A Love & Beyond - A Book Review

December 2015 Literature

A Love & Beyond
by Dan Sofer
Published, 2014. 331 pages
Amazon.com $14.95
Or from www.dansofer.com
Reviewed by Pnina Moed Kass

"On Tuesday, Dave Schwartz hit thirty and his best friend narrowly escaped a violent death. The two events were probably unrelated. . ."

This thriller had very small and very distant echoes of The Da Vinci Code, which I guess could be considered a compliment.

It uses a similar combination of mysticism and mayhem and for the Israeli reader, the additional bonus of a Jerusalem setting.

This reviewer felt like the archaeologist treading an excavated site – all of it previously encountered with no surprises.

There's plenty of flip dialogue: About cabs – "When you take a cab," she said, "sit in the back. Cabbies can't keep their hands to themselves. Mandy added Jewish Perverts to her mental list."

There are also the requisite henchmen, a character called The Teacher, a storyline about Jerusalem's Secret Treasures, Jebusite Guardians of Jerusalem, etc.

Author Dan Sofer uses his research as a lift-off for his thriller and gives his reader a solution that ties all the ancient historical clues in a very neat and expected happy end.

About the author

Pnina Moed Kass

Pnina Moed Kass has been living in Israel since 1969. After teaching high school English for a number of years she decided to take a break and go back to writing. Her writing background in the U.S. has been as a lyricist (ASCAP member), a staffer at the magazine, Opera News, a publicist for a record company and a variety of other jobs that called for writing skills. The switch in Israel from teaching to writing worked out. After a few years she had authored children’s books , scripted a TV series, and done a lot of freelance writing both in Hebrew and in English. She had also garnered awards and recognition for her short stories and her contemporary novel set in the Middle East. Among them: the international Reading Award for Best YA Short Story, inclusion in the Cricket Magazine 25 year Anthology (“Celebrate”,) and other citations by librarians and teachers. Her novel, REAL TIME, won the prestigious National Jewish Book Award, The Sydney Taylor Award and other accolades. The eight books of the picture book series “Berale” about a shy but adventurous snail can be found on the shelves of kindergartens and local libraries throughout Israel. Also popular is the website www.berale.com Though she lives in Israel, in the city of Herzliya, Moed Kass has traveled to speak about children's literature, about contemporary life in Israel, and about her work both in Europe and the U.S. In Israel, she makes frequent appearances, reading the “Berale” stories at libraries and community centers. Her children used to be part of her audience, now it’s her grandchildren. Biographical material and reviews Assoc. of Jewish Libraries website Answer.com