Rating: 
Summary: Delivers What It Promises
Review: Its kind of hard to come across even half-way decent books about groups like the Hashashyinn, Thuggee, Knights Templar and other "secret" societies. In part because so much [stuff] has been written of them in the past, and after a while it just becomes impossible to seperate truth from fiction. Nonetheless, Lewis does a decent job of presenting a history of the Assassins, or at least from what we can make of it.
The most important thing to remember here is that the Assassins were not following mainstream Islam. Indeed, as the title suggest, they were following a very radical heresy only loosely connected to Islam. Sort of like the Inquisition and numerous cults in the modern era only nominally follow Christianity. Therefore, Lewis had to spend more time discussing the group's beliefs and formation than their activities. For the most part, he describes the Assassins, what they did, and their brief history, and leaves it at that.
Over all, it's a quick decent read, but likely to be of interest to you only if you already have some interest in the Assassins or the time period. A casual reader may very well be left perplexed after reading this book however. In the end, all I can really say is that if you want a brief history of the Assassins, then by all means go out and get this book. It really is a nice book about them. If, however, you want information on real Islam, the Crusades, other secret societies, assassinations in general or some other topic, this book would be of limited use to you.
Rating:
Summary: Timely
Review: Puts the September 11 terrorist attacks in perspective. Somewhat dry account; does not repeat the lurid tales which have been spun about the Assassins. Needs to be combined with Amin Maalouf's "The Crusades through Arab Eyes" for a fuller understanding.
Rating: 
Summary: The definitive book about this mysterious sect
Review: This book casts light on the mystery of the radical Islamic sect of the Assassins. Bernard Lewis dispels many of myths that surround this group of radical, fundamentalists that gave birth to the term for political murder. Of the myths he convincingly dispels is the one that lingers surrounding their name, that these fanatics did not go out in a drugged stupor to kill their victims. What is most interesting is that Lewis makes good use of the few Assassins chronicles that survive, so that we can see some of the inside workings of the sect, rather than rely on just Sunni or Crusader chronicles, which by their nature can be slanted. A must for any reader interested in the period of the Crusades...and also for college history professors.
Rating: 
Summary: Not a scholarly book: cut and paste brief history
Review: This is not a bad book, but it is too short, fragmented, with few footnotes, and seems like a collection of thoughts more than a 'scholarly' book. Keeping that in mind, it gets 2 stars. You can also surf the web and get the same information.
Rating:
Summary: Not a scholarly book: cut and paste brief history
Review: This is not a bad book, but it is too short, fragmented, with few footnotes, and seems like a collection of thoughts more than a 'scholarly' book. Keeping that in mind, it gets 2 stars. You can also surf the web and get the same information.
Rating:
Summary: Scholarly and thought provoking
Review: This new edition has come out in the wake of the Sept 11 bombings and and upsurge in interest in Bernard Lewis's works. Those expecting a "glossy," ripped-from-the-headlines history might be put off by this book... it is a slightly updated reprinting of his classic history written a half-century ago. While it may not be a popular coffee table book, it is a throrough, highly informed work on the group that gave its name to political murder. To be honest, I got much more out of it the second time I read through it... some of the names, medieval politics, and Islamic debates left me feeling lost. The second time through, more things fell into place and I appreciated the details a great deal more. Also, I greatly appreciated his incredible knowlege of the subject and the region as a whole, as well as his keen insights into Islamic thinking. Clearly, Lewis is one of the most important Middle East scholars in a long time. Those looking for a scholarly, de-mystifying, and on its own terms readable work on the Assassins will like this book. If you're simply curious about this mysterious group, you may get more out of this volume if you first read one of Lewis's broader introductions to Islam... click on the authors name and several good choices will show up.
Rating:
Summary: Scholarly and thought provoking
Review: This new edition has come out in the wake of the Sept 11 bombings and and upsurge in interest in Bernard Lewis's works. Those expecting a "glossy," ripped-from-the-headlines history might be put off by this book... it is a slightly updated reprinting of his classic history written a half-century ago. While it may not be a popular coffee table book, it is a throrough, highly informed work on the group that gave its name to political murder. To be honest, I got much more out of it the second time I read through it... some of the names, medieval politics, and Islamic debates left me feeling lost. The second time through, more things fell into place and I appreciated the details a great deal more. Also, I greatly appreciated his incredible knowlege of the subject and the region as a whole, as well as his keen insights into Islamic thinking. Clearly, Lewis is one of the most important Middle East scholars in a long time. Those looking for a scholarly, de-mystifying, and on its own terms readable work on the Assassins will like this book. If you're simply curious about this mysterious group, you may get more out of this volume if you first read one of Lewis's broader introductions to Islam... click on the authors name and several good choices will show up.
Rating: 
Summary: Scholarly accout of the Assassins
Review: Though the book is essential in examining "the assassins" and their history it makes the error of referring to this sect as radical and reflects old ideas. Recent studies such as Farhad Daftary's Assassin Legends contribute more to dispelling the inaccurate myths concerning this group.
Rating: 
Summary: Mediocre
Review: Though the book is essential in examining "the assassins" and their history it makes the error of referring to this sect as radical and reflects old ideas. Recent studies such as Farhad Daftary's Assassin Legends contribute more to dispelling the inaccurate myths concerning this group.
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