New Fantasy Novel Combines World War II History with Knights Templar
Dennis Galloway's new novel The Pen: Knights Templar Treasure continues The Dream Traveler's Tales series as we meet yet another person who finds an antique pen with a mind of its own. In the first book, a pen was found in turn-of-the-century Edinburgh by a clerk named Harold, who soon found himself visiting the deserts of Arabia vicariously through the pen. In this second book, the story begins in Edinburgh during World War II when a young woman, Katherine, who works in a laundry but loves to write, buys an old pen at an antique store, little suspecting the adventure it will lead her on.
Katherine's life is not easy. The Germans are bombing Edinburgh. She barely makes enough to live on and pay the rent, and she struggles to feed herself and her two daughters. Eventually, Katherine is forced to send her children to the country to live with strangers where they will be safer. To pass the time, she indulges in her love of writing, but her antique pen has its own ideas. Katherine soon finds herself compelled to write in a strange language she doesn't recognize, and she falls into a trance-like state as she writes, vicariously experiencing the events told by the narrator of the pen's words. Unable to believe this is happening and unable to read the manuscripts the pen forces her to produce, Katherine finds an expert in medieval languages who can translate them for her. But the translator soon realizes the manuscripts provide clues to a forgotten treasure left by the Knights Templar, so she decides to find the treasure herself while purposely omitting parts of the translation so Katherine won't be on to her plans.
Katherine, however, has lived every word of the translations and quickly realizes some passages are missing. Another bombing leads her to a serendipitous meeting with a young army captain who is himself knowledgeable about medieval languages, and eventually, they develop a relationship as he begins first to translate the manuscripts and then to understand the power the antique pen has over Katherine.
Knights Templar Treasure is full of adventure. It effortlessly switches between multiple plots as we read both Katherine's story and that of the Templar Knight who tells the tale that the pen records. The reader travels from Edinburgh to the Isle of Skye and across medieval France, following one adventure after another. Nazi intervention and lots of local color make the story come to life, and the reader is continually eager to see who will find the Templars' treasure first. An added bonus is that Harold from the first book in the series makes a cameo appearance, and the novel ends with the hint of a third person who will experience the power of a magic pen in the upcoming third book.
But The Dream Traveler's Tales is not just a great adventure and fantasy series. Each book is written to provide life lessons that the characters learn on such topics as how to get along with others, develop meaningful relationships, overcome adversity, and make your dreams your reality. Author Dennis Galloway highlights the lessons at the end of each novel so readers can remember these nuggets of wisdom and apply them to their own lives. The result is kind of like having a magic pen of your own to guide you on your journey through life. Overall, the series is an enchanting read that puts the reader in the same position as the characters who own the magic pens, giving them insight into other people's lives and the lessons they learned.