One Nation Under John: Templars and John the Baptist

Templars in America #16

by David S. Brody, Kimberly A. Scott

Historian Cameron Thorne heads to Montana in search of the Templar treasure. While there, he finds evidence linking the nation's Founding Fathers to an ancient sect that labeled Jesus the Evil Usurper. The treasure is at Cam's fingertips. But is it worth tearing a fragile country apart at its religious seams? Based on actual historical artifacts, and illustrated. Publishers Weekly says of the author, "BRODY DOES A TERRIFIC JOB OF WRAPPING HIS RESEARCH IN A FAST-PACED THRILL RIDE." This book contains themes that may be offensive to readers with strong Christian beliefs. This is a stand-alone novel with recurring characters. The books in this series can be read in any order.

Genres: Thriller

282 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 15, 2023

About the author

David S. Brody is a Boston Globe bestselling fiction writer named Boston's "Best Local Author" by the Boston Phoenix newspaper. A graduate of Tufts University and Georgetown Law School, he is a former Director of the New England Antiquities Research Association (NEARA) and is an avid researcher in the subject of pre-Columbian exploration of America. He has appeared as a guest expert on documentaries airing on History Channel, Travel Channel, PBS and Discovery Channel.

Reviews

[CWJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Brody’s Thorne series. I’ve read them all. His ability to weave fiction with fact is one of the alluring aspects of his work and this series. But…as other’s have mentioned in Amazon reviews, Brody did not need to go where he went with the political spin of the far left. Maybe he should have waited to write the book until after the Durham Report was published so he could provide facts rather than just perpetuate the left’s agenda-driven narrative of events surrounding the past few years. Brody got much of it wrong. It’s obvious now who…and which party… was actively involved in election interference (more than once) and the complicity of the DOJ and the intelligence community as well as their collaboration with social media was exposed to all that bothered to ferret out the proper news sources. Sadly, the mainstream media was and still is complicit in this perpetuation of false information.

Enough said on that….it was not needed and only exposed Brody’s own internal bias. Hopefully, he will pay attention to some of the reactions and adjust accordingly.

The other complaint with this particular book is the ease with which Brody has Thorne find this “hidden cave”. Thorne just walks down the creek and there it is above him. As if in the past 200+ years nobody else could have done the same thing! I’d expect maybe a tad more research and exploration combined with intrigue would have made for a more believable discovery narrative.

Regardless…read all the books in the series as they are great and makes one think. A hiccup in this last book can be overlooked when looking at the entirety of the series.

[Renee Hicks · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too much of the author’s politics to make this enjoyable.

I’ve read the first 15 books but can’t deal with the politics that the author thinks need to be injected into the story. Sorry to go, but I only want entertainment.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing story

Can Thorne is back in another stunning tale of history and modern day and people who want to destroy the present. Brody is such an epic storyteller , that you find yourself immersed along with Thorne , and I find myself half believing the tale. Fast paced , thrilling page turner asking who was really meant to sit by Gods side and where was the proof? Could Cam and his crew fig it out and once again save humanity from self destruction? Couldn’t put it down. Brody doesn’t disappoint. Loved this tale

[Ryan Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intrigue, romance, suspense...I've read all in this series of Templars in America and this is one of my favorites. Founding Fathers, Freemasons, Mandaeans, Johannites, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Massachusetts, Montana, current times, reality TV, reincarnation, hidden treasure, Jesus, John the Baptist...the proverbial plot thickens as Dave impeccably merges both ancient and current history with fiction. It all merges into a blur of fast paced reading. PSA, as is stamped on the book's cover, this is not a read for Christians whose faith is easily challenged.

[Sheila Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exciting and so many twists and turns suspicion everywhere

Cameron has been asked to a crew looking for the Templars treasure, it turns out to be on Indian land,not good. Also a twist to the tale here, in the mean time another group from another land intent on causing unrest in the USA started spreading rumours that John the Baptist was more important than Jesus on boy stir the pot. A great story twists, red herrings and misinformation a great page turner a must read. Recommend

[Sherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uh, you got a few things wrong

The book is an enjoyable read as long as the reader remembers that is fiction and not reality. For the Christians in the group, you will be frustrated when you discover in the book's reality, Moses took the Arc of the Covenant and some manna with him when he led the Israelites out of Egypt. If you get past the first few chapters, the rest of the book is quite enjoyable. Just be ready to suspend reality for a while.

