James P. Blaylock’s Knights of the Cornerstone is a light, nostalgic contemporary fantasy steeped in legend. Blaylock is a master of this genre.
Cartoonist Calvin Bryson receives an odd package that causes him to return to his family’s home in New Cypress, on the borders of California, Arizona and Nevada. Secrets buried for generations come to the surface as Calvin joins the remnant of the Knights Templar to defeat an occultist, and defend what may be the real shroud of Turin.
This isn’t the headiest or heaviest of work by Blaylock, but it is damn fine! I read it in an hour or so and was completely engrossed. Blaylock’s work solo, and with Tim Powers, adds incredible fantasy to very familiar landscapes. If you haven’t read any of his work, this is a good place to start. Then I suggest moving on to On Pirates, I wish I could find my copy.
The Knights of the Cornerstone by James P. Blaylock