The Lighthouse
Feathered Quill Book Awards Reviewer's Choice
2024 Finalist INTERNATIONAL BOOK AWARD
2024 Winner FIREBIRD BOOK AWARD
The Lighthouse moves between Egypt and Italy and back to Alexandria. It is a story about family love and loyalty, medical breakthroughs and heartbreaks, and one man’s quest for justice for his people.
Simon is a gifted physician who faces constant danger as a Jew in first-century Egypt under Roman rule.
When Meidias, an escaped convict, declares a holy war against Jews and abducts Simon’s sister, Simon’s search for her leads him on a treacherous journey to slave markets in Alexandria and to Jerusalem where a Roman soldier forces Simon to carry a crossbeam for a stranger. Simon is troubled by the stranger’s death but does not know that this moment will change the world forever.
Simon’s passion is Aurelia, inaccessible daughter of a Roman senator. His mission is revenge against the outlaw Meidias. His ambition is justice for his family and his people. His torment is the conflict between his Hippocratic oath and his vow to kill Meidias.
As his medical reputation grows, he comes face to face with prefects and emperors and the poor suffering masses of Alexandria and Rome. Overwhelmed by the plight of his people, he tries to stop what becomes the first pogrom in Alexandria.
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Reviews
“The Cyrenian is an extraordinary accomplishment as to the scope of the material, the command of literature and the balance of judgment. It is also a vivid account of unrest. Readers gain insight into an era in which Jewish nationalism, nascent Christianity, Roman power and Hellenistic culture in the Mediterranean world converged, sometimes violently and tragically. Concentrating on Simon and his extended family, Ciholas adeptly and empathetically describes the tensions and polemics that arose when some family members adopted a new allegiance (Christianity) while others clung to the ancient paths (Judaism). At stake was nothing less than the self-definition of both Jews and Christians.”
“The Lighthouse is nicely paced. I loved her character development. She hooks you in and you want to know the outcome. You feel like you are in the 1st century!”
“The Lighthouse is a fascinating book. It was quite an experience to read a novel about people that are so familiar to me as objects of study.”
“If you love James Michener, you will love this book! It evokes his keen sense of history and his ability to bring long-ago characters and settings to life.”
“Ciholas creates a vivid, memorable story powered as much by strong characters as by the forces that influenced the world’s directions. Her descriptions are memorable and hard-hitting, embracing not just Simon’s perspective, but the men and women who circle around him in various ways. Whether she writes of love, death, or travesty, Ciholas creates a memorable saga that rests firmly on the hearts and minds of a diverse group of people moved by the changing social and political influences. The beacon served up in The Lighthouse is highly recommended reading for any historical fiction library seeking powerful, memorable explorations of friends, enemies, and the forces that twist the two together.”
“The author painstakingly documents the perilous situation of Jews under Roman governorship—not quite excluded from commercial or civic life but not entirely accepted either and often subjected to withering persecution. In addition, the romance that develops between Simon and Aurelia, the daughter of a prominent senator and the sister of his best friend, Valerius, is depicted with immense sensitivity and poignancy…. Ciholas’ portrayals of the time and its tumults and Simon’s agonizing plight are captivating.”
"The Lighthouse is packed with so much true history intermixed with a wonderful storyline that will thrill any reader. I love a wonderfully written page-turner that the reader does not want to put down, and this book definitely qualifies as such. I'm sure that part two will be just as interesting and well-written and I am anxiously awaiting it."
"A beacon in the dark, The Lighthouse takes readers on a heartbreaking journey to first-century Egypt. ...I really grew to love Simon as a character. Ciholas's decision to make him so complex—kind, yet vengeful—always kept me engaged."
“The Lighthouse is a fast, smart, and engaging historical novel that entertains hugely and invites readers to look forward to the next exciting adventure in the trilogy, a tale of one man’s quest for justice for those he loves.”
“The novel reveals an astonishing knowledge of the 1st century, including details of Jewish and Hippocratic medicine, the political intrigues and personalities of the Roman Senate and succession, a new vision of what Matthew Arnold called the Hellenic and Hebraic worldviews, the philosophical/moral issues of the time such as mind-body and means-ends relationships still with us today, and vivid details of the geography and everyday life in both the Jewish and Roman worlds in Cyrene, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Rome. … This is an amazing book.”
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