An international bestseller - the secret history and shocking legacy of the Holy Grail. A 19th-century French priest discovers something in his mountainous village in the Pyrenees that allows him to amass and spend a fortune of millions. The story begins with a hidden treasure and evolves into an unparalleled historical investigative adventure - a modern quest for the Grail leading back through coded documents, secret societies, the Knights Templar, the Cathar heretics of the 12th and 13th centuries, and a dynasty of dark French kings who were dethroned more than 1,300 years ago. The author's conclusions are compelling: at the core, there are no material riches but a secret - a secret of explosive and controversial dimensions that radiates from the small Pyrenean village to modern politics and the entire Christian faith. It includes nothing less than... the Holy Grail.