[Richard Morris · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author should have used his research skills to research some of the standard left-wing balderdash he spouts as fact. He is a lawyer. I, too, am a lawyer (retired). Before I voiced an opinion on the 2020 election, as Brody did on page 30, I read several of the Complaints and supporting evidence on file with several courts. Brody's uneducated repetition of the exact words issued by the left-wing media outlets, which now have been publicly shown to be lies, detracts from the entire book.

[Kirk Rydberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting topic

The story line is a good one that does a pretty good job of pulling the reader in. A few of the details and timing elements are a little difficult to accept and believe, but overall a decent story. My biggest complaint is bringing in current political commentary into the book and story line. It’s clear the authors don’t care for Trump, but do they really want to insult half their potential audience by taking jabs at them? To me it makes no sense to do so.

[Christina Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! A Riveting Tail Blending History and Facts with Intrigue

Perfect read! Just what you would expect if you are a David S Brody fan and if you aren’t now you will be. Brody does a masterful job of blending current events and history together into a trail of clues you can’t put down. I found myself doing my own bit of side research. Sometimes it’s hard to tell where the fiction begins, is this a story or a memoir.

[Barbara L Lackey · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have read almost all of the Templars books but was very disappointed in this one. It wasn't the religious aspect but the author's bias and hatred of Republicans - especially Trump supporters. With all of the research Mr. Brody does on his books I would think he could do some on this topic rather than just repeating the Democratic rhetoric.

[Paul Bennington · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is another great read in the series. It is a real page-turner. The story really gives you food for thought turning, as it does, current beliefs on their head. Characters from previous books appear in this one but this book can still be read as a standalone. If you do this, I can almost guarantee that you will want to read more in the series!

[Jack Durrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Treasure: Easier found than kept

As usual, a fine yarn spun from mysteries that are hidden inside historical events by David Brody. I especially like that the same heroes/heroines and the same villains keep coming back like the villain Moriarty in the Sherlock Holmes books. I gave it a 5 star rating, because the story earned it. Jack Durrett

[T.J. Kirton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good storyline with an interesting idea. It is a fast paced action book. The drawback I had was that the authors political view was over powering and detracted from the story. By reading this book you can definitely tell what the authors political and social viewpoint’s were. Overall though it was a very interesting and thought provoking book

[Andrea Kamenca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always a great read!

Thought-provoking, well - researched and Cameron Thorne! Love the way the arc keeps delivering and exploring ancient religious theories and speculations. Keep them coming!

[Warren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read

Nice weaving of current events and the story line. I always found John the Baptist a compelling figure, sidelined in the Bible. The story is compelling and being a Mason I found the tale interesting.

[Karen H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

out side the box

At least the bibliography relieved some of
My angst but this book was not as tight as others and dealt in some far fetched maneuvers.
I am
Not a fan of modernizing with current political information.

PS Astarte would never jump to disbelieve her father Sorry

[Mike SF · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy these historical Templar mysteries by David Brody! While sometimes a bit far-fetched, he does base his stories on actual historical artifacts and mysteries. I will read the whole series for sure.

[Daniel Deitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good one

This series is definitely one of the best in it’s genre. Some of the facts are almost true and the rest are believable in context. Read and enjoy but please don’t use these novels as textbooks.

[Jeff Rowland · Rating 5 out of 5]

always leave you with questions to be answered

Again sure gets you to thinking and questioning yourself and your beliefs. Look forward to the next book and what it has in store this time

[Tony K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely Fantastic !!!

David is very knowledgeable on things from this time period... He was in New Port Rhode Island to study Rune stones with my Masonic Brothers and I, and the New Port Tower.
He is informative and a fun read

[Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only thing I would change is Astarte’s relationship with Matthias. I’m not sure why, but it just doesn’t fit my concept of her.

[Janis Swenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

fantastic &thought provoking!!!

I love this author. I can’t wait for the next book! Keep writing faster David Brody! More more more more!

[Nancy Juvrud · Rating 5 out of 5]

another hit!

As a devout Christian, I was not sure about the subject of this book. As always, it was handled carefully and the storyline was a page-turner.

[Anne Mae Gold · Rating 5 out of 5]

One Nation

This series is very good. The no else always have very interesting and exciting plot lines. I enjoyed this novel very much.