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Stateless
In this next thrilling story from Alan Gold and Mike Jones, we meet Shalman, a freedom-fighter turned peacenik and archaeologist, and his young beautiful wife, Judit, a refugee from the horrors of Stalin’s USSR.
As the Second World War draws to a close, and the world begins to learn the truth about Hitler’s genocide, the foundation of the State of Israel as a permanent home for what’s left of the Jewish people becomes increasingly urgent. In Palestine, Arab and Jewish forces fight each other and the British for supremacy and the right to own the land, causing a nightmare environment of hatred and suspicion.
But a deeply buried global conspiracy, which has its origin in Stalin’s Russia, seeks to undermine Israel’s future as an independent nation. A plot to fashion the fledgling nation as a puppet of the Soviet Union rests upon a handful of committed Jewish Communists, led secretly by Judit. But is she a heartless assassin, a disciple of the evils of Beria and the Kremlin, or a committed fusion of Zionist and Communist?
And in the darkest recesses of ancient history, we meet Shalman’s ancestors, themselves descendants of the builders of Solomon’s Temple. As the family escapes the nightmare of the Roman occupation of Jerusalem, it witnesses the glories of the Islamic renaissance in Baghdad and the rampages of the Crusaders through the region.
Another exciting installment in this story of the births of nations and of the strength of their people.
As the Second World War draws to a close, and the world begins to learn the truth about Hitler’s genocide, the foundation of the State of Israel as a permanent home for what’s left of the Jewish people becomes increasingly urgent. In Palestine, Arab and Jewish forces fight each other and the British for supremacy and the right to own the land, causing a nightmare environment of hatred and suspicion.
But a deeply buried global conspiracy, which has its origin in Stalin’s Russia, seeks to undermine Israel’s future as an independent nation. A plot to fashion the fledgling nation as a puppet of the Soviet Union rests upon a handful of committed Jewish Communists, led secretly by Judit. But is she a heartless assassin, a disciple of the evils of Beria and the Kremlin, or a committed fusion of Zionist and Communist?
And in the darkest recesses of ancient history, we meet Shalman’s ancestors, themselves descendants of the builders of Solomon’s Temple. As the family escapes the nightmare of the Roman occupation of Jerusalem, it witnesses the glories of the Islamic renaissance in Baghdad and the rampages of the Crusaders through the region.
Another exciting installment in this story of the births of nations and of the strength of their people.
488 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
3 people are currently reading
16 people want to read
About the author
Alan Gold
53 books46 followersAlan Gold began his career as a journalist, working in the UK, Europe, and Israel. In 1970, he emigrated to Australia with his wife, Eva, and now lives in St. Ives, Sydney, where he divides his time between writing novels and running his award-winning marketing consultancy.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 5, 2014
‘It’s important he knows his birthright.’
‘Stateless’ is the second book in ‘The Heritage Trilogy’, which covers three thousand years of the history of the Israelite people. Each of the three novels (two have been published so far) covers one thousand years of this history, and this novel covers the period from 161 CE (about 25 years after the Jews were expelled from Jerusalem by the Romans) - to 1099 (CE) (the First Crusade).
The historical story is woven around a more contemporary story of Jewish people between 1931 and 1949. While this is a historical novel about the Israelite people, with Jerusalem as the centre, the story follows the lives of two families across the centuries. We meet the descendants of these two families in the twentieth century, before the horrific events of World War II. As World War draws to a close and the world learns about Hitler’s genocide, a permanent home for the remaining Jewish people becomes both increasingly important, and urgent. In Palestine, the Arab and Jewish forces fight each other and the British for hegemony. In this festering environment, we meet Shalman, a freedom fighter and archaeologist and his wife Judit, a refugee from the USSR.
‘If we’re to keep this land, we have to fight for it; we have to take it..’
But Israel’s future as an independent nation is not secure. A conspiracy, originating in Stalin’s USSR, aims to make Israel a Soviet puppet. This conspiracy is in the hands of a small, committed group of Jewish Communists, one of whom is Judit.
‘And as Israel’s history was written, Judit would become one of Israel’s fallen heroines, remembered for the good deeds she had done to secure the nation. Known only to a few number of Israelis for the hateful, traitorous, murderous things she’d committed as an agent of the Kremlin.’
Now I’ve read the first two novels in this trilogy, I’ll have to wait (im)patiently until late 2015 for the final instalment. It took me a little while to become used to the shifts between characters and time periods, but once I did I enjoyed following both the individual characters and the history. I need that third novel in order to work out all of the connections. Alan Gold and Mike Jones have brought the history to life, and have peopled it with interesting and believable characters.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Simon and Schuster (Australia) for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
‘Stateless’ is the second book in ‘The Heritage Trilogy’, which covers three thousand years of the history of the Israelite people. Each of the three novels (two have been published so far) covers one thousand years of this history, and this novel covers the period from 161 CE (about 25 years after the Jews were expelled from Jerusalem by the Romans) - to 1099 (CE) (the First Crusade).
