Before the Court of Heaven - by Jack Mayer (Paperback)
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<p/><br></br><p><b> About the Book </b></p></br></br>Based on the true story of Ernst Techow, the 1922 fascist assassin of the highest-ranking Jew in Weimar Germany, Walther Rathenau. Rathenau's mother's unfathomable offer of forgiveness becomes the fulcrum of his redemption. A vivid history of Germany from the beginning of the 20th Century to World War II and a tender love story.<p/><br></br><p><b> Book Synopsis </b></p></br></br><p>Historical Fiction based on a true story.</p> <p>Germany, after World War I. Ernst Werner Techow, son of a magistrate, a child of privilege, joins the violent right-wing response to Germany's defeat. As a member of the para-military Free Corps and the murderous Organization C, he is recruited into a clandestine assassination network trying to bring down Germany's fledgling Weimar democracy. These are the seeds of the Third Reich. Ernst participates in the murder of Foreign Minister Walther Rathenau, the highest-ranking Jew in the Weimar Republic.</p> <p>While on trial for his life, Ernst receives an unfathomable offer of forgiveness that jolts his surety in the fascist cause and sets him on a complex and harrowing journey of redemption. Throughout, he pursues his childhood sweetheart, Lisa. They are star-crossed lovers, their passion inextinguishable, buffeted by the rising storm of Nazi ascendance.</p> <p><strong>Before the Court of Heaven</strong>, though fiction, is populated by historical figures and accurately depicts events as they unfolded in Germany and beyond. Animated as historical fiction, <strong>Before the Court of Heaven </strong>is a cautionary tale for our time and an immunization against recurrence.</p><p/><br></br><p><b> Review Quotes </b></p></br></br><br>"This is a brilliantly-written tale of internal struggle and redemption in a time of great social and political upheaval. The author does a chillingly good job of illustrating just how seductive the nationalist message was in a beaten and humiliated Germany, how it used and twisted values like patriotism, loyalty and honor to win over people who otherwise might have lived out their lives as ordinary, decent, humane people. Before the Court of Heaven is a powerful, intensely vivid look at Europe between the World Wars, and one man's attempt to make sense of his life, his deeds, and their meaning, to himself and to others." - IndieReader 5-star Review "Jack Mayer has written a strong, affecting novel that offers an arresting portrait of a deeply troubled time. His evocations of Ernst Werner Techow and other historical figures are beautifully and thoughtfully rendered. He has a remarkable grasp of period details, and he used these details to create an atmosphere of dense particularity and clarity. This is a story of immense human failure and touching redemption, and it stands among the finer recent portrayals in fiction of the most troubling era of modern history. Mayer's novel should have a widely sympathetic readership. I recommend Before the Court of Heaven whole-heartedly." - Jay Parini "Haunting echoes of Boris Pasternak's Doctor Zhivago and Irwin Shaw's The Young Lions waft through this excellent novel of the turbulent times encompassing Europe and the far reaches of the globe between World Wars I and II. Similar to those groundbreaking tales, Mayer's story is most concerned with lives rent asunder by historically catastrophic events... By keeping his focus on a small set of human beings caught up in the upheaval of entire populations, he is able to weave a narrative that is as poignant as it is riveting. The author does a superb job of pulling readers into Ernst's hopes and fears as he grapples with familial obligations, divided loyalties, and trials by fire and by courts both earthly and heavenly... Mayer's sweeping saga is simultaneously a compelling chronicle of history, a gripping tale of high adventure, and an enthralling love story in the classic tradition." - Recommended by the US Review of Books "A fully engaging read from beginning to end, Before the Court of Heaven is a deftly crafted novel that showcases author Jack Mayer's truly impressive storytelling talents as a novelist. A terrifically entertaining read that is enhanced with close attention to historical detail, Before the Court of Heaven is very highly recommended." - Midwest Book Review Reviewer's Bookwatch, February 2016 "...a compelling work ... This is an excellent work of historical fiction, one that nevertheless provides the reader with an important and accurate lens into the past." - Francis Nicosia, Raul Hilberg Distinguished Professor of Holocaust Studies, University of Vermont "Period details come to life . . . Techow is the fascinating central figure whose story is deftly embellished. Before the Court of Heaven displays a remarkable talent for imagining the unknowable parts of Techow's psyche. It's a distinctive story poised between the drama of a Damascene conversion and a quieter, steadier about-face. Violence and atonement meld with affecting results." - 5-Star Clarion Review "Before the Court of Heaven is enthralling historical fiction based on the true story and subsequent legends of Ernst Techow ... The novel is gripping from the very first line. This is an immersive, exciting, and often heart-breaking story." - BlueInk Review (Starred Review)<br>
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