Read Hadassah Covenant, The Online
Authors: Tommy Tommy Tenney,Mark A
Tags: #Iran—Fiction, #Women—Iran—Fiction, #Women—Israel—Fiction, #Israel—Fiction
The Hadassah Covenant
Copyright © 2005 by Tommy Tenney and Mark Andrew Olsen
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Ebook edition created 2012
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of the publisher and copyright owners.
ISBN 978-1-4412-1174-3
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
All the characters in this novel are fictional except for those from the biblical account of Esther. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Cover illustration by Bill Graf
Cover design by Paul Higdon
Maps created by Meridian Mapping, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dedications
Without fail I have always dedicated my books to my family or perhaps the surrogate family of my staff. After nearly a decade of being a published writer, I have come to realize something: I have an even larger family, the readers who have chosen to allow me into their homes and lives. It is to them I dedicate this book. The mere fact that this novel is a sequel is a testimony to my “adoptive” family’s acceptance.
I have observed you, my readers, from an anonymous distance reading my musings. For that I am thankful. To be published is one thing; to be read is another.
Tommy Tenney
I would like to dedicate my efforts on this book to Dr. Leroy Patterson, beloved father to my wife Connie, Gran-Gran to our children, and the most consistent example a man could ever wish for in a father-in-law. Leroy served God faithfully for forty-eight years, and followed Him without waver for far longer. He was called home within weeks of his retirement. I hope I am as prepared when that call comes for me.
Mark Andrew Olsen
Contents
Acknowledgments
After a decade of being a published writer, I have come to the realization that the production of a book is the work of a team, not a solitary writer.
Tom Winters, whose legal skills and agent’s expertise have protected me from the beginning.
Carol Johnson, with her fine eye and red pen, who helped hone the dull blade of an idea into a story.
Mark Olsen, whose patience and literary skills have turned my private musings into a published novel.
It is to a team like this I extend grateful acknowledgment.
Tommy Tenney
Cast of Characters
Modern
Hadassah ben Yuda
— First Lady of Israel, wife to Prime Minister Jacob ben Yuda, daughter of David Kesselman.
Jacob ben Yuda
— Prime Minister of Israel, husband to Hadassah and champion of Middle East peace.
David Kesselman
— “Poppa” to Hadassah, survivor of Nazi occupation and Holocaust escapee.
Ari al-Khalid
— aka Ari Meyer, aka Dr. Clive Osborn — British-born antiquities expert, adviser to the coalition campaign to save Iraqi artifacts, and possessor of several more covert identities.
Anek al-Khalid
— London-based, Iraqi-born businessman and champion of exiled Jewish causes.
Ancient
Leah
— beautiful, young, royal-blooded Jewish resident of Persia’s royal harem, a queen’s candidate. Recipient of Queen Esther’s original journals (see
Hadassah: One Night With the King
).
Hadassah
— Queen Regent of Persia, the former Queen Esther, widow of Xerxes and de facto mother of new King Artaxerxes.
Mordecai
— Hadassah’s cousin and adoptive “Poppa,” Master of the Audiences to the king, second most powerful and beloved man in the empire.
Hathach/Jesse
— the king’s chamberlain, master of the harem. Hadassah’s first love until he was taken to the palace and made a eunuch.
Artaxerxes
— king of the Persian Empire following the assassination of his father, Xerxes.
Ezra
— Jewish priest in exile, revivor of the Torah, and leader of the restoration of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah
— royal cupbearer and leader of the rebuilding of Jerusalem.