Shadow in a Weary Land

Both parties to the Israeli-Palestinian dispute get to air their views in this credible, quietly suspenseful political thriller. Two American security officers are assigned to protect a moderate Palestinian spokesman who appears to be the target of a terrorist threat as he travels to Israel. One official, Ward Longman, a retired Foreign Service diplomat, is shaking off a long divorce-induced depression with the help of his new love interest, young linguistics professor Karen Scott. Longman's partner on the mission is Will Yarden, a convert to Judaism who had sought solace on a South Dakota farm after the tragic loss of his wife and daughter, victims of Arab terrorists in Israel. Kidnapping, hostage taking, atrocities in the intifada and a Palestinian terrorist conspiracy to massacre American officials in Israel add twists to the plot, in which a good old-fashioned love story intersects the political developments. A gifted, straightforward writer, Jones, a State Department officer who has served as Consul General in Tel Aviv, powerfully conveys the futility that powers the escalating spiral of violence in the Middle East. (May)