Predating the events of The Zion Chronicles Series, Vienna Prelude opens in pre-World War II Austria. Elisa Lindheim, a violinist with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, is of Jewish heritage but has adopted an Aryan stage name. Thus she is able to travel and play in Germany even though a 1935 law forbade Jewish musicians to do so. Her dear friend Leah, a cellist already introduced to Thoene readers in A Daughter of Zion, and her husband Shimon must escape Austria or perish in the coming Holocaust. John Murphy, a reporter for the New York Times in Berlin and Austria, becomes linked with English politicians in a plan to overthrow Hitler. Elisa and John's mutual connections with the Jewish Underground entangle them in a web of intrigue, danger, and conspiracy that neither could have known.

In Vienna Prelude, Elisa Lindheim risked her life helping others escape pre-World War II Austria. The climactic ending finds her safely in Czechoslovakia, but not for long. A million other lives are endangered, and she cannot still their silent cry for help. Prague Counterpoint finds Elisa watching in horror as Hitler's forces sweep through her beloved Vienna and he directs his ambition toward the takeover of Czechoslovakia. As Europe slides irrevocably toward the brink of war, Elisa is torn between the Underground's lofty political goals and the safety of two little boys….And underneath it all, her heart yearns for John. Will she ever see him again?

In Prague Counterpoint, Elisa Murphy and Leah Feldstein risked everything to stand against the tide of Nazi terrorism and to buy a chance at life for two small boys. When Elisa is at last reunited with Murphy, the danger is past for the small Charles. Or is it? Munich Signature finds Leah and little Louis attempting to escape Austria over the treacherous foot paths of the Alps while Murphy and Elisa begin their trip toward New York and the promise of healing for Charles' disfigurement. But then Elisa is once more caught in the web of international intrigue. While Jewish refugees from Germany float homelessly on the open seas, she stands precariously between Hitler's domination of Europe and the possibility of destroying his power once and for all.

For Jews in prewar Europe, the terrifying truth is uncovered: Truly they have no place to go. Escape or perish, but escape to where? As Central Europe is taken over by the Nazis under celebrated headlines of Peace in Our Times, hundreds of thousands pay the price for Hitler's international deception. In Jerusalem Interlude, Leah and Shimon Feldstein finally reach the Promised Land. They enter their new life under the shadow of the Western Wall, only to find that a longer, more sinister shadow is casting its darkness over the Holy Land. Will they ever find true peace, a resting place for their spirits? Or will their time in Jerusalem be only a brief interlude in the ongoing struggle for a homeland?

The net of Hitler's Third Reich begins to close around the Jews in prewar Europe, and millions are trapped in his sinister web. Kristal Nacht, the Night of Broken Glass, shatters the last illusions for thousands who hoped to escape the Nazi terror. As the synagogues of Berlin burn and Jewish homes are plundered, two families face the grim reality of life in New Germany. Anna Lindheim's sister Helen and her pastor husband Karl Ibsen are arrested for helping the Jews. The Ibsen children, Lori and Jamie, must find a way to escape their Nazi pursuers and get past the iron gates that keep them imprisoned in the Reich. Young Peter Wallich, with his mother, sister and baby brother, faces the same dilemma. How can he, a Jew, get them out of Berlin to safety? How can they reach Danzig, the one place that offers hope, the promise of freedom? And then there is Lucy, in such desperate straits herself. How can she possibly help these children?

Having overrun Czechoslovakia, the iron baton of Hitler's Third Reich is poised to orchestrate a requiem for Warsaw. Foreshadowing an international nightmare the world will never forget, millions are imperiled, destined to be caught and crushed in the Führer's grasp. Lori Ibsen and Jacob Kalner, along with Jamie, Mark and Alfie, take refuge in Danzig, hoping they will be safe there while awaiting a ship to England. Peter Wallich escapes to Warsaw, desperately seeking a place among the Jews in Muranow Square. Lucy Strasburg, about to deliver her "S.S. child," stays behind in Danzig, hoping to evade the clutches of Wolf von Fritschauer. But there is no safe place in prewar Europe. Hitler's bombers hover over Danzig and Warsaw, a dark shadow of terror and death. In London, Helen Ibsen and her sister Anna Lindheim wait and pray for the safe release of the Ibsen children. But as they wait, the sinister cloud of Hitler's wrath spreads across the Channel like poisonous gas, ready to annihilate all those who oppose the extension of the Führer's power.

IN THE DARK FALL OF 1939, the hopes of the Polish people fade as Nazi bombers strafe the beloved city of Warsaw. Politicians debate while hundreds stand in lines at the British Embassy, desperate to flee the country before Hitler's ground forces arrive. Mac McGrath, a veteran American photographer, recorded the landslide toward war with dedication, believing that if he told the truth, the world would rise up and put a stop to Hitler's evil plans. Now his foolish idealism embarrasses him. Outside the embassy gates, Jewish school teacher Eva Weitzman prays for a miracle. Without a British passport, she will fall into the Nazis' clutches. Who will live and who will die? Will anyone dare to stand against the apathy of nations?

AMERICAN JOURNALIST JOSEPHINE MARLOW knows firsthand the horrors of war—the bombs, the senseless slaughter when Warsaw fell to the Nazis. Now assigned to the Paris AP office, Josie sees the impending danger. Spies have already infiltrated the countries of Belgium and Holland and stand ready to assist with the invasion. As French civilians are evacuated from the countryside to Paris and the cadets at the Ecole de Cavalerie prepare for war, French colonel Andre Chardon heads a top-secret project. It could turn the tide of the war... but will the discovery be too late?

AS SPRING 1940 UNFOLDS IN PARIS, war is inevitable. AP journalist Josephine Marlow is asked to undertake a dangerous journey back into the borders of the Reich-just when the Führer is gathering his forces for another invasion. If she is successful, a child will live. If not, he will die. And many other children, too. French colonel Andre Chardon knows that the undefeated Führer will not hold back his Blitzkrieg long from France. But the plan of attack revealed in a coded message is so audacious that no one believes Andre. Whom can he convince? Who will have the courage to act before thousands of innocents are slaughtered? And is a miracle at Dunkirk Harbor possible?