Nazi Darkness Was Descending Upon Europe Would Their Lives Ever Be the Same?Predating the events of The Zion Chronicles Series， Vienna Prelude opens in pre-World War II Austria. Elisa Lindheim， a violinist with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra， is of Jewish heritage but has adopted an Aryan stage name. Thus she is able to travel and play in Germany even though a 1935 law forbade Jewish musicians to do so. Her dear friend Leah， a cellist already introduced to Thoene readers in A Daughter of Zion， and her husband Shimon must escape Austria or perish in the coming Holocaust.John Murphy， a reporter for the New York Times in Berlin and Austria， becomes linked with English politicians in a plan to overthrow Hitler. Elisa and John's mutual connections with the Jewish Underground entangle them in a web of intrigue， danger， and conspiracy that neither could have known.Discover more about memorable characters you've already met in The Zion Chronicles and meet many new ones in this first book of a magnificent new series， The Zion Covenant! About the Author Bodie Thoene is a writer about whom John Wayne once said， "She has that rare kind of talent that captures the people and the times!" Born in Bakersfield， California， to a family of Irish and Jewish heritage， the fiery little redhead claimed from an early age she wanted to be a writer. Bodie's goal seemed impossible， however， when midway through grade school it was discovered that she had dyslexia， a learning disability that made it difficult for her to read. Her mother refused to accept that this was a problem they couldn't overcome， and together they worked with a young teacher until at last Bodie could read at grade level and above. "Both my parents instilled their can-do outlook on life. Reading opened the world to me. I began to write stories of my own." By the young age of fourteen， Bodie had a job as a stringer reporter for The California Newspaper. "They paid me fifty cents an inch for one article a week. The most I ever made was twelve dollars， but I felt rich!" Bodie continued her college education as a Journalism-Political Science major in San Jose， California. She covered the Bay-area political unrest of the Vietnam era as an associate for U.S. News and World Report. Her career as a journalist seemed assured， but she says， "I thought to myself that there has to be more to life than writing about riots and peace marches." Bodie married Brock Thoene during their sophomore year in college. They settled in Waco， Texas， where Brock attended Baylor University. It was here that Bodie began to write fiction out of the stories she gleaned from old Texas cowboys. The birth of their first child did not stop her from writing. "I held her with one arm and typed with the other!" Publication of The Fall Guy catapulted Bodie into national attention and acclaim. Shortly after that she went to work for John Wayne's Batjac Productions and ABC Television as a writer and researcher， working with the top writers in the motion picture industry. Among those who work with her， she is known as one of the finest character and action writers in the business. Her work is currently featured in American West， Saturday Evening Post， and Smithsonian magazine， as well as other national publications. Bodie's interest in Israel， which culminated in THE ZION CHRONICLES， stems from her days as a student. In 1978 she spoke to John Wayne about her hope to one day write a novel about the exciting events surrounding the rebirth of Israel. He encouraged her with his reply: "That's one you ought to do. It's the story of the Jewish Alamo!" With the publication of the first book in THE ZION CHRONICLES The Gates of Zion she was awarded the Gold Medallion Book Award by the ECPA. size : 5.2 x 8