Will iconic images recorded in the grooves of an ancient vase unite the Holy Land or rip it further apart?

THE VASE

A novel by Mark M. DeRobertis

Muhsin Muhabi is a Palestinian potter, descended from a long line of potters. His business is run from the same shop owned by his ancestors since the day his forebears moved to Nazareth. The region's conflict saw the death of his oldest son, and rogue terrorists are in the process of recruiting his youngest in their plot to assassinate the Pope and Israeli prime minister.

Professor Hiram Weiss is an art historian at Nazareth’s Bethel University. He is also a Shin Bet operative on special assignment. With the help of fellow agent, Captain Benny Mathias, he plans to destroy the gang responsible for the death of his wife and only child. He puts a bomb in the ancient vase he takes on loan from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.

Mary Levin, the charming assistant to the director of Shin Bet, has lost a husband and most of her extended family to recurring wars and never-ending terrorism. She dedicates her life to the preservation of Israel, but to whom will she dedicate her heart? The brilliant professor from Bethel University? Or the gallant captain who now leads Kidon?

Harvey Holmes, the Sherlock of Haunted Houses, is a Hollywood TV host whose reality show just flopped. When a Lebanese restaurant owner requests his ghost-hunting services, he believes the opportunity will resurrect his career. All he has to do is exorcise the ghosts that are haunting the restaurant. It happens to be located right across the street from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.




Thursday, February 17, 2011

Characters, THE VASE - Mary Levin

Today I get to talk about Mary Levin, the beautiful assistant to the director of Mossad. I mean what good is a story without a beautiful girl, right? And Mary Levin is just that; a very beautiful girl. But make no mistake about it she is a capable woman. She’s an army veteran. A former captain in the IDF. But she is retired from the military. And the director of Mossad, Ari Abrams, would rather have a competent and reliable beautiful woman as his assistant, than a competent and reliable old or plain woman, (or man,) as his assistant.

Now Mary is a widow, childless, and has suffered more than her share of loss during the continuous conflicts that plague the region. Her priority is the defense of Israel, and as such, was not averse to a role in Mossad. In fact, one of her jobs is to recruit potential candidates to serve as Mossad, and that’s just what she did with Professor Weiss. Though Weiss is somewhat older, Mary is infatuated with him. Not only is he dedicated to Israel, as is she, he still has what it takes to attract a woman, as he is still in good shape, and he hasn’t lost his hair.

And Mary can have any man she wants, right? Well, Professor Weiss has something else in mind besides romance right now. Revenge. But he might be better off to remember the old adage: if you snooze, you lose, because a much younger and equally handsome man is vying for Mary’s hand: Captain Benny Mathias, the fellow Mossad operative, who is also the head of Kidon.

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