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, August 4, 2025

Volume 12 Rockin' the Cosmos

I was so pleased with the results of re-singing all the songs on my Volume 13 album, I decided I had just enough time before school resumes to re-sing the songs on my Volume 12 album as well. And that was a particularly difficult album to resing. But I had to do it. Because Volume 12 Rockin' the Cosmos is arguably my best album of all 14. Well, the case could be made that any of the 14 is the best of them all. But Vol. 12 was my first concept album. That is to say it tells the story of an astronaut in outerspace on a mission from earth. And I am pleased to say that yesterday I got it done. It's a great album with great songs and great lyrics. You may remember the two great outerspace songs, Space Oddity by David Bowie and Rocketman by Elton John. My Volume 12 Rockin' the Cosmos is similar to those two songs insofar as the outerspace theme, but it's an entire album of ten songs, not just a single song like theirs. And one of my most popular songs is on there, which was also true for Volume 13. Check it out in the margin to the right. But you'll have to scroll down a bit. Back to work tomorrow, though. The new and possibly final school year for me is about to begin.

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