The historical story is woven around a more contemporary story of Jewish people between 1931 and 1949. While this is a historical novel about the Israelite people, with Jerusalem as the centre, the story follows the lives of two families across the centuries. We meet the descendants of these two families in the twentieth century, before the horrific events of World War II. As World War draws to a close and the world learns about Hitler’s genocide, a permanent home for the remaining Jewish people becomes both increasingly important, and urgent. In Palestine, the Arab and Jewish forces fight each other and the British for hegemony. In this festering environment, we meet Shalman, a freedom fighter and archaeologist and his wife Judit, a refugee from the USSR.
‘If we’re to keep this land, we have to fight for it; we have to take it..’
But Israel’s future as an independent nation is not secure. A conspiracy, originating in Stalin’s USSR, aims to make Israel a Soviet puppet. This conspiracy is in the hands of a small, committed group of Jewish Communists, one of whom is Judit.
‘And as Israel’s history was written, Judit would become one of Israel’s fallen heroines, remembered for the good deeds she had done to secure the nation. Known only to a few number of Israelis for the hateful, traitorous, murderous things she’d committed as an agent of the Kremlin.’
Now I’ve read the first two novels in this trilogy, I’ll have to wait (im)patiently until late 2015 for the final instalment. It took me a little while to become used to the shifts between characters and time periods, but once I did I enjoyed following both the individual characters and the history. I need that third novel in order to work out all of the connections. Alan Gold and Mike Jones have brought the history to life, and have peopled it with interesting and believable characters.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Simon and Schuster (Australia) for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
June 23, 2017
Initially the switches back and forth in time were hard to keep track of, but as you get to know the characters it comes together.
February 6, 2024
I couldn’t put it down. Wow!
November 29, 2014
Alan Gold and Mike Jones have crafted an interesting tale about the fight for the birth of Israel and the ancient history that compelled the Jews to try to return to their heritage.
Shalman Etzion was brought up in a Jewish Kibbutz in Palestine. Judita Ludmilla was raised as a Jew in Moscow under the brutal Stalin regime and came to Israel as a refugee. Both of them met as freedom fighters for the new State of Israel against the occupying British Army and become life partners despite their different backgrounds.
It is the end of WWII and refugees from the Holocaust and from Eastern Europe are frantically trying to find sanctuary in Israel. The fight for a permanent home for the Jews in the State of Israel is a bitter one where Arab and Jewish forces fight the British in an atmosphere of hatred and suspicion. Judit becomes one of the fiercest and most ruthless fighters - her secret is that she has been trained in Russia under Beria's guidance to push for dominance that will give Russia a foothold in the Middle East and a warm water port.
As the troubles escalate Shalman gets a better understanding of the plight of the Arabs and with an Arab friend starts to explore the fascinating archeology and history of the region and withdraw from the fight for independence. Judit becomes increasingly committed to her cause and more distant from Shalman and their family.
This is a very interesting factional history of the struggle for the foundation of modern Israel. I was distracted by an interwoven theme about the ancient history of the Jews in Israel and the Middle East, with the Roman occupation of Jerusalem, the Islamic influence in Baghdad and the brutal incursion of the Crusaders in the region. While this may be fascinating history it spoilt the enjoyment of the book for me. My guess it that one of the authors wrote the more contemporary stuff and the other the historical stuff. This time their work didn't fit as seamlessly as it did in Bloodline.
The end of the book when Britain withdraws sets up a situation in the region that has still not been resolved.
Without the distraction of the historical stuff I would have given this book a solid 4 stars but had to downgrade it to 3stars because of the conflict in my mind between the two major themes of the book.
Shalman Etzion was brought up in a Jewish Kibbutz in Palestine. Judita Ludmilla was raised as a Jew in Moscow under the brutal Stalin regime and came to Israel as a refugee. Both of them met as freedom fighters for the new State of Israel against the occupying British Army and become life partners despite their different backgrounds.
It is the end of WWII and refugees from the Holocaust and from Eastern Europe are frantically trying to find sanctuary in Israel. The fight for a permanent home for the Jews in the State of Israel is a bitter one where Arab and Jewish forces fight the British in an atmosphere of hatred and suspicion. Judit becomes one of the fiercest and most ruthless fighters - her secret is that she has been trained in Russia under Beria's guidance to push for dominance that will give Russia a foothold in the Middle East and a warm water port.
As the troubles escalate Shalman gets a better understanding of the plight of the Arabs and with an Arab friend starts to explore the fascinating archeology and history of the region and withdraw from the fight for independence. Judit becomes increasingly committed to her cause and more distant from Shalman and their family.
This is a very interesting factional history of the struggle for the foundation of modern Israel. I was distracted by an interwoven theme about the ancient history of the Jews in Israel and the Middle East, with the Roman occupation of Jerusalem, the Islamic influence in Baghdad and the brutal incursion of the Crusaders in the region. While this may be fascinating history it spoilt the enjoyment of the book for me. My guess it that one of the authors wrote the more contemporary stuff and the other the historical stuff. This time their work didn't fit as seamlessly as it did in Bloodline.
The end of the book when Britain withdraws sets up a situation in the region that has still not been resolved.
Without the distraction of the historical stuff I would have given this book a solid 4 stars but had to downgrade it to 3stars because of the conflict in my mind between the two major themes of the book.
January 20, 2016
(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)
As the Second World War draws to a close, and the world begins to learn the truth about Hitler’s genocide, the foundation of the State of Israel as a permanent home for what’s left of the Jewish people becomes increasingly urgent. In Palestine, Arab and Jewish forces fight each other and the British for supremacy and the right to own the land, causing a nightmare environment of hatred and suspicion.
But a deeply buried global conspiracy, which has its origin in Stalin’s Russia, seeks to undermine Israel’s future as an independent nation. A plot to fashion the fledgling nation as a puppet of the Soviet Union rests upon a handful of committed Jewish Communists, led secretly by Judit. But is she a heartless assassin, a disciple of the evils of Beria and the Kremlin, or a committed fusion of Zionist and Communist?
And in the darkest recesses of ancient history, we meet Shalman’s ancestors, themselves descendants of the builders of Solomon’s Temple. As the family escapes the nightmare of the Roman occupation of Jerusalem, it witnesses the glories of the Islamic renaissance in Baghdad and the rampages of the Crusaders through the region.
I have been a long time reader of Alan Gold - right back to the days of The Jericho Files and The Gift Of Evil but, a few years back, I started to get a little bored with them. They weren't necessarily bad, just a little repetitive and wasn't the sort of story I was looking for anymore. Fast forward a few years and the arrival of the first book in the 'Heritage Trilogy.' "It was okay, first book in a series - can only get better" kind of thoughts...
...and then I found this as an ARC...and, I am afraid to say it, it hasn't gotten any better. And that disappoints me, as I know from his earlier novels that he is a very good writer. But that same repetition from the earlier books started to read its head and I found that it was quite possibly over-long (near 500 pages). I felt like I had to drag myself through this book to finish it...and I don't think that happens too often for me.
Paul
ARH
As the Second World War draws to a close, and the world begins to learn the truth about Hitler’s genocide, the foundation of the State of Israel as a permanent home for what’s left of the Jewish people becomes increasingly urgent. In Palestine, Arab and Jewish forces fight each other and the British for supremacy and the right to own the land, causing a nightmare environment of hatred and suspicion.
But a deeply buried global conspiracy, which has its origin in Stalin’s Russia, seeks to undermine Israel’s future as an independent nation. A plot to fashion the fledgling nation as a puppet of the Soviet Union rests upon a handful of committed Jewish Communists, led secretly by Judit. But is she a heartless assassin, a disciple of the evils of Beria and the Kremlin, or a committed fusion of Zionist and Communist?
And in the darkest recesses of ancient history, we meet Shalman’s ancestors, themselves descendants of the builders of Solomon’s Temple. As the family escapes the nightmare of the Roman occupation of Jerusalem, it witnesses the glories of the Islamic renaissance in Baghdad and the rampages of the Crusaders through the region.
I have been a long time reader of Alan Gold - right back to the days of The Jericho Files and The Gift Of Evil but, a few years back, I started to get a little bored with them. They weren't necessarily bad, just a little repetitive and wasn't the sort of story I was looking for anymore. Fast forward a few years and the arrival of the first book in the 'Heritage Trilogy.' "It was okay, first book in a series - can only get better" kind of thoughts...
...and then I found this as an ARC...and, I am afraid to say it, it hasn't gotten any better. And that disappoints me, as I know from his earlier novels that he is a very good writer. But that same repetition from the earlier books started to read its head and I found that it was quite possibly over-long (near 500 pages). I felt like I had to drag myself through this book to finish it...and I don't think that happens too often for me.
Paul
ARH
January 24, 2016
A history lesson delivered with emotion and excitement, thank you
June 25, 2016
Historical and cultural themes were fascinating but plot was bland and characters were lifeless.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews