The shadow of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II hangs over the
shattered Holy Roman Church as the cardinals remain
deadlocked, unable to choose a new pope. Only the Binders
and a mad priest have a hope of uniting the Church against
the invading Mongol host. An untested band of young warriors
stands against the dissolute Khan, Onghwe, fighting for
glory and freedom in the Khan’s sadistic circus of swords,
and the brave band of Shield-Brethren who set out to stop
the Mongol threat single-handedly race against their nemesis
before he can raise the entire empire against them. Veteran
knight Feronantus, haunted by his life in exile, leads the
dwindling company of Shield-Brethren to their final battle,
molding them into a team that will outlast him. No good hero
lives forever. Or fights alone.
In this third and final book of the Mongoliad trilogy from
Neal Stephenson and company, the gripping personal stories
of medieval freedom fighters collide to form an epic,
imaginative recounting of a moment in history when a world
in peril relied solely on the courage of its people.
A note on this edition: The Mongoliad began as a social
media experiment, combining serial story-telling with a
unique level of interaction between authors and audience
during the creative process. Since its original iteration,
The Mongoliad has been restructured, edited, and rewritten
under the supervision of its authors to create a more
cohesive reading experience and will be published as a
trilogy of novels. This edition is the definitive edition
and is the authors' preferred text.