Jerusalem Vigil » (Reprint)

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.

One is watching history unfold when reading the Thoenes' work. (Houston Chronicle)

Author Bio: Bodie And Brock Thoene, are the authors of the bestselling series The Zion Chronicles, and The Zion Covenant. Together they have won eight Gold Medallion writing awards.

Booklist - John Mort

The perennially popular Thoenes, long a fixture in Christian publishing, cross over to a mainstream commercial house with this compelling, Michener-like tale of Israel in 1948. As the British pull out and David Ben-Gurion consolidates power, Arab forces attempt to rout Jews from the Holy City, while the poorly armed, nascent Jewish army, composed of almost every nationality, schemes to break through Arab defenses and bring aid to their starving compatriots. Meanwhile, a great convoy, besieged at every turn by snipers and Egyptian jets, struggles to bring food and weapons from the coast. Though the Thoenes are highly partisan and their Israelis are all in varying degrees noble, they manage at least a credible job of portraying the various factions of Egyptians, Syrians, and Jordanians, even quoting from the Koran at times. They are the most adept in evoking the desperation of Jewish immigrants, vividly rendering the wartime sufferings of Poles, Germans, Italians, and English, the sum of which all but force Israel into existence. Lori and Jacob Kalner, who have been apart for most of their eight-year marriage because of Jacob's German internment, are representative. They have been ashore only a few hours when the Israeli army dragoons Jacob into the service and impresses Lori as a nurse. Though the Thoenes seldom can match the seamless, irresistible prose of Michener at his best, they have his ability to synthesize great dollops of history around appealing, though broadly drawn characters. They've turned in a rousing performance in this opener for the Zion Legacy series.