Crossroads of Empire by Michael J. Cooper

The story of Evan Sinclair that began in Wages of Empire continues in Crossroads of Empire.

Having survived German artillery, poison gas & friendly fire, Evan barely survives his hospital ship’s sinking by a German U-boat. Left with amnesia, he no longer remembers who he is.

Crossroads of
Empire

Book 2

by Michael J.
Cooper

Genre: YA
Historical WWI Fiction

Winner of the 2024 CIBA Hemingway First Place Prize for 20th Century Wartime
Historical Fiction

 

2024 SF Writers Conference Writing Contest Finalist-Adult Fiction

“. . . both a gripping page turner and a series of carefully observed character
studies. Beautifully written in a voice and in details that capture the era, Crossroads of Empire is a must-read for readers of all ages” -Chanticleer Book Reviews

The story of Evan Sinclair that began in Wages of Empire continues in Crossroads
of Empire
. Having survived German artillery, poison gas, and friendly fire in helping to turn the tide of the war in its first months, Evan barely survives his hospital ship’s sinking by a German U-boat. Left with amnesia, he no longer remembers who he is.

 Likewise, Evan doesn’t recall that, despite the European war, the true source of conflict is in Ottoman Palestine, since it’s from Jerusalem’s Temple Mount that Kaiser Wilhelm II dreams to rule as Holy Roman Emperor over Arabian oil reserves and the Suez Canal.

 The Middle East Front soon explodes with pitched battles at Suez and Gallipoli as Evan’s story is interwoven with those of historical figures Gertrude Bell, T. E. Lawrence, Winston Churchill, Faisal bin Hussein, and Chaim Weizmann.

 During his quest to recover his memory Evan will discover far more: love for his father, grief
for his late mother, and hidden secrets of his bloodline-an unbroken lineage that stretches back to the Crusades and will determine his future role in the Great War.

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Wages of
Empire

Book 1

Grand prize winner – 2022 CIBA Dante Rossetti Award for YA fiction
First place honors – 2022 CIBA Hemingway Award for wartime fiction
#1 Amazon Best Seller—Jan 2024—Historical World War I Fiction

In the summer of 1914, sixteen-year-old Evan Sinclair leaves home to join the Great War for
Civilization. Little does he know that, despite the war raging in Europe, the true source of conflict will emerge in Ottoman Palestine, since it’s from Jerusalem where the German Kaiser dreams to rule as Holy Roman Emperor.

Filled with such historical figures as Gertrude Bell, T.E. Lawrence, Winston Churchill, Faisal
bin Hussein and Chaim Weizmann, Wages of Empire follows Evan through the killing fields of the Western Front where he will help turn the tide of a war that is just beginning, and become part of a story that never ends.

“Masterful storytelling will keep you furiously turning the pages of this compelling
(historical WWI) novel. A winner!”–Andrew Kaplan, New York Times Best-Selling Author of Blue Madagascar and the Homeland Novels

 “The characters, historical and fictional, come to life on the page as the storyline drives relentlessly forward. Bravo!”–Matt Coyle, bestselling author of the Rick Cahill novels

 “A beautifully written tale…exhibits seamless research in illuminating unforgettable
historical and fictional characters…a tour de force!” –Professor Ronit Meroz, Dept of Jewish Philosophy and Talmud, Tel-Aviv University, Israel

 “This superb historical novel is a must read…directly relates to issues we face today.”
–Rizek Abusharr – Emeritus Director General of Jerusalem International YMCA

 “Cooper has made this period of history come alive. It is a treat to read.” –Rabbi David
Zisenwine, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus of Education, Tel Aviv University

 “A Young Indiana Jones–style adventure.” –KIRKUS reviews

 “Story is gripping and the characters that he describes come alive through his skillful
writing. I couldn’t put it down!” –Rabbi Gordon Freeman, Ph.D., Rabbi Emeritus, B’nai Shalom, Walnut Creek, CA

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Chapter 1

June 11, 1914

 

Cedar City, Utah

 

Evan was in no hurry to get home.

Finding refuge in a pick-up game of baseball after the last day of senior year, he stood in center field amid patches of parched grass and tufts of saltbush, shirtless in the summer heat of the high desert. The dry ground shimmered beneath the late-afternoon sun, and from somewhere a chorus of cicadas whined, the sound sustained and rising. 

He squinted at the distant contest between pitcher and batter, framed by the rickety wooden backstop and the Pine Valley Mountains. His team was ahead by two runs with two outs in what both teams had agreed would be the last inning.

“C’mon! Get this guy out,” Evan said in conversation with himself since no other player was within a hundred feet of him. 

Nearly two years had passed since his mother’s death, and bereft of her touch, home had become little better than a boarding school with a strict live-in tutor. In addition to the regular high school curriculum, Evan matriculated under the unbending tutelage of his father in ancient Greek and Classical Latin.  

He was in no hurry to get home.

Pushing sun-streaked hair out of his eyes, he relished the simplicity of baseball and the camaraderie of his friends—welcome relief from the oppressive loneliness and static mental labors he faced at home. And once the game ended, he wouldn’t be going home, but to the dry gulley a quarter mile from the house—there to enjoy the quiet solitude of practicing with his sling. 

And tomorrow, graduation…

As a prank, he had formally requested that his diploma be issued under the name “Pancho Villa.” His father hadn’t been amused. Nor had he been pleased to discover blank college application forms crammed into a box in the hall closet. Despite Evan’s best efforts to the contrary, he had done well enough to gain admission to college. But there was the small matter of the application. 

“Let’s finish this!” Evan pounded a fist into his worn leather glove and bent at the waist, resting his hands on his knees. He imagined he was in the vast green outfield of the Polo Grounds in upper Manhattan, where he had fallen in love with baseball and with the New York Giants on a hot summer day in 1912, soon after he and his parents had arrived in New York City by steamship, and before leaving by train for Utah. His mother, in the early months of pregnancy, had elected to stay close to the electric fan in their hotel room.  

On entering the Polo Grounds, Evan’s breath caught—the sweet smell of the freshly mowed grass and the vast sweep of green stretching into the recessed shadows of center field. The majestic glory of the green cathedral was further enhanced by the great pitcher, Christy Mathewson, winning the first game of a double-header against the Boston Braves.

His father, not wanting to leave his mother alone all day, insisted they forego the second game of the double-header, but Evan’s baptismal experience was complete—reborn a new convert to the religion of baseball.  

Michael J Cooper writes historical mysteries set in the Holy Land at major turning points of
history—all the while subtly promoting the notions of coexistence and peace. His books have won multiple awards and include; Foxes in the Vineyard (winner of the 2011 Indie Publishing Contest Grand Prize), set in 1948 Jerusalem, The Rabbi’s Knight (finalist for the CIBA 2014 Chaucer Award for historical fiction) set at the twilight of the Crusades in 1290, and his current novel, Wages of Empire set at the start of WWI in 1914 and winner of the CIBA 2022 Grand Prize for young adult fiction as well as the Hemingway first prize for wartime
historical fiction. A sequel of Wages of Empire, Crossroads of Empire, will be published in the fall of 2024, and the unpublished manuscript has already won first prize honors in the 2023 CIBA Hemingway wartime historical fiction category.

 A native of Berkeley, California, Cooper absconded to Israel after high school and spent the next eleven years studying and working there. He lived in Jerusalem during the last year the city was divided between Israel and Jordan, studied at Hebrew University, and graduated from Tel Aviv University Medical School. He returned to the US to specialize in pediatric cardiology, and after 40 years of practice, he continues to return to the Middle East for biannual volunteer missions serving Palestinian children who lack access to care. Otherwise, he lives in Northern California with his wife and a spoiled-rotten cat. Three adult children occasionally drop by.

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