Heretic: Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now

By Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Continuing her very personal journey from a deeply religious Islamic upbringing to a post at Harvard, the brilliant, charismatic and controversial New York Times and Globe and Mail #1 bestselling author of Infidel and Nomad makes a powerful plea for an Islamic Reformation as the only way to end the horrors of terrorism and sectarian warfare and the repression of women and minorities.

     Today, the world's 1.6 billion Muslims can be divided into a minority of fundamentalists, a majority of observant "daily" Muslims and a few dissidents who risk their lives by questioning their own religion. But there is only one Islam and, as Ayaan Hirsi Ali argues, there is no denying that some of its key teachings--like the subordination of women and the duty to wage holy war--are incompatible with the values of a free society.
     For centuries it has seemed as if Islam is immune to change. But Hirsi Ali has come to believe that a "Reformation"--a revision of Islamic doctrine aimed at reconciling the religion with modernity--is now at hand, and may even have begun. The Arab Spring may now seem like a political failure. But its challenge to traditional authority revealed a new readiness--not least by Muslim women--to think freely and to speak out.
     Ayaan Hirsi Ali argues that ordinary Muslims throughout the world want change. Courageously challenging the fundamentalists, she identifies 5 key amendments to Islamic doctrine that must be made in order to set Muslims free from their 7th-century chains. Interweaving her own experiences, historical analogies and powerful examples from contemporary Islamic societies and cultures, Heretic is not a call to arms, but a passionate plea for peaceful change and a new era of toleration.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Mar 24, 2015
• ISBN: 9780345808844

Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Ayaan Hirsi Ali was born in Mogadishu, Somalia, was raised Muslim, and spent her childhood and young adulthood in Africa and Saudi Arabia. In 1992, Hirsi Ali came to the Netherlands as a refugee. She earned her college degree in political science and worked for the Dutch Labor party. She denounced Islam after the September 11 terrorist attacks and now serves as a Dutch parliamentarian, fighting for the rights of Muslim women in Europe, the enlightenment of Islam, and security in the West.

Reviews for Heretic

[dcavin-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Neither loved it, nor disliked it.

[msaucier818 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was the third and final book in the "Search for the Grail" series featuring the English archer Thomas of Hookton. This book followed the Cornwell formula and really was no different than the previous two books. It introduces one new female character, but there is never really a true love interest developed with her. The only real difference between this book and the previous ones in the series is that in the last chapters, the Plague arrives. It was interesting from an historical point of view, but other than quickly killing people off in the final pages, it didn't really have an impact on the story.

Basically I was a bit disappointed in this book. I feel like there was little magic or excitement about finding the Grail, and the entire story of the trilogy certainly could have been told in two books. I never had that "can't wait to find out what happens next" feeling that I usually do reading Cornwell.

[thegeneral_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Bar the factual Siege of Calais this book takes the plotline of the series to a conclusion in Thomas' ancestral homeland in southern France. The introduction of some new characters at this point are backstory of the history of the Vexilles in this book. Planchard is a good addition.

[chicjohn · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Cracking storytelling

[jzdro · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Reich, or the Workers' Paradise, or the Umma - whatever, they are all the same. They are lying promises of Peace and Paradise on Earth, to be brought about by self-designated elites who exempt themselves from guilt for any amount of larceny and murder. In this volume, in 1347 Gascony, Thomas of Hookton fights the final battle with his evil doppleganger, who claims that his plans will ". . .bring the Kingdom of Heaven to Earth. . . That is all I want, Thomas." "So my father had to die for that?" "I wish it had not been necessary, but he was hiding the Grail. He was an enemy of God." And so Thomas kills in combat the man who had murdered so many defenseless people.

[shanaqui_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn't like this one as much as I liked the Warlord Chronicles, and I never really got to care for the characters, but it was an enjoyable, quick summer read. The historical details were interesting, and although the actual location of the grail and what it was like weren't surprising to me, it was an interesting idea. I liked the final book, but I couldn't care less about the main female character.

[balthazar0lawson · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is not as good as the preceding two books in the series, which I enjoyed. As suggested by the book's title and the series name there is a lot of religion in this book and it takes away from the action adventure that was present in the previous books.

As the author notes only the beginning and ending are based against historical facts and somehow this shows through with this story. I enjoy good books set against real history but that was missing from most of this book.

But it does conclude the search for the grail and all up the series is work reading.

[bdtrump · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A fun read on the Hundred Years War and the rise of the Black Death, the plot nevertheless moves slower and the characters are less diverse and interesting as in Books 1 and 2.

[victoriajz · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Final volume of the Grail Quest. The violence[including raping and pillaging] gets old, but it is a violent age and Cornwell doesn't glorify or overdue its gruesomeness. He does a good job of wrapping up the tale

[dinadansfriend · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

We are thinning out the non-player characters with this installment of the "Grail Quest" trilogy. As it's the last volume, there are numerous grudges to pay off, as Thomas of Hookton heads away from the siege of Calais, and into the Black Death. It's a good wind-up book.

[bruderbane · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a great series and a great jumping-off point for those people intested in reading Bernard Cornwell. This final(?) chapter in the Grail Saga was truly rewarding.

