Kindle Unlimited
Unlimited reading. Over 4 million titles. Learn more
Read for Free
OR
Kindle Price: $3.99

Save $10.25 (72%)

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

Buy for others

Give as a gift or purchase for a team or group.
Learn more

Buying and sending eBooks to others

  1. Select quantity
  2. Buy and send eBooks
  3. Recipients can read on any device

These ebooks can only be redeemed by recipients in the US. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Martin Lake
+ Follow
More books from this author
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Outcasts Kindle Edition

by Martin Lake (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 443 ratings
See all formats and editions
Bernard and Agnes Montjoy keep an inn in Crusader Jerusalem. Their lives are about to be shattered. Guy, the new King of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, ignores the advice of wiser men and leads his army out of the city to do battle with the great warlord Saladin. Within days the Christian army is annihilated. Triumphant, Saladin leads his warriors towards Jerusalem, determined to win it back for his people. To defend the city there is only one nobleman, Balian of Ibelin, and four knights. In desperation Balian knights thirty ordinary men to lead the defence. Agnes begs Bernard not to fight but he feels he has no choice. He is desperate to protect Agnes, his two children and his nephew. Knighted along with him are two young pilgrims, John and Simon Ferrier. The new-made knights fight valiantly but can only delay the inevitable. Balian is forced to surrender the city to Saladin. Saladin allows the inhabitants to buy their own freedom. Bernard sell all he owns to raise enough to buy the freedom of Agnes and the children. Agnes sells even more. But on the final day, despite their sacrifices, their money is stolen. Agnes and the children are sold into slavery and Bernard and his friends await what they believe will be certain death. The world is in flames, the normal bonds of life shattered. Bonds of lordship, bonds of kinship, bonds of marriage and of friendship, all lay tainted and discarded. Yet in this turbulent time, three men find new fellowship and a mission. Saladin’s brother buys the freedom of the courageous knights. His hope rekindled, Bernard determines to search the Muslim world for his enslaved wife and children. John pledges to aid him and then to pursue his own mission of revenge. A third man, a stranger, journeys with them to find himself. History says nothing more of the people raised so far above their normal station and then cast aside. Outcasts tells the story of how they fare in a world grown more bitter and fanatical. And of how Bernard and his friends take the bitter road to Baghdad to find his wife and family.
Read more Read less
Previous page
  1. Print length
    268 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publication date
    December 6, 2012
  5. File size
    3759 KB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  9. See all details
Next page
Add a debit or credit card to save time when you check out
Convenient and secure with 2 clicks. Add your card

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00AKDJWOM
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ ; 1st edition (December 6, 2012)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 6, 2012
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3759 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 268 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 443 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Martin Lake

Martin Lake

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Martin Lake discovered his love of history and writing at an early age. After graduating, he worked as a teacher, college lecturer and conference co-odinator before deciding to combine his two passions and write a historical novel.

Since then, he has written twenty novels and several collections of short stories. When not writing, he can be found traveling, cooking, and exploring fascinating places. He currently resides on the French Riviera with his wife.

You can find his blog at http://martinlakewriting.wordpress.com

and follow him on twitter @martinlake14

He also has a Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/MartinLakeWriting

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
443 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

SweetLittleWeasel
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book by Incredible author!
Reviewed in the United States on April 10, 2018
Verified Purchase
I loved this book! Every two to three weeks i check in to see if the next book is ready yet, I hope it will be soon!!!! The book is well written being both historically and medically accurate. Very very good!
Martin Lake is an excellent author who has a very unique ability to capture the mindset, thoughts, feelings/emotions, Etc of the practical male and female which is a rare gift for authors. A lot of authors struggle to accurately convey the feelings of a character in a manner that is not repetitive of rest of the characters in the book and even if they can they are limited to the said characteristics of the authors own sex, making the opposite sex bland, dull or inaccurate. Martin Lake, however, is a matter author able to actively convey the feelings/emotions, thoughts, beliefs, Etc of BOTH male AND female in an accurate and excellent manor.
Helpful
 Report
Paul Bennett
4.0 out of 5 stars Outcasts by Martin Lake
Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2015
Verified Purchase
This is a most interesting and thought provoking entry by Martin Lake. Jerusalem is under siege by a Muslim horde led by Saladin and is being defended by the respected knight, Balian. With so few knights to defend the city, Balian bestows knighthood on ordinary peasants and that has unexpected results for those who survive the fall of Jerusalem. The tale follows the separate paths that the main characters have to follow in order to survive or to seek out their loved ones. One of the more salient features of the story is how the new 'knights' are treated by their fellow Christians as opposed to how they are treated by their Muslim captors.

The story is full of the descriptive talent I've come to enjoy from Mr. Lake as he takes the reader on a journey to many of the historical sites of that part of the world, Jerusalem, Tyre, Antioch & Baghdad, for example. The author has also given us many great characters to grow fond of or to despise. I enjoyed this tale of the seemingly endless conflicts to control The Middle East and I am looking forward to finding out what happens to the characters as the story continues in the sequel. 4 stars.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
maggie winterson
3.0 out of 5 stars There’s no Crusades Book 2 is youre left hanging.
Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2018
Verified Purchase
Good story fitting for the times but there’s no book 2. So you never find out what’s happened to the protagonists.
3 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Sarah
5.0 out of 5 stars Page turner
Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2021
Verified Purchase
I really enjoyed reading this book. Was continually impressed with the writing and storyline. Looking forward to my next Martin Lake book.
Helpful
 Report
KHT4G
4.0 out of 5 stars "The Kingdom of Heaven" as it should have been filmed
Reviewed in the United States on June 5, 2016
Verified Purchase
This book takes the reader back to the events in the movie, but tells the story in a more believable way. It follows 2 pilgrims and the friends they make in Jerusalem, who reach the Holy land just before the Battle of Hattin and help in the defence of the city. The book follows the aftermath of the loss of Jerusalem and the quest to help a friend find his family that was sold into slavery. Saladin only let the citizens go if they could pay a ransom, the others were sold into slavery. Also, Balian is as a middle aged knight who escaped after the battle of Hattin to lead the defenders of Jerusalem. Almost all the characters in the movie are in the book, but most are shown in a very different light. The one that is the same is Guy the last King of Jerusalem, who is still a world class jerk and leads the Army of Jerusalem to it's destruction at the battle of Hattin. If you enjoy historical fiction with a good plot and believable characters this is the book for you.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Airborne Daddy
5.0 out of 5 stars In the image of Cornwell and Hosker.
Reviewed in the United States on October 8, 2019
Verified Purchase
Being a big fan of Cornwell and Hosker, I loved this book. Now when is Crusades Book 2 coming out???? Anxiously waiting. Great job Martin! Now get back to work on book 2. Break times over.
Helpful
 Report
Stephen F. Hartman
4.0 out of 5 stars First book in Series
Reviewed in the United States on January 19, 2019
Verified Purchase
Excellent writing to keep your interest, good character development, and historical background depicting this tumultuous period of history. As a historian, and writer, I am always assessing the reality of the setting and characters, and Mr. Lake gets good marks here. The only discrepancy that I found was the discussion of Bedlam, by the 12th century characters, which didn't become a mental institution in England until the 18th century. But, never the less, I found this to be an absorbing novel, which was an enjoyable read. My only disappointment is that the end of the book leaves readers hanging about what happens to the characters. However, this allows for the continuation of the story, as in Bernard Cornwell's epic sagas. I am sure Mr. Lake"s readers will be anxiously awaiting the next installment in this post Crusade story.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Carole Anne
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful tale
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2019
Verified Purchase
The story was quite though t provoking! Very absorbing! Want to read more!!!!hope to see a sequel soon!!!!! This is a subject more should be aware of!!!!!
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

H. Barca
5.0 out of 5 stars When will the sequel come?
Reviewed in Canada on December 12, 2017
Verified Purchase
A poignant and extraordinary historical novel. Published in 2012. When will see the sequel promised since this one is annotated Book 1? Martin Lake has written other novels. Why not continuing on in this story? The characters he introduces in his novel are extremely interesting. Waiting so long before a sequel will make me forget them and frankly will discourage me from buying it!
Report
Rob Bayliss
5.0 out of 5 stars The Holy War
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 15, 2014
Verified Purchase
If, like me, you enjoyed Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven then you will be aware of Balian leading the doomed defence of Jerusalem. In Martin Lake’s Outcasts we see Balian as not the young Orlando Bloom but as the historically accurate veteran crusader knight, respected by Muslim and Christian alike. I knew that I would enjoy this book; however, I ended up enjoying it in a totally different way than which I envisaged.
The author skilfully sculpts us an image of Jerusalem, as we see it through the eyes of the young pilgrims: a holy city full of hope and faith on one hand but an assault on the senses on the other. The author has done a good deal of research and we are lost in the heady sights, sounds and smells of this great city but soon this image is smashed and in ruins as the whole region is sent into chaos as war stokes the fires of fanaticism. The book is mainly dialogue driven, rather than describing sweeping dioramas of bloody battles between Crusaders and Saracens, but this enables us to get into the central characters’ heads, to fully empathise with them.
Reading Outcasts I was swept along in the story, eagerly turning the pages. It soon becomes clear that the title is very well chosen: the warriors knighted by Balian are despised by Christian aristocratic knights, their blood and sweat lost in the defence of Jerusalem counting for nothing. The characters we follow are cast adrift from family, from city, denied nationality and even their faith brought into question. They are stranded in a land between worlds, at the crossroads of trade routes and a meeting of peoples and religions. While religious zealots both from the East and West see the world in terms of black and white, those caught between learn to tolerate each other’s differences; the borders, both political and cultural, become more fluid.
The reader, like the characters, is asked to question their cultural concepts of right and wrong; no religion or culture is superior to the other. The central characters experience abuse and resentment from those they would expect help from and yet receive aid and honour from those they would count as enemies. The comparison with modern events, with the stark polarisation offered by the mad religiosity of ISIS, can clearly be seen. Here is a land that has been central to the evolution of Eurasian civilisations and yet has been fought over for millennia, with barbaric conquest dressed as faith. With such a long history of empires rising and falling who can really claim this land as theirs and theirs alone?
The central characters in Outcasts meanwhile, forced by events to take up the sword, look upon each faith, demanding their souls and obedience, with suspicion. It is their own lives, and those that they love, here and now, that concerns them. Christian Lord or Muslim Sultan: each would use them for their own quest for power; our characters will instead seek their own destinies. How these destinies unfold will be revealed in the sequel, which I eagerly await.
Report
Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Australia on July 15, 2016
Verified Purchase
Would be better if there were others to follow
Report
M. Harffy
4.0 out of 5 stars A fast-paced tale of a quest to find lost loved ones and redemption
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 27, 2015
Verified Purchase
A fast-paced tale of a quest to find lost loved ones and redemption.

I won't go into details of the story-line, as that is covered in other reviews and the book description. The writing style is quick and to the point, with little to get in the way of the action. This makes it very easy to read and the short chapters really help to push the story along at a good lick. There is no time to rest and the action for the characters is pretty relentless. In fact, a couple of times I would have liked a little more description of some of the locales or situations, to flesh out the experience of immersion into the time and place, but also to allow a breather before the next twist of fate of the characters.

Having said that, it is a minor gripe and the story caught my imagination and I wanted to know what happened to all of the hapless outcasts of the title. The open ending of the novel provides ample room for the story to grow, and I look forward to finding out the fates of John, Simon, Matthew, Bernard, Agnes and the boys.

This is the first novel I've read of Martin Lake's, but it won't be the last.

Matthew Harffy, author of  The Serpent Sword (Bernicia Chronicles Book 1)
2 people found this helpful
 Report
Delmarinero
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 12, 2014
Verified Purchase
Loved this book as much as the King Edgar series. The storyline is so intense and gave me a real insight as to this period of history. Saladin has a fearsome reputation as a leader of the Saracens bit I was unaware of his unpopularity within the Muslim world as a whole. Also it seems that during this time and in this part of the world each different faction whether religious or regal, there was at least understanding and some tolerence as well as treachery and betrayal. I am normally an avid reader of Roman historical novels but this author has ignighted a spark in me to continue reading about the crusades and the conflict between muslim and christian worlds. This book in particular seems to suggest that in real terms they were not really as different as I had always suspected. When or are the sequelsavailble???
2 people found this helpful
 Report
Report an issue

Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report