The Warrior is a historical novel by Wanda Ann Thomas which is set in the times of the Maccabees. It is the first novel of the Herod Chronicles. I was intrigued by the series name; I wondered which Herod it referred to, and as it turns out, it is in reference to Herod the Great before he became known by that name. Herod isn't even a major character in the book. The warrior that the title refers to is actually Nathan of Rumah. He is a former soldier of the Jewish army which fought to place John Hyrcanus II as High Priest in Jerusalem. He is also a friend of Herod, whom he fought along side with to put Hyrcanus II into power. Nathan was a good soldier, so much so that he earned the nickname, "the Angel of Death." He received this name after slaying a significant number of opposing fighters who had swarmed and surrounded Herod during battle. However, Nathan is appalled by the darkness within him that allowed him to fight so viciously, and has retired from soldiering to work on his family's olive groves.
Although Judea has a High Priest and a ruling Sanhedrin, the land is still under Roman rule. Hyrcanus II is just a puppet who answers to Antipater, Herod's father, who serves Rome. Nathan tries to maintain neutrality in his politics; he remains friends with Herod, but is also friends with Jewish rebels who wish to run the Romans out of Judea. Nathan's rebel friends have been known to attack Roman sympathizers, even their own countrymen.
One day he stumbles across a family of a Pharisee, Simeon Onias, whose family had been attacked by the rebel, Judas the Zealot, and his men. They have made off with Lydia, one of Simeon's daughters, and had forced Alexandra, the another daughter of Simeon to cut the face of his son, James, with a sword. Simeon has also been severely beaten. Nathan can't understand what a religious man like Simeon is doing in Galilee, away from Jerusalem where most Pharisees live exclusively. He also can't understand why his friend Judas has attacked one of their own countrymen who obviously hated the rule of Rome as much as the rebels did. Nathan realizes that he must put a stop to the raids that the rebels are doing, even though he loathes to choose sides; it will look as if he is choosing to side with Rome, but in truth, he is appalled that Jewish people are attacking their own. When Alexandra makes an appeal to Nathan to rescue Lydia, he promises her that he will find Lydia and return her to her family. He feels guilty about the attack since he has done nothing to deter the raids from occurring in the past. It also doesn't hurt that he finds Alexandra uncommonly attractive, but tells himself that he has no business seeking a delicate female like her to be his wife.
When Nathan visits Simeon's home in Jerusalem to report his lack of success in finding Lydia, but wanting to gain more details about why the family was in Galilee, he is turned away. He finds out that Alexandra's engagement to a priest has ended because of her brief captivity under Judas, which could threaten the purity of the priestly line. Out of compassion, he tries to ease Alexandra's loneliness by making a suggestion to his sister, Mary, to befriend Alexandra, but through a huge misunderstanding on the part of others, finds himself engaged to be married to Alexandra. This part of the plot reminded me a lot of many plotlines in regencies where the hero and heroine find forced to marry to avoid scandal, although neither Nathan nor Alexandra did anything with the appearance of evil.
Nathan is a remarkable character; he seems to really care about doing the right thing and he has a faith in God. Some of his prayers are interspersed thoughout the novel. He stands up to the test and makes arrangements to marry Alexandra, even offering to give her six months for them to get to know each other before they actually marry. However, attempts are still being made against Alexandra's family, so Nathan insists on marrying Alexandra sooner than later so that he can protect her. How will their marriage weather against the differences in their social standings? Will Nathan find Lydia and return her to her family? Why was Simeon in Galilee? If Nathan gets help from Herod in order to find Lydia, what will this favour cost him? Can he continue to maintain neutrality and not choose between siding with the Romans or the rebels? Can he deal with the conflict that arises with the part of him that enjoys soldiering with the part of him that is appalled by his out of control and frenzied fighting instincts? Would a gentle woman like Alexandra be able to accept the darkness of his personality?
Alexandra is a bit of an interesting study too. She has been put down upon by her father and brother; male patriarchal attitudes reign supreme in her father's household. It is interesting to glimpse into how legalistic and rigid the Pharisee is towards his family and in his dealings with others. Alexandra has little freedom; her days are spent within the confines of her father's home, or at the temple, but she has not been allowed to venture even into the marketplace or to participate in many social activities outside. She has also had a relatively pampered life, so she views marriage to Nathan with great trepidation, even though she is deeply attracted to him. She feels inadequate to be Nathan's wife, thinking that a sturdier, stronger woman who is accustomed to hard work would be better suited to him than herself.
I found the characterization of Herod to be fascinating even though he plays a minor role in the story. He is a young man of 26 who is ambitious and shrewd. I didn't realize that historically, Herod had been raised as a Jew even though he was an Idumean. Although The Warrior is only fiction, Ms. Thomas writes Herod's character as being knowledgeable about Jewish culture and customs, and how Rome operated. I sort of liked him. In the novel, he came across as gregarious go-getting rogue, and I could see how a man like Nathan might be friends with him. This is a bit different that the King Herod that I have always pictured in my mind from the Bible: a jealous, insane king who was paranoid about being usurped. Perhaps historically, he was the latter, but it is interesting to imagine that he could possibly be just an ambitious man who didn't care for God or for His ways. That could make him not too different from many people who live in our world today.
In the case of the character of Simeon, Ms. Thomas shows him to be ambitious and crafty as his reasons for being in Galilee become known. In some ways, he didn't seem that much different than Herod in his ambitious nature, especially when he reveals that he is quite ready to toss aside aspects of the Law, and even the Pharisaical laws to achieve his ambitions. He is quite an unsympathetic character who many did not like in the novel, although it seemed as if Alexandra often sought his approval in vain. With his legalism and lack of love, he is definitely what I have always imagined a Pharisee to be like.
I also found the character of Judas the Zealot to be interesting. He is even more of a minor character than Herod, but he is an insane man who thinks that he is the Messiah. The man steals, beats others, takes a woman forcibly, and murders, but he is what his countrymen are looking for because he is against the Romans. He is a contrast to Jesus, our true Messiah, the One Who lives and upholds God's laws, Who treats everyone, both men and women, with dignity, Who was not recognized by His people, and Whom some thought was insane.
As I mentioned before, I recognize that The Warrior is just a novel, but I enjoyed thinking about what some of the characters represented. I enjoyed the historical fiction too.
Besides The Warrior, The Herod Chronicles also includes The Barbarian, The Stonecutter and Warring Desires.
