Rating: 
Summary: "Vienna Prelude"
Review: "Vienna Prelude" along with all of the "Zion Covenant" and the "Zion Chronicles" are the best books I have ever read. They helped me understand the Jewish people and their wars for freedom more than any history book ever could. A Must Read!
Rating:
Summary: "Vienna Prelude"
Review: "Vienna Prelude" along with all of the "Zion Covenant" and the "Zion Chronicles" are the best books I have ever read. They helped me understand the Jewish people and their wars for freedom more than any history book ever could. A Must Read!
Rating:
Summary: You'll be amazed at what you learn!
Review: Bodie Thoene has brought history to life in this book. You will be amazed and often shocked at what you will learn about WWII. We have all heard of the horrors of that war, but until you've read this series, you really don't know the whole story. Hitler was not the only one who wronged the Jews, you'll be dismayed when you learn who else was guilty of mistreating fellow human beings. You will also be uplifted as read of those who risked their lives to save the lives of others. The book is full of suspense and excitement.
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Summary: You get your wish!
Review: For all of you who have been asking for more...we have been listening! Characters from Zion Covenant and Zion Chronicles will meet 'This Year in Jerusalem!' The war against Hitler and his ideals has ended for everyone except the remnant of Jewish people. It is May 14, l948. The prophetic hour of proclaimed statehood for Israel has finally arrived. After two thousand years the Biblical promises have come true. But it will take courage, faith and a series of miracles for Israel to survive. Jewish Jerusalem is under siege. Tens of thousands of well equipped soldiers from five Arab nations have declared a holy war and threaten to drive the Jews into the sea. So...You think we would leave the survival of the infant nation of Israel hanging by a thread? What about Lori and Jacob? Moshe and Rachel...It had to be written! Ask for Jerusalem Vigil, book one in The Zion Legacy Series. Stay tuned-more later!
Rating:
Summary: Heartbreakingly Wonderful!
Review: Have you ever read a book that was so excellent you couldn't stand it because you become the characters and every hurt they feel and every joy they feel becomes your own? That's how this book is.The author develops the characters so well that you can emerge yourself into them and feel their emotions. I felt Elisa's pain when her father was arrested, her hurt over Thomas's betrayal, her joy during that one perefect day she had with John, and cried with her when she left him to enlist Thomas to help find her father. I could not put this book down it moved so quickly. I stayed up one night until I finished it, because near the end there is so much suspense I knew I would never sleep not knowing what happened to Elisa and Murphy. Vienna Prelude depicts the horror of the Nazi regime like no history book could ever dream of. Unlike history books, it doesn't sugar coat the horrors behind dates and facts, but shows the emotions, the fears, and the struggles of the people caught up in the horrors of WWII. I saw clearly how the United States and Brittain KNEW what was happening, and, to my frustration and disgust, didn't do squat because it didn't affect them. This was one of those books that I wanted so badly to get to the end of so I could know what happened, but yet when I got there, I was sorry the book was over because, until I could get the next book at least, I couldn't escape fom everyday routine into the life of Elisa Lindheim. I think absolutely everyone should read this book. Five stars isn't enough! A book this excellent deserves at least 6 1/2 out of five! If you buy this book, do yourself a favor and buy the second book at the same time, because you will probably be as upset as I was if you have to wait to continue the story.
Rating:
Summary: Heartbreakingly Wonderful!
Review: Have you ever read a book that was so excellent you couldn't stand it because you become the characters and every hurt they feel and every joy they feel becomes your own? That's how this book is. The author develops the characters so well that you can emerge yourself into them and feel their emotions. I felt Elisa's pain when her father was arrested, her hurt over Thomas's betrayal, her joy during that one perefect day she had with John, and cried with her when she left him to enlist Thomas to help find her father. I could not put this book down it moved so quickly. I stayed up one night until I finished it, because near the end there is so much suspense I knew I would never sleep not knowing what happened to Elisa and Murphy. Vienna Prelude depicts the horror of the Nazi regime like no history book could ever dream of. Unlike history books, it doesn't sugar coat the horrors behind dates and facts, but shows the emotions, the fears, and the struggles of the people caught up in the horrors of WWII. I saw clearly how the United States and Brittain KNEW what was happening, and, to my frustration and disgust, didn't do squat because it didn't affect them. This was one of those books that I wanted so badly to get to the end of so I could know what happened, but yet when I got there, I was sorry the book was over because, until I could get the next book at least, I couldn't escape fom everyday routine into the life of Elisa Lindheim. I think absolutely everyone should read this book. Five stars isn't enough! A book this excellent deserves at least 6 1/2 out of five! If you buy this book, do yourself a favor and buy the second book at the same time, because you will probably be as upset as I was if you have to wait to continue the story.
