Petra

Petra, the desert city cut into the rock of present-day Jordan, is at its peak when this historical novel begins. Cassia, a young widow, arrives there with her son Alexander, hoping for shelter from the relatives of her late husband, a family that had cut ties with him.

Soon Cassia learns that her husband was the rightful heir to the throne. Queen Hagiru, who serves as priestess of the sun god Dushrat, wants her own child to rule and so schemes to kill Alexander. To carry out her aims, the queen calls on demonic powers.

Cassia refuses to stand by. She fights for her son in a spiritual struggle and finds an ally in Julian, a Roman who belongs to a community of believers in the Jewish Messiah. Together they put their trust in a work of God that outweighs any wicked ruler or city hewn from stone.

Set in the early second century AD, the book is built around the Christian faith, with ties to Scripture and early church history. It follows the conflict between Cassia and Hagiru as a reflection of a larger struggle between good and evil.