Trudging home from the Crusades, Baynard stops in a sleepy Bavarian town of Ernstadt to fulfill a promise to a fallen friend. Welcomed by the quirky local lord and the lively townsfolk, he decides to take some well earned rest there. Unlike Ascalon, his post during the Crusades, the greatest threat to Ernstadt is only the local dragon of legend. But when another noble plots against Ernstadt, Baynard must use his considerable wits and - God help him - his meager sword arm to protect the town he has come to love. But both of those may not be sufficient when it comes to a real dragon...
I really enjoyed this. What a fun adventure and It kept me wondering what crazy thing was going to happen next to poor Baynard. Loved Ernst and Ralf and how they grew and flourished within the story. I wish we had seen more of Till but perhaps that mystery of him is also what makes him so intriguing.
Overall I enjoyed this book, but not quite as much as the last one. The storytelling was still amazing and gripping, but I missed the sense of humor of the last book. The character development or characterization was my favorite part of this one (which was perhaps the thing I felt was most lacking from the previous one)--all of the characters were interesting and believable and treated with a lot of honest humanity by the author. This book was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I hope there are more to come.