Crossroads of Empire by Michael J. Cooper follows the tumultuous journey of 16-year-old Evan Sinclair, who suffers from amnesia after a harrowing series of events during World War I. Having fought bravely with the Flemish Resistance in Paris, Evan is wounded and later travels on the Austrium, a hospital ship that is sunk by a German U-boat. Washing ashore at Lyme Regis, he struggles with the memory loss that haunts him even as he physically recovers. With the help of his cousin Harry, Evan sets out to rediscover his family's rich history, tracing his lineage back to the First Crusade and the Knights Templar. Can he reclaim his life and purpose and reconnect with himself?

Michael J. Cooper crafts a captivating historical narrative that first explores Evan's struggles; his fight against the emptiness of amnesia permeates the early chapters. The novel then transitions into a more gripping adventure. The conflict is expertly developed, and readers will be fascinated by the author’s unique take on the origins of WWI, which holds that Kaiser Wilhelm sought to establish German rule in Jerusalem. This intriguing premise quickly morphs into supernatural elements involving immortality and mysterious energy pathways linking world monuments. Cooper’s exploration of genealogy and the quest for personal identity makes the narrative suspenseful. Crossroads of Empire is a well-crafted historical novel that will entice readers with its originality, superb storytelling, and rich imagery. This captivating tale features exquisite prose and engaging dialogue. The terrific descriptions marry the pulsating action to deliver an adventure that readers won’t want to miss.

It was 1914, and World War I was raging. After helping turn the tide of the war in his home country's favor, Evan Sinclair, a young British American soldier in France, narrowly survives an attack on a hospital ship bound for England. Evan is left with severe amnesia. He does not know who he is or recall a single detail about the war. Clive Sinclair, Evan's dad, sails to England in search of his son, whose whereabouts remain unknown in Europe. He stumbles upon details of the war that are little known to the outside world. It turns out the source of the war in Europe was in Ottoman Palestine. Apart from the region's rich oilfields, the German Kaiser was after the secrets of Jerusalem's Temple Mount, obsessed with ruling over the area as the Holy Roman Emperor. But Evan had been privy to this information before the ship was attacked. As he seeks to remember amid the raging war, he meets important figures directly impacting the war effort. He also discovers secrets about his bloodline, a thriving lineage that stretches back to the Crusades and will dictate his role in the Great War. Find out more in Michael J. Cooper's Crossroads of Empire.

Lovers of historical novels will find Michael J. Cooper's Crossroads of Empire an enthralling read. Cooper runs the storyline on a multi-perspective timeline and features a fascinating cast. The well-paced and intriguing plot is anchored on a tale of greed, power, secrets, blood, fate, survival, love, torture, war, family, soldiers, spies, adventure, action, suspense, and more. Paying great attention to detail, Cooper uniquely captures the mood and setting of the scenes with vivid and well-nuanced depictions, bringing them to life on the pages. It felt like I was back in the early twentieth century, witnessing World War I unfold. I could feel the political tension between the dueling nations, getting a clear image of the political dynamics in Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean during that era. Cooper reveals the cast's emotions through vivid depictions, juxtaposing their complex traits. The purposeful and authentic conversations gave depth to the conflict. With this book being a sequel to the Wages of Empire, I highly recommend reading the former to fully appreciate the story.

As memories dim with time, World War I slips slowly into obscurity as another distant chapter of history. Readers will be familiar with the endless slaughter of trench warfare in France and Belgium, but the geographic implications of the bloody conflict stretched much further afield. The focal point was in the strategically important Middle East, with the Suez Canal being a key trade route. Crossroads of Empire features adversaries that varied from Great Britain to the Germans, the Ottoman Empire, Zionists, and Arab separatists, all looking to form alliances of convenience in an atmosphere of espionage, military posturing, and mistrust. Against this background, 16-year-old Evan Sinclair, the hero of an earlier work, leaves home to join the war on the Western Front. There he was wounded and recovered, only to have his ship torpedoed on the way back to Britain, leaving him almost dead and adrift in a lifeboat. His miraculous rescue and recovery left him with amnesia and a few documents in his rucksack that could provide clues to his identity and the whereabouts of his father. He is assisted in his search by those that he meets along the way, ending up at the Sinclair family's ancestral home near Edinburgh. There, the family library, a mysterious gypsy, together with ghosts from the past, add intrigue and provide key answers. Michael J. Cooper packages this into an enthralling account that captures the era perfectly.

Crossroads of Empire dramatically illustrates the role that power politics played during World War I, driven by the need to defend the British empire on one hand, and the desire to extend territorial gains and exert political influence on the part of its opponents. Fact and fiction are blended to create a captivating story. Household names, familiar in that era, are combined with protagonists created by the author to provide an entertaining whole. The likes of TE Lawrence (the legendary Lawrence of Arabia) are contrasted with Chaim Weizmann and others. The shadowy Guido von List, a puppet of the Kaiser who was looking to further German aspirations in the Middle East and his anti-Semitic views, provided an occult flavor to the action. The political drama plays out at both an international and personal level. Big egos are in evidence as all the players vie for supremacy. Romance, family ties, and relationships are subtly woven into the story, and just as occurs in warfare, some casualties are inevitable. Michael J. Cooper skillfully alternates the action between the various camps to build tension to a fitting conclusion. Actual historical events such as the sinking of the vessel Lusitania, which brought America into the conflict, are plentiful and add substance. To separate fact from fiction, a comprehensive list of the role players with biographical details is provided, which is a bonus, as are the suggestions for further reading. This is military fiction at its finest and is highly recommended.

Crossroads of Empire by Michael J Cooper is a wonderful historical adventure that combines real historical characters, real events, and a fictional cast in a thrilling WWI-based narrative. Sixteen-year-old Evan Sinclair was far from his British homeland when WWI erupted across Europe. Determined to “do his bit,” Evan ran away from home in Utah and headed to Europe. Wounded and repatriated to England aboard a hospital ship, his transport is torpedoed in the English Channel. Rescued from a lifeboat, near death, Evan has total amnesia and is not even aware of his own name. Evan’s father, still searching for his boy, is working at the War Office in London, sharing his deep knowledge as an archeologist specializing in the Middle East with the Allied Command. The most important actions of this war will take place in the Middle East, especially with Kaiser Wilhelm II’s dream of ruling the world as Holy Roman Emperor from Jerusalem. Controlling Middle East oil and the Suez Canal is the victor’s prize. With a cast of familiar names such as T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia), Gertrude Bell, Chaim Weizmann, Winston Churchill, Faisal bin Hussein, and many more, the author has created the perfect blend of history and fiction. 

Crossroads of Empire is the sequel to Wages of Empire and wonderfully lives up to the excitement, suspense, and mystery of the first novel. I was already familiar with the main characters from the first story. Author Michael J Cooper drops useful nuggets of background information into the narrative to bring new readers up to speed. A wide range of story arcs, locations, and perspectives are seamlessly woven into the story. From Utah to the War Office in London, a family castle in Scotland, hidden underground tunnels beneath Jerusalem, Cairo, and the vast expanses of the Arabian desert, this novel is fast-paced, wide-ranging, and gallops along at breakneck speed. I particularly appreciated including so many real-life characters from this period, especially T.E. Lawrence, Gertrude Bell, and Richard Doughty-Wylie. Even allowing for the author’s literary license, their inclusion just gives the whole novel an air of authenticity. The story arcs related to the Knights Templar, their legend, and their mysteries, plus their links to the main characters in the Sinclairs, give the novel extra breadth and depth that lift it out of the ordinary. The author’s ability to plot and juggle so many diverse arcs, characters, locales, and twists makes this story such compelling reading. I was thrilled to discover that this is not the end for these characters and that more is not only promised, it is absolutely required. I look forward to more of their adventures. This was a wonderful read and one I highly recommend.