"For fast-paced, often riveting action, the Thoenes come through with scenes of horror and fear that rival those of James Michener." --The New York Post Bodie and Brock Thoene's superb storytelling comes alive in Jerusalem Vigil, a novel of the struggle for Jerusalem. It is May 14, 1948, in the world's holiest city: today the new State of Israel will be proclaimed and British troops will hand over the key to Zion Gate leaving behind hostile Jewish and Muslim forces poised for battle. Caught up in this historic moment are Moshe Sachar, an archaeology professor who is also a strategist; his pregnant wife, Rachel, who flees Tel Aviv for Jerusalem via a perilous route through the Christian Quarter; and Daoud and Gawan, two orphaned Arab boys who find a father with an unlikely surname. In this engrossing page-turner, the Thoenes combine historical authenticity, unforgettable characters, and gripping drama to create a saga about a fascinating period in world history.

The latest novel from bestselling authors Bodie and Brock Thoene continues the extraordinary story of faith and love in the first century a.d. that they began in their previous book, The Jerusalem Scrolls. The Old City has fallen and Moshe Sachar, the courageous Israeli leader, remains hidden in an underground tunnel, guarding the ancient sacred scrolls that tell of his people's long, heroic history. Following an elder rabbi's instructions, Moshe opens a scroll and again becomes immersed in the ancient biblical tale of Marcus, the Roman centurion, and Miryam, the troubled young woman he loves. Combining superb storytelling with an enchanting historical setting, this thrilling episode presents the gripping plight of a striking cast of biblical characters amid a rich tapestry of romance and intrigue.

It is May 23, 1948, and Jewish and Muslim forces have been in brutal conflict since the new State of Israel was proclaimed nine days ago. The Zion Gate is closed and the Haganah patriots, struggling to hold on to the Old City, are running out of supplies. Inside the city, the defenders' valiant spirit threatens to fail. The leading Haganah strategist, Moshe Sachar, is trapped in enemy territory and desperately races to reach his pregnant wife, Rachel, and the others who continue to fight for the Old City. Rachel's grandfather sees a prophecy of hope for Jerusalem, but can Moshe reach them before it's too late? Jerusalem's Heart is a riveting novel of the battle to liberate the world's holiest city. Once again, Bodie and Brock Thoene combine an unsurpassed and timely blend of history, superb storytelling, and incredible drama that thrills from cover to cover.

The inhabitants of Jerusalem brace for the violence that will follow the departure of the British in 1948.

When the cotton market collapses on October 1, 1931, the families of Shiloh, Arkansas must learn to struggle through the Great Depression.

In The Jerusalem Scrolls, bestselling authors Bodie and Brock Thoene take the story back in time from the battle for Jerusalem in 1948 to tell an ancient tale of love, faith, and redemption. After days of brutal fighting against Arab forces, Moshe Sachar, the courageous leader of the Israelis, escapes to a tunnel under the Old City and discovers sacred scrolls that tell the history of his faith and people. Opening a scroll, Moshe becomes immersed in the extraordinary story from the first century A.D. of Miryam, a beautiful yet troubled young widow, and Marcus, her Roman suitor. With stirring accounts of many events and characters from the Bible, The Jerusalem Scrolls combines wonderful storytelling with a captivating historical setting.

Soon to be a major motion picture from Steven Spielberg. A National Book Award Finalist The extraordinary story of how the vatican's imprisonment of a six-year-old Jewish boy in 1858 helped to bring about the collapse of the popes' worldly power in Italy. Bologna: nightfall, June 1858. A knock sounds at the door of the Jewish merchant Momolo Mortara. Two officers of the Inquisition bust inside and seize Mortara's six-year-old son, Edgardo. As the boy is wrenched from his father's arms, his mother collapses. The reason for his abduction: the boy had been secretly "baptized" by a family servant. According to papal law, the child is therefore a Catholic who can be taken from his family and delivered to a special monastery where his conversion will be completed. With this terrifying scene, prize-winning historian David I. Kertzer begins the true story of how one boy's kidnapping became a pivotal event in the collapse of the Vatican as a secular power. The book evokes the anguish of a modest merchant's family, the rhythms of daily life in a Jewish ghetto, and also explores, through the revolutionary campaigns of Mazzini and Garibaldi and such personages as Napoleon III, the emergence of Italy as a modern national state. Moving and informative, the Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara reads as both a historical thriller and an authoritative analysis of how a single human tragedy changed the course of history.