Rating:
Summary: Worth Reading Again and Again
Review: I am enjoying my second reading of this series. Vienna Prelude is so riveting. Even the evil characters have a depth of description that is stunning. I feel like I know Elisa Lindheim and her friends as well as I do my real neighbors. I find that even re-reading the series is like visiting with friends all over again.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic book, but you gotta overlook the errors
Review: I can't praise Thoene any more than other reviewers already have. Their words are right. This is an incredible book, and an excellent series (well, I've only read the first two books, but I'm craving the rest!). I recommend these books highly.
The only reason I can't give this book 5 stars is because it contains too many errors regarding Europe. I am an American, but majored in European Studies at college, studied a year in Germany, and am currently living in Prague, Czech Republic. I speak German and Czech. I've also traveled extensively throughout Europe. So I know almost all the cities and cultures that Thoene writes about. I get the feeling she has never been to Europe herself. Don't get me wrong, most of her writing is wonderful, plausible, and even accurate in its details. But there are too many little errors.
For example, I find myself cringing at the German words she inserts in the dialogue from time to time. They are often misspelled, used incorrectly, and mistranslated. A German dictionary could solve many of her problems. Even worse, she does not know European geography, but it's nothing a good map wouldn't solve. For example, at one point she has Theo Lindheim flying a plane across the Alps from Berlin to Prague. There are no Alps between Berlin and Prague. And she constantly refers to Prague's Old Town Square as Mala Strana square, unaware that that's a different square on the other side of the river. She has some troubles with the layout of Vienna, too, but not too badly. The second book, Prague Counterpoint, contains the same kinds of errors as the first book. I expect to find them in the rest of the series as well, but that won't stop me from reading them all. It'll just frustrate me, because I know better.
Besides that, there are occasional misspellings in English that irritate sticklers like me.
Read these books anyway. The mistakes are small, and maybe they'll get corrected in future editions of the books. Despite these little errors, readers will learn tons about the bigger picture of pre-WWII Europe and human nature in general. That's more important than the name of the square in Prague anyway, isn't it?
Rating:
Summary: A Great Piece of Work
Review: I couldn't imagine Nazi Germany any other way. Theone's characters and events are so convincing that it seemed I could feel and understand the era. The pure evil is vivid enough to keep you angry while the romance truly soars with some very well written pictures and emotion. It is like she was able to inhabit each character and scene as she wrote. The emotions, events, and relationships during this historical period are experienced here so that you can't help but trust the accuracy of this work. Although a couple of times we are taken out of the story for a short history lesson, I felt that the historical facts were perfectly placed throughout the story. I was amazed by one scene where Theone captures Nazi Field Marshal Hermann Goring's jealously of Theo Lindheim. 'Goring was... the glutton of the Reich. What he saw, his appetite demanded. He had not admired the honor of Theo Lindheim, but he had coveted the respect Lindheim's honor seemed to bring him. The contrast between the two men was an impassable gulf... One thing was certain, someone like Hermann Goring would never fill the shoes of Theo Lindheim...he would try...then he would strip the house bare of everything of beauty and value... (p. 154)' This childish lust for power and the total inadequacy as a person portrayed here translated into a perfect picture of Hitler himself. One problem I did have... the dialog and interaction between characters was a little weak and unnatural at times which was a surprising to me given the outstanding strength of every other element of the book. What a discovery! It makes you wish every book could be written so well. I didn't want it to end because it is going to be a few weeks before I get to start the next one.
Rating:
Summary: A great historical novel that makes one want to continue
Review: I got this book because I was planning a trip to Vienna and wanted a sense of the history. It's a great book and now I must read the rest of the series. It was moving to go to the actual sites mentioned in the book when I got to Vienna. I felt much more than a "tourist." And it was difficult to think that so many beautiful buildings had been so devastated. This book made it real.
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