[dougwood57 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Bernard Cornwell continues to roll out reliably good historical fiction. I originally became a Cornwell fan through the great Sharpe series. Heretic is the third in the Grail Quest series, but can be read and enjoyed as a stand alone. Thomas of Hookton seeks the Holy Grail in 14th century Gascony and it's a bloody nasty business. Along the way he again encounters the evil black knight Guy de Vexille. And there's a castle to be seized and a beautiful young woman to save from being burned at the stake - not to mention avoiding the plague, the Inquisition, and leprosy! Highly recommended for all Cornwell fans, or any reader with an interest in historical fiction, especially concerning the Middle Ages or the Holy Grail.

[ksmyth_18 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The story of Thomas of Hookton is wrapped up in this final tale of the search for the grail and its ties to the Cathar heresy.

[alfiepalfie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love this book. Today in English (Yes, I'm still stuck in Year 9 at school!) we had to write a review of either a book or TV programme so I did the Grail Quest Series and no one else in my class had even heard of Cornwell! Disgraceful! Definately recommend it!

[witchyrichy · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Seemingly the most fictional of the three books, the Grail really predominates the story. I think Cornwell does a great job of depicting the power of religion and superstition in Middle Ages. The book kept me going through a LONG train trip. After reading all three books, I will say that the bad guys tended to be a little predictable.

[koalamom_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Thomas of Hookton is looking for the Grail. What he finds is a girl who is about to be burned as a heretic, whom he says from the flames. For his reward for doing this, the local Bishop excommunicates him, but his quest continues. In his search he finds many clues and artifacts and trouble only to end up back where he began. He discovers what others think is the Grail, but in the end he knows what and where the Grail really is and its danger.

[jeffv_19 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The third and final volume of Cornwell's Grail Quest saga, our hero Thomas finds himself in southern France, near his ancestral home of Astarac. By happy coincidence, his nemesis, cousin Guy Vexile, arrives as well as some unexpected (and unwanted) guests: plague rats. A friend and companion turns on him (and is redeemed), an old friend dies, but the battles are won and the grail? Well, I won't spoil it. The series is a great read for those looking for an adventure set in medieval times. The story takes place early in the Hundred Year's War between France and England, and does a good job illustrating how shifting loyalties meant it wasn't a simple war between two established nations. Cornwell's [i]Agincourt[/i], set later in the same war, is not part of the series but will be the next Cornwell book I read.

[philsyphe · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

“Heretic” struck me as very different to the first two books in the Grail series. A couple of episodes did draw me in but on the whole I found it lacking. I do like the main character – Thomas – but missed his Jewish friend who has a passion for checking the colour of people’s urine, plus Thomas's one-time lover Jeanette, neither of which appear at all in this volume. I would’ve rated this novel three stars but, like all the Bernard Cornwell books that I’ve read to date, I’ve deducted a star because they are all let down by substandard elements of style. Long-winded sentences are plentiful. The needless dialogue attribution drives me to distraction whilst the overuse of the word “then” is surprising for such a seasoned author.This, of all the books I’ve *ever* read, may well hold the record of overusing the word “then”. Sometimes it’s in consecutive sentences. Occasionally it’s used twice in the same sentence. The best authors avoid using “then” wherever possible. It is achievable to write a long novel without using this word at all, except maybe in dialogue, but in the main narrative it sounds like a child’s voice. Think of a seven-year-old telling you about their holiday: “And then I did this, and then I did that, and then …’Take this for example:>Then the routiers would take a new oath, go to war and fight until a truce was called, and then, knowing no trade except killing, they would go back to the lonelier stretches of countryside and find a town to savage.The routiers would take a new oath. They’d go to war until a truce was called. Knowing no trade except killing, they’d return to the lonelier stretches of countryside and find a town to savage.The valley where that poor village lay had already been plundered, and so he meant to stop in the next valley where a slew of plump settlements were strung along the road south from Masseube, and then, when his men were busy about their devil’s business, he and a few men would ride with Robbie to the hills overlooking Astarac and, if there were no coredors or other enemies in sight, let the Scotsman ride on alone.‘I was reminded the other day,’ he said, ‘of one of the psalms of David.'‘I am Galat Lorret,’ Lorret said.He was dressed all in black. Black boots, black breeches, black jerkin, black cloak, black broad-brimmed hat and a sword scabbard sheathed in black cloth.

[carl_alves_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In The Heretic, Thomas of Hookton is searching for the Holy Grail using mysterious links between his family and the Grail. This leads him to the French country side where he and his men take a castle in Gascony. As he raids the countryside, he attracts the attention of his hated cousin Guy Vexille, who murdered Thomas’s father. He must now defend the castle against Vexille and the army of a local lord. On another front a bishop has sent his brother to find the secrets of the Grail.Cornwell has an enjoyable style and puts in a great detail of detail into the historical aspects of the novel. There is good action and fighting sequences as well as a good pace to the novel. Having said that, the plot itself doesn’t hold up to some of the other Cornwell novels that I have read before. It’s a solid novel and an enjoyable read, but not a great novel.Carl Alves – author of Blood Street