Synopses & Reviews
The Eighth Veil is a mystery set in the year 28 CE in Jerusalem during the feast of Tabernacles. A murdered servant girl is found in the palace of King
Herod Antipas. The Prefect,
Pontius Pilate is in attendance. The populace is still buzzing over the brutal death of one of their Prophets,
John, known familiarly as the Baptizer, and scandal is in the air.Pilate does wants no trouble and insists an independent investigation into the murder be made. Antipas will have none of Pilate’s men in the palace and Pilate doesn’t trust Antipas.
Gamaliel, the chief rabbi and head of the Sanhedrin is coerced by Pilate to do the detective work.Gamaliel is a Talmudic scholar, not a sleuth and at first struggles. But as he learns more of the dead girl’s background and that of the other major players in the drama, particularly
Menahem, Antipas’ foster brother, he soon becomes eon over to the process and, Sherlockian-like, begins to fit the pieces together. Or, as his “Watson”
Loukas says, strips the veils from his personal
Salome.The girl turns out not to be the mere servant everyone assumed, in spite of his impatience with the pace and direction of the investigation Pilate is rewarded and the fascinating, little told but critically entwined, histories
of Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, Herod the Great, Anthony and Augustus Caesar, and the Battle of Actium suddenly seems more relevant to the Gospel narratives than anyone might have previously imagined.Meanwhile, the figure of
Jesus, the rabbi from Nazareth, with his ragged band of enthusiasts and his habit of annoying
Caiaphas, the High Priest, moves enigmatically in the background.
Review
"Webb pulls no punches in exploring another human rights issue in her excellent seventh mystery starring Arizon PI Lena Jones (after 2009's Desert Lost)" -- Publisher Weekly, starred review
Review
Pensylvania
"The puzzle is challenging enough to keep readers searching for clues, but the triumph of the authors lies in their spot-on recreation of the political and bureaucratic climate of the times."—Publishers Weekly starred review of Nine for the Devil
"Whores, beggars, lawyers, even a tax collector and a pope wander around Constantinople’s back alleys, brothels, kitchens and church sanctum sanctorums. What a relief for John (Eight for Eternity, 2010, etc.) to be finally freed of his duties and prepare to take his household off to Greece." —Kirkus Reviews of Nine for the Devil
"More complex and colorful than any Byzantine mosaic, Nine for the Devil by Mary Reed and Eric Mayer, will sweep you back into the cruel intrigue-ridden court of the Emperor Justinian, where treachery and murder linger behind every shadowed column of the imperial palace in Constantinople." —Robin Burcell, award-winning author of The Bone Chamber
"Twisty plotting, fabulous dialogue, and aristocratic backstabbing drew me into this clever plot (Who killed an Empress who showed no signs of being murdered?) and I could not stop reading until I watched master problem-solver John dance his way out of the deadly wrath of his grieving emperor." Jerrilyn Farmer, bestselling author of the Madeline Bean mysteries
"Subtle, well-drawn characters, from the ascetic John to the capricious and enigmatic Justinian; deft descriptive detail revealing life in the late Roman Empire; and sharp dialogue make this another winner in this outstanding historical series" —Publishers Weekly starred review of Eight for Eternity
Synopsis
When P.I. Lena Jones’s Pima Indian partner Jimmy Sisiwan is arrested in the remote northern Arizona town of Walapai Flats, Lena closes the Desert Investigations office and rushes to his aid. What she finds is a town up in arms over a new uranium mine located only ten miles from the magnificent Grand Canyon. Jimmy’s sister-in-law, founder of Victims of Uranium Mining, has been murdered, but the opposing side is taken hits, too. Ike Donohue, the mine’s public relations flak, is found shot to death, casting suspicion on Jimmy and his entire family. During Lena’s investigation, she finds not only a community decimated by dangerous mining practices, but a connection to actor John Wayne and the mysterious deaths resulting from the 1953 filming of “The Conqueror.” Gabe Boone, a wrangler on that doomed film, is still alive, but the only person the aged man will confide in is John Wayne’s ghost. It’s up to Lena to penetrate Gabe’s defenses and find out the decades-old tragedy no one in Walapai Flats wants to talk about. By delving into the area’s history, Lena learns that old sins never die; they’re still taking lives. As with “Desert Wives: Polygamy Can Be Murder,” this seventh book in the Lena Jones series exposes real life crimes, and the reason why high-ranking government officials want those crimes to remain under wraps.
