Feb 13 2024 40 mins
My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is Karin Ciholas, author of the book, The Lighthouse. Karin Ciholas was born in Virginia and grew up in Switzerland where she studied classical languages. The study of Latin and Greek led to her fascination with the ancient world and its history. She earned advanced degrees in languages and comparative literature at UNC, Chapel Hill and enjoyed teaching modern languages and courses on the ancient world. She has won twelve awards for her short stories and plays. She lives in Sarasota with her husband, author and theologian Paul Ciholas.
In my book review, I stated that ancient history is not really my thing. However, once I started reading, I couldn't stop thinking about the characters - even when I was supposed to be doing other things. In fact, I read far too late into the night on a couple of occasions so I could finish. (And the best part is that Karin is writing a trilogy, so I'm not really done!)
The Lighthouse is set during the days of Christ and seen from the point of view of Simon, an educated Jewish healer, and his best friend from boyhood who eventually becomes a Roman solider. When a thug kills a member of Simon's family and then abducts his sister, he is chosen to avenge them. But how can he both murder Meidias and keep his Hippocratic oath?
Karin did a great job describing Simon's struggle to be everything he was meant to be as well as everything he has been asked to be. Despite a setting and time far removed from my own, I think all readers will understand that challenge.
As a #researchjunkie, I stand in awe of Karin’s tremendous research, and how she was able to bring me into Simon's world. She shows readers what it was like to be Jewish during Roman rule, whether focusing on family and religious traditions or the fear of those in power. This is an excellent read, and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves great character development, historical fiction, and escaping into a story.
You can follow Author Karin Ciholas:
Website: https://thecyreniantrilogy.com/ and https://karinciholas.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086903948313
Teri M Brown, Author and Podcast Host: https://www.terimbrown.com
FB: @TeriMBrownAuthor
IG: @terimbrown_author
X: @terimbrown1
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