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.




Monday, November 12, 2018

Working on Music Again

So the publishing news is slow. I do have three manuscripts submitted, but still waiting for answers. I might go with a European publisher. They want to publish my books. But some people say I shouldn't. I can go with my current publisher, Melange. Just might do it.

In the meantime, I'm back into my music. I have written 13 albums with ten plus songs on every album. I have no singer, so I tried singing on three of the albums. Volume 2, 12, and 13. I have Volume 12 on SoundCloud right now. It's really a good album, too. Just wish I had a decent singer on there.

But while I'm waiting out the publishers, I'm redoing a lot of my other albums. I had written the music on these albums about twenty years ago. Volumes 2, 12, and 13 are good, but the others need to be arranged again. I completed Volumes 3 and 4 by now, and I'm working on Volume 5 at this time. I suppose I'll try singing on them if I can't find a real singer.

And then I would like to put them on SoundCloud too.

I wonder if there are agents that submit songs to real recording artists, like literary agents submit books to publishers. That would be exactly what I need. Time to find out.