Sunday, January 8, 2017

"Cabal of the Westford Knight: Templars at the Newport Tower" by David S. Brody


Cabal of the Westford Knight
Templars at the Newport Tower
by David S. Brody
Martin and Lawrence Press, 2009
Notes by Travis Simpkins

     A 600-year-old-mystery involving Templar Knights and their secret exploration of North America 100 years before Columbus is supposed to have "discovered" the continent provides a compelling backdrop for David S. Brody's intelligent thriller, The Cabal of the Westford Knight: Templars at the Newport Tower. The protagonist, attorney Cameron Thorne, steps in to help an elderly couple settle a land dispute and quickly gets involved with an ancient coverup involving secret heraldic societies, religious fanatics, hit men, treasure hunters, the Holy Grail, the Freemasons and the truth behind Mary Magdalene and the Jesus bloodline. At the heart of the mystery is the 1398 voyage to North America by Scotsman Sir Henry Sinclair of Rosslyn, and a series of clues left behind in the form of rune stones, rock carvings and the impressively complex Newport Tower. 
     David Brody's research is commendable as well as his ability to incorporate the New England geography and local history into the intriguing story line. The majority of the places and artifacts in the book are tangible, including the Westford Knight, the Boat Stone, the Spirit Pond Stones, America's Stonehenge, the Kensington Rune Stone, the Naragansett Rune Stone, Machias Bay Petroglyphs, Touro Cemetery and the Newport Tower. The prologue offers a nicely conceived account of the death of Sir James Gunn during the 14th Century American voyage and his memorialization as the Westford Knight. The book describes the sites well and would make an interesting travel guide for a Pre-Columbian New England road trip. I truly enjoyed every bit of reading and found it fitting that Brody made Scott Wolter a character in the story, given his related research on the topic. With elements of The Da Vinci Code, the text is well-written, fast-paced and hard to put down.


Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Sir Henry Sinclair

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody:Sir James Gunn

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Westford Knight

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Sword of the Westford Knight

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Tomb of William St. Clair. Knight Templar

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Freemason Initiation carving. Rosslyn 

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Newport Tower

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Spirit Pond Inscription Stone

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Spirit Pond Map Stone

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Spirit Pond Drawing Stone

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: America's Stonehenge

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: America's Stonehenge. Sacrificial Stone

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Kilmore Church. Jesus and Mary Magdalene

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Westford Boat Stone

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Kensington Runestone

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Hooked X

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Naragansett Rune Stone

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Medieval Cathedral. Sacred Feminine

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Church Entry. Sacred Feminine

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Bernard de Clairvaux Lactating, Virgin Mary

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: MASON Dollar Bill

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Newport Tower

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Touro Cemetery. Newport, RI

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Jewish Cemetery. Newport, RI

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Delta of Enoch

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: The Newport Tower

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Scott Wolter at the Newport Tower

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: David S. Brody

Cabal of the Westford Knight. David Brody: Travis Simpkins at the Newport Tower