Synopsis
La chasse au Leviathan / par le capitaine Mayne-Reid; ouvrage imite de l'anglais... par Jules Girardin...
Date de l'edition originale: 1882
Collection: Bibliotheque rose illustree
Ce livre est la reproduction fidele d'une oeuvre publiee avant 1920 et fait partie d'une collection de livres reimprimes a la demande editee par Hachette Livre, dans le cadre d'un partenariat avec la Bibliotheque nationale de France, offrant l'opportunite d'acceder a des ouvrages anciens et souvent rares issus des fonds patrimoniaux de la BnF.
Les oeuvres faisant partie de cette collection ont ete numerisees par la BnF et sont presentes sur Gallica, sa bibliotheque numerique.
En entreprenant de redonner vie a ces ouvrages au travers d'une collection de livres reimprimes a la demande, nous leur donnons la possibilite de rencontrer un public elargi et participons a la transmission de connaissances et de savoirs parfois difficilement accessibles.
Nous avons cherche a concilier la reproduction fidele d'un livre ancien a partir de sa version numerisee avec le souci d'un confort de lecture optimal. Nous esperons que les ouvrages de cette nouvelle collection vous apporteront entiere satisfaction.
Pour plus d'informations, rendez-vous sur www.hachettebnf.fr
Synopsis
La chasse au L viathan / par le capitaine Mayne-Reid; ouvrage imit de l'anglais... par Jules Girardin...
Date de l' dition originale: 1882
Collection: Biblioth que rose illustr e
Le pr sent ouvrage s'inscrit dans une politique de conservation patrimoniale des ouvrages de la litt rature Fran aise mise en place avec la BNF.
HACHETTE LIVRE et la BNF proposent ainsi un catalogue de titres indisponibles, la BNF ayant num ris ces oeuvres et HACHETTE LIVRE les imprimant la demande.
Certains de ces ouvrages refl tent des courants de pens e caract ristiques de leur poque, mais qui seraient aujourd'hui jug s condamnables.
Ils n'en appartiennent pas moins l'histoire des id es en France et sont susceptibles de pr senter un int r t scientifique ou historique.
Le sens de notre d marche ditoriale consiste ainsi permettre l'acc s ces oeuvres sans pour autant que nous en cautionnions en aucune fa on le contenu.
Pour plus d'informations, rendez-vous sur www.hachettebnf.fr
Synopsis
The year is 548 and Empress Theodora is dead of disease. Or so everyone in Constantinople, capital of the Roman Empire, believes. Everyone except Emperor Justinian, who orders John, his Lord Chamberlain, tofind her murderer or suffer the consequences.
There is no sign of foul play, but many of the aristocrats at the imperial court had good reason to want Theodora dead. Suspects include General Artabanes, forced to occupy a house with an unloved wife; Justinian’s cousin Germanus, who has seen his career blocked; and Antonina and her husband General Belisarius, enraged by Theodora’s attempt to marry their daughter to her grandson by compelling the young couple to live together. Could the exiled and much hated former tax collector
John the Cappadocian have played a role? Might Gaius, palace physician, have tampered with Theodora’s medication? Pope Vigilius, detained in the capital due to a religious controversy, is not above suspicion. Even John’s friends, the lawyer Anatolius and Felix, captain of the place guards, are acting strangely.
As if seeking a murderer who seems to be a gment of the emperor’s grief-deranged imagination isn’t dif cult enough, John must also grapple with domestic upheavals. His daughter, living on an estate outside the city, is about to give birth, and his aging servant Peter is dying. Will John be able to serve justice, his loved ones, and the emperor?
Synopsis
About the Author
Dr. Frederick Ramsay was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He received his doctorate from the University of Illinois-Westside Medical Campus. After a stint in the Army, he joined the faculty of the University of Maryland, School of Medicine, teaching Anatomy, Embryology and Histology; engaged in research and also served as an Associate Dean. During this time he also pursued studies in theology and in 1971 was ordained an Episcopal priest. He is the author of several scientific and general articles, tracts, theses, and co-author of The Baltimore Declaration. He is an accomplished public speaker and once hosted a television spot, Prognosis, on the evening news for WMAR-TV, Baltimore. He is also an iconographer with works displayed around the world. He lives in Surprise, Arizona with his wife and partner, Susan.