Martin, an adventurous young man, and Rosamund, an intelligent noblewomen, work together to help the people and combat the evil lord The Lost Baron is a tale about the adventures of Martin, the chivalrous, honorable son of a poor knight. As a teen he journeys to his uncle's castle and meets his new family; his shallow-minded Aunt Florence, sweet young cousin Rosamund, and brave Uncle Eric. Martin also meets Basil, a mysterious and reclusive friend of Eric's, and his brawny servant Topaz.
Click here to see the rest of this review...
While he is exploring the ancient Roman castle with Rosamund, Martin bumps into Eric and Basil, who apparently came out of nowhere. But Martin soon forgets about this odd encounter as more important events transpire.
His uncle loses the family's Luck Penny, dropping it onto a ledge perched between the castle and the ocean. His wife is scared, for the legend surrounding the Luck Penny predicts bad luck when it is lost. And before Eric can fetch it, a stranger calls at the gates. Eric goes to meet him and does not return. Basil high-handedly assumes control of the castle but Martin fights with him and returns home.
Several years later, Basil still has the castle, servants, and land, but Luck Penny continues to haunt him, glittering untouched from its ledge, a constant reminder of Eric. Faithful Topaz decides to retrieve it but his rappelling rope is cut and he is stranded on the slippery ledge, staring in terror at the sea foaming on the rocks beneath him. Martin, hunting for gulls' eggs, sees him and performs a daring rescue. Rosamund, now a beautiful, intelligent young lady, comes to Martin's aid as he is now stranded on the ledge. As she leaves the area she finds the penny in the grass, having fallen from Topaz's pocket, and takes it. Topaz and Basil assume that it was lost in the sea.
Martin meets Basil for the first time in years after he and his friend Ben save him from a wild bear. For a reward, Ben daringly asks for his fishing village to be treated fairly by the Basil's rowdy, disrespectful men. Basil, realizing that his men are cheating the fishermen, puts Martin in charge.
Martin and Rosamund take an increasingly active role in the fishing village, and the people thrive. The people from the farming village note the progress and ask Martin to oversee them as well. They humiliate Basil's men and force them to hand over the command to Martin, who is popular and well liked.
On the other hand, Basil grows more moody and sullen. He proposes to Rosamund but she rejects him. He tries to intimidate her into giving him the penny. The last straw is when Basil sees her with Martin, and in a fit of jealous rage, decides to stop feeding Eric. Here it is revealed that Eric is indeed alive and imprisoned somewhere in the castle.
Martin, filled with renewed hope about Eric, snoops around and finds a secret passageway which leads to Eric's cell. With the help of Rosamund, he frees Eric, who immediately seeks revenge on Basil. He charges out and kills Basil, who is confused and scared. Eric triumphantly regains his castle and lands.
Best part of story, including ending:
The contrast of chivalry, nobleness, and kindness with arrogance and sullenness was a constant theme throughout the story.
Best scene in story:
The villagers have a thief among them, but no one knows who. There are three suspects who stole a needle, of all things, and everyone is upset about it. Martin and Rosamund devise a clever plan and together they look for hints and expose the culprits.
Opinion about the main character:
Although only a young man, Martin is mature and wise, settling the villagers' disputes and maintaining peace.
