Braverman Shaw —Bravo para sus amigos— siempre supo que su padre tenía secretos. Al morir éste, descubre que fue miembro de la Orden Gnóstica de San Francisco, una secta fundada por seguidores de San Francisco de Asís que, durante más de ochocientos años, ha protegido y conservado documentos antiguos de gran valor. Entre ellos se halla un Testamento atribuido a Jesús que podría sacudir los fundamentos del Cristianismo. Otra sociedad secreta, Los Caballeros de San Clemente, fundada por el Papa, ha perseguido el Testamento desde la época de las Cruzadas. Los Caballeros no se detendrán ante nada para conseguir el tesoro. Dexter Shaw fue el último Guardián del testamento en un lugar en el que sólo Bravo podrá encontrarlo. En su aventura le ayudará Jenny Logan, Guardián de la Orden, pero cuando estalla una guerra radical entre creencias religiosas, Bravo descubrirá que no puede confiar en nada ni en nadie.

I picked this up without much expectations and still was disappointed with the way the story progressed. It has an outline that is interesting enough - an ancient secret that can destroy the world if revealed, which the hero is tasked with protecting at all costs, who is chased across countries and continents by the unscrupulous people desperate to possess the secret at any cost. But the execution is way too tortuous for my liking. There are many superfluous sequences, loose ends, and pointless killings which made me wanting to chuck it. But, I persevered until the end without getting rewarded, except for the morsels of history and the appealing descriptions of the locales. The Testament promises a lot and delivers very little - full of action and devoid of substance. ( )

A storyline too much like other books about someone needing to save a part of history due to religious beliefs. First 50 pages tried to give background. Bravo is left to figure out a series of coded messages his father left him by traveling through parts of Europe. Meanwhile people are trying to kill him constantly which became too often and graphic. It is always amazing how certain people keep surviving. Confusing due to several twists to realize who were the good people. There is an author's note at the end about how much was based on actual facts. ( )

So-So quasi-religious order's search for the testament of Jesus, thwarted by another order. ( )

Eric Van Lustbader is the author of The Testament is a book about conflicting religious societies who are locked in battle over a religious manuscript that would shake Christianity to its core. The protagonist is Bravo Shaw and he struggles throughout the book to decipher codes his late father left for him as he fights to save Christianity as it is today. The cover design of the book depicts a man running through an archaic building and is very appealing because it creates the impression of intrigue which the book is based around. I would recommend this book to anyone who is into novels with a great deal of action and intrigue. ( )