I can see it on your face."For a moment, time seemed suspended as Nathan probed the inward recesses of his soul. There was still the incredulousness, still the sense of hearing something that couldn't possibly be true. And yet he knew it was. He knew without the least shadow of doubt that everything Joseph was telling him was true. And so, finally, with a wonder of his own, he said, "Yes, Joseph, I believe you."Pillar of Light — the first volume in the series The Work and the Glory — begins the epic story of the Benjamin Steed family. In the 1820s they move from Vermont to Palmyra Township in upstate New York in search of better farmland. There they meet a young man named Joseph Smith and are thrown into the maelstrom of conflict and controversy that swirls around him. Did he really see the Father and the Son in a pillar of light? Has he truly been visited by angelic messengers? What is all this talk about gold plates and new scripture? In short, is he a prophet and seer or a monumental fraud? The answers each one gives to these questions — intensely personal, potentially divisive — will dramatically affect the lives of the Steeds forever after.Author Gerald N. Lund here masterfully weaves together historical reality and high-powered fiction. In his hands this combination seems to make the reader an eyewitness to the early scenes of the Restoration, thus deepening one's understanding and appreciation of those momentous events. The well-drawn plot and fictional characters present a moving, gripping story. Here are Benjamin and Mary Ann Steed, devoted to each other as man and wife, yet at odds over religion; Joshua, their volatile son, who rebels and heads for trouble; the sensitive Nathan, their second son, in whom Joseph Smith's message strikes a responsive chord; the beautiful Lydia McBride, who captures the hearts of both Joshua and Nathan.This book skillfully explores the inmost motivations of Joseph Smith and his early followers and the responses of typical contemporary families to the claims he made. These people come to life in this powerful historical novel, a story that captures both the heartache and the happiness that came in the wake of Joseph's experience with the pillar of light.

    A strong story holds reader interest and history comes alive for adults and teens alike. Volume 1 begins with his childhood years in New York where he becomes best friends with the future Mormon prophet Joseph Smith. The story continues through Porters settlement with the Mormons in Missouri, where he fights against mobs. See the engaging yet humorous courtship with a young woman he meets and is determined to marry. Porter proves himself in friendship and loyalty to the prophet. As a teen, he also becomes the protector of his neighbors from anti-Mormon mobs. Dynamite initial volume of the series is historical fiction at its best accurate, engrossing, and full of adventure and humor. First printing sold out in only 8 days. Now in 4th printing (Hardcover)

    After the war with Babylon, Laban has risen to Captain of the Guard and has ambitions to become king of Israel; opposing him are Lehi and Uriah, leaders of a sect who prophesy the coming of a messiah. Woolley interweaves biblical, Mormon, and fictional characters in this sprawling though effective tale, of great appeal to Mormon readers but likely to seem obscure to non-Mormons.

    Wickedness abounds despite the humbling famine, and the Gadianton robbers are increasing in strength. While deserted by his rebellious father, Kiah is raised in righteousness by his mother and grandfather, and finds guidance in the teachings of Nephi, their prophet and friend. Growing into manhood, Kiah sees his family torn apart by dissention regarding the prophesied Savior, