A brilliant sequel to "Ben-Hur" — a colourful, compelling tale of love, ambition, and faith, set in ancient Rome.
In the original novel of "Ben-Hur," Messala is seriously injured in a chariot race with his boyhood friend, Ben-Hur — who had been imprisoned, based in part on Messala's mistaken accusation that he had tried to assassinate the Roman procuator of Judaea.
Now, in this sequel by Lois Scouten — complete with another chariot race in a harrowing incident of road rage — we follow Messala, witnessing the collapse of his once-passionate romance with Iras the Egyptian, his subsequent journey to health, his fluctuating fortunes in Roman society, and his attraction to various Roman beauties before he finds marital contentment in a new love.
And we experience the tension Messala feels between loyalty his own Roman heritage and his growing interest in the new religion of Christianity.
Lois Scouten is a graduate of Queen's University, Kingston, Canada. Her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees, earned at that university, focused on English, Latin, and classical literature. She has taught English and Latin to high school students and English as a second language to adult immigrants. Scouten, who lives in Toronto, Canada, is currently studying Tacitus and Suetonius, as well as Josephus' account of the career of Herod Agrippa.