Last Ember

By: Daniel Levin

Narrated by: Jeff Woodman

A search for a priceless artifact stolen from the Second Temple in Jerusalem becomes a race against time, terrorism, politics, and the past.

Jonathan Marcus is a promising young archeologist studying at the American Academy in Rome when a terrible accident results in a fellow student's death and Jonathan's expulsion. He abandons archeology for the law, becoming a skillful advocate for unscrupulous antiquities dealers.

When Jonathan's firm sends him to Rome to discredit the testimony of a prominent U.N. antiquities official, a chance reunion leads to a hunt for the legendary Tabernacle Menorah: solid gold, eight feet high, stolen 2,000 years ago and never recovered. As Jonathan and his friend scour Rome's ancient sites for hints to its whereabouts, they quickly realize they are not alone and the precious menorah is a key to controlling history itself.

©2009 Daniel Levin (P)2009 Highbridge

Critic reviews

"The Last Ember, written with pathos and conviction, represents a much needed literary protest against modern and ancient historical revisionism." (Elie Wiesel)
"Levin's religious and archaeological thriller has all the elements needed to appeal to Da Vinci Code fans: long-buried secrets, hidden puzzles based on ancient religious texts, and a race around the Mediterranean." (Booklist)

What happened to the ancient Manora?

Very complicated. One should listen to this book by his/her self without interference to keep up with ALL the stories, etc.

Entertaining

If you like Dan Brown, you will like this book. Very much in the same spirit. I enjoyed listening to this.

A little too much history

I found the underlying historical mystery in this book interesting, and thought the writing and characters were competent though not outstanding in any way. But apparently you need to earn a masters degree in roman and early christian history to thoroughly understand what's going on, based on how often the plot dragged while characters discussed some minute historical detail. Still, I would give this author another try.

Favourite

This is my favourite novel in this genre. The tour through modern day and Ancient Rome is a thrill!

Outstanding first book by Levin

One of the best books that I have read or have listened to. Fast paced, unpredictable, entertaining, and educational. I love novels with a history background, and this subject matter is outstanding. While reading/listening to this book, I googled many of the historical references, and found the story background to be true, and very fascinating. Levin has written a novel with the same quality as Steve Berry, James Rollins, and Clive Cussler. One thing I would like to see Levin do in future books is to have a chapter at the end of the book to explain what is true, and what is factious, like Brown, Berry and Rollins. It kind of puts a finishing touch to their novels. All in all, a great book.