From Publishers Weekly
This third installment in the Zion's Legacy series continues the Thoenes' tradition of strong characters and fine historical research without succumbing to the embarrassing anti-Muslim stereotypes that so marred their first two novels. The scene is still Palestine of May 1948; war-weary Jewish refugees struggle to retain hold of Jerusalem's Old City, while Muslim forces squeeze the city from all sides, cutting off supplies. Just outside the city, other Jews attempt an Alamo-like last stand at the battle of Latrun, which ends disastrously, leaving them no road to resupply Jerusalem. Much of the ensuing suspense revolves around Jewish attempts to find, and then utilize, an ancient Roman path that will circumvent the Muslim armies and relieve the beleaguered forces in the Old City. The Thoenes' Christian message can sometimes be overstated: a mysterious Jesus figure appears disguised as an elderly gardener, and armies that oppose the Jews find themselves turned back by divinely whipped desert winds and angry hornets (per biblical promises to God's Chosen People). The authors capitalize on the poignant stories of the Jews who are fighting for their homeland. A Hasidic father whose son is the only one of his six children to survive the Holocaust loses his mind when the boy is killed by a grenade, and a Russian family that miraculously survived the Holocaust intact is not so fortunate in the Promised Land. For Christian fiction writers, the Thoenes allow a liberal amount of gory violence (this is war, after all) and present female characters with surprising chutzpah. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Picking up where Thunder from Jerusalem left off on Sunday, May 23, 1948, Rachel Sachar and Lori Kalnar face the destruction left by the latest Muslim attack on the Old Quarter of Jerusalem. With dwindling supplies and almost nonexistent weapons, the newly formed Jewish nation will have to surrender soon or die. With the aid of a young Muslim boy, Daoud, who has adopted Dr. Baruch as a Jewish father, pilot David Meyer plans to bring relief through a hidden pass to save his friends and countrymen. The Thoenes continue their best-selling "Zion Legacy" series, yet because of the day-by-day layout of the chapters without recap of the previous titles, only collections containing the first two books in the series should consider for purchase. Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Fighting continues in the third volume of the Zion Legacy series, the day-by-day, blow-by-blow account of Israel becoming a nation in 1948. Most characters return from the previous novels, including the hapless couple Jacob and Lori Kalner. Jacob becomes a hero in this installment, having led the fight to defend Jerusalem from the Arab Legion--a gallant and successful fight. And yet the determination of Jordanian King Abdallah--seeking almost willfully a Pyrrhic victory--brings Jerusalem back into Arab hands. Thus a note of despair is interjected, at least if you are rooting for the Israelis, and the highly partisan Thoenes make it impossible not to do so. As in Thunder from Jerusalem [BKL S 15 00), the previous novel, aerial combat steals the show, this time for pilot David Mayer, who rams Israel's one Messerschmitt down the Egyptian throat. Love affairs continue on hold, as does the fate of young Daoud, the Arab-Jewish boy uncertain where to place his loyalties. This is a fast-paced, irresistible novel, but at the end of it, the fighting seems exactly where it was at the beginning. Of course, that's the story of either war or peace in the Mideast. John Mort
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description
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.

"Jerusalem's Heart continues the Thoenes' tradition of strong characters and fine historical research." (Publishers Weekly)


About the Author
Bodie and Brock Thoene, with degrees in creative writing and history, respectively, are the authors of thirty-four novels that include the bestselling series the Zion Chronicles and the Zion Covenant. Together they have won eight Evangelical Christian Publishers Gold Medallion awards.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The newest volume in the best-selling historical epic of the world's holiest city.

With more than seven million books in print, Bodie and Brock Thoene have taken their works of historical fiction to the top of the bestseller charts and into the hearts of their readers. Jerusalem Vigil, the first book in their latest Zion Legacy series, begins the sweeping saga of the history of Jerusalem in 1948 with the withdrawal of the British. Thunder from Jerusalem, the next installment continues the story of the harrowing and glorious battle to liberate this ancient enclave.

Jerusalem's Heart, the third riveting episode, plunges us into the maelstrom of the conflict between Jewish and Muslim forces during five brutal days of struggle to defend the Old City from a treacherous takeover. Again we meet the richly drawn cast of characters whose ongoing heroism and faith, passions and destinies, are interwoven with the soul of the city and played out in its bloodstained alleys. With its gripping drama, Jerusalem's Heart is an unsurpassed and timely blend of superb storytelling, historical authenticity, and spiritual adventure that will stay with readers forever.

* Abridged. Four cassettes, 6 hours

Author Bio: Bodie and Brock Thoene, with degrees in creative writing and history, respectively, are the authors of Jerusalem Vigil and Thunder from Jerusalem, the first two volumes of the Zion Legacy series. Their other thirty-three novels include the best-selling series the Zion Chronicles and the Zion Covenant. Together they have won eight Evangelical Christian Publishers Gold Medallion awards.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

This third installment in the Zion's Legacy series continues the Thoenes' tradition of strong characters and fine historical research without succumbing to the embarrassing anti-Muslim stereotypes that so marred their first two novels. The scene is still Palestine of May 1948; war-weary Jewish refugees struggle to retain hold of Jerusalem's Old City, while Muslim forces squeeze the city from all sides, cutting off supplies. Just outside the city, other Jews attempt an Alamo-like last stand at the battle of Latrun, which ends disastrously, leaving them no road to resupply Jerusalem. Much of the ensuing suspense revolves around Jewish attempts to find, and then utilize, an ancient Roman path that will circumvent the Muslim armies and relieve the beleaguered forces in the Old City. The Thoenes' Christian message can sometimes be overstated: a mysterious Jesus figure appears disguised as an elderly gardener, and armies that oppose the Jews find themselves turned back by divinely whipped desert winds and angry hornets (per biblical promises to God's Chosen People). The authors capitalize on the poignant stories of the Jews who are fighting for their homeland. A Hasidic father whose son is the only one of his six children to survive the Holocaust loses his mind when the boy is killed by a grenade, and a Russian family that miraculously survived the Holocaust intact is not so fortunate in the Promised Land. For Christian fiction writers, the Thoenes allow a liberal amount of gory violence (this is war, after all) and present female characters with surprising chutzpah. (Apr.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal