trynoski]

Loved this!

[Marie-France · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to read about a crusade, and how things could have really taken place. The narrative was fun and I even had a few good laughs throughout my reading the book.

[Tomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good description of what the 4th Crusade was all about. Just too much sex.

[Linda Secondari · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! It was beautifully written. Nicole Galland is a wordsmith and storyteller. Those two skills are not often combined in my opinion. Her characters are rich and inventive. The story is full of well researched historical references but feels very contemporary and real.

I cannot write enough praise for this worthwhile read.