Alexander's Lighthouse

by Don Westenhaver

Overview

In 92 AD, the imperial city of Rome rules Western civilization, but the city of Alexandria Egypt is the unchallenged pinnacle of Western intellectual achievement. Its prestigious Museum and Library are magnets that draw the world’s most important philosophers, mathematicians, astronomers, physicians and geographers. Alexandria also draws a young man named Marco from Corinth, who joins a small team of brilliant engineers working on secret projects. Titus, the Roman Prefect of Egypt, knew Marco’s father so he sponsors the young man, who then promptly falls in love with Titus’ daughter Paula.

Populated by native Egyptians, colonized by Greeks, settled by Jewish immigrants, and ruled by the Romans, the huge city of Alexandria is a cultural melting pot that frequently boils over. At least once a month, highly organized insurgents emerge to harass the Roman Army occupation forces and then quickly disappear back into the alleys and apartments.

Titus orders Marco’s team to find a new weapon to help defeat the rebels. They create a shockingly powerful device, but before they can deliver it to Titus, the rebels obtain it and begin murdering the engineers to keep the device secret from the Romans.

A mysterious woman named Nebit, young, beautiful, and wealthy, befriends Marco, but he tries to stay faithful to Paula. He also questions her true intentions because of her past history and her belief that she is the reincarnation of Egypt’s last Pharaoh, Queen Cleopatra. Suddenly cut off from Paula and from Roman protection, Marco goes into hiding at Nebit’s estate, not knowing she is the widow of the former head of the rebel forces.

The rebels, who have spies even in the Roman administration, kidnap Paula and commence full-scale production of the new weapons, planning to overthrow the Romans on the very day that Emperor Domitian comes to visit.

Marco, desperate to save Paula and prevent the rebels from using the new weapons, finally gains access to Titus. Together they discover the rebels’ hiding place, but it’s too late. They now know the power of the weapons, but not how and when the rebels will use them.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940044942899
Publisher:	Don Westenhaver
Publication date:	09/03/2012
Sold by:	Smashwords
Format:	eBook
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Don Westenhaver planned to become a Catholic priest, but left the seminary and joined the Marine Corps. The Marines trained him to be a Vietnamese interpreter, but then assigned him to be a platoon radioman near the DMZ. Returning home in one piece, he used the GI Bill to buy a home and finish college. As a finance executive in the oil industry, Don traveled frequently to Asia, Europe, Latin America and Africa. His military and oil business experiences inspired him to write his first novel, an international thriller titled The Whiplash Hypothesis.

Moving from the oil business to the car business, Don became a finance director for a Japanese auto company, gaining more inside knowledge of international business. During the 1990s, he became fascinated by the Asian Tigers, a group of former Third World countries such as Korea that were emerging into First World status. Inhabitants of very poor nations were suddenly enjoying huge improvements in their standard of living. He speculated that a relatively small amount of money could propel Vietnam into the same growth, because the culture prizes education and hard work. It only required an intelligent plan encouraged by a Communist minister who was secretly a capitalist. The result of this was Don’s second international thriller, The Red Turtle Project.

During a vacation in Italy Don toured the ruins of Pompeii, which display in such vivid detail the lives of ordinary people 2,000 years ago, and how the Romans were so similar to us and so technologically advanced. For the next four years, he studied ancient Rome and created characters and a plot that begins with the Great Fire of Rome. Emperor Nero, usually portrayed as a psychotic monster, actually began his reign as an enlightened teenager guided by moral principles. The plot of Nero’s Concert illustrates Nero’s descent into madness as told by his best friend. The backdrop is the Fire, the search for who caused it, and the collision of the new Christian religion with Roman culture.

Don has been married to his wife Ellie for over 37 years and they live in Southern California. They have two grown daughters and two grandchildren. Don and Ellie are recently retired, and plan to continue traveling, assisting four different charities, golfing, and of course playing with the grandkids. He is working on a fourth novel and is a member of the Southern California Writers Association and the Military Writers Society of America.