1535. During a battle against Ottoman pirates near the island of Malta, young knight of the Order of St. John, Sir Thomas Barrett, freed a young Italian aristocrat from the enemy’s clutches. Love flared between the two young people. But word of this unforgivable sin for a knight-monastic reached the Grand Master. Thomas was expelled from the Order—and from Malta as well. For twenty long years, the young man went home to England.
But now a great danger has loomed over the Order of St. John—over all the Christian world: the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman has gone to war against the unbelievers. And he began with Malta and its inhabitants—his eternal enemies. If the island is captured, the Sultan will gain an excellent position for further attacks on European powers. Which means that in the defense of Malta, every sword counts—especially one tempered by battles. And the Order again called on Sir Thomas Barrett to ride under its banner—for one of the greatest battles in human history…