By Bodie & Brock Thoene

It's early afternoon May 14, 1948, in the world's most sacred city. Six months have passed since the United Nations voted for the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine and the territory was divided into two nations, one Arab and one Jewish. Finally, the day has come when the new State of Israel is to be proclaimed. Tension is high, as this is also the day when British troops will ceremonially hand over the key to Zion Gate and depart. They will leave Jewish and Muslim forces that have been fighting for months over control of a holy city they all are willing to die for. Has the battle only just begun?

Caught up in this historic moment are a striking cast of characters whose stories make Jerusalem Vigil an unforgettable novel that is impossible to put down. As they have in their earlier series, The Zion Chronicles and The Zion Covenant - of which together there are more than four million copies in print - Bodie and Brock Thoene here write magnificently of the momentous events that unfold in the days after the British embarkation. Moshe Sachar, a professor of archaeology at Hebrew University, who leads a double life as a core strategist for the Haganah group that is trying to protect the Jewish Quarter, will attempt to defend Zion Gate with little ammunition and fewer men. His pregnant wife, Rachel, whom he left in safety in Tel Aviv, finds herself fleeing toward Jerusalem, where she will brave gunfire on a perilous route through the Christian Quarter. Daoud and Gawan, two orphaned Arab boys, will lose themselves in crowds as they move from one Quarter to another, but will find a father and a most unlikely surname in their travels.

Their stories and those of Jerusalem Vigil's other richly drawn characters will stay with readers forever and make them impatient for the next installment in the Jerusalem Legacy Series, Thunder from Jerusalem, which Viking will publish in October 2000. Known for their superb storytelling, historical authenticity, and gripping drama, the Thoenes present the series they have waited decades to complete, an enthralling saga that will captivate countless readers.

Bodie & Brock Thoene, with Ph.D.'s in creative writing and history, respectively, are the authors of thirty-two novels, including the bestselling series The Zion Chronicles and The Zion Covenant. Together they have won eight Gold Medallion writing awards. The Thoenes live and work in Nevada and London, England.

Hardback, 318 pages
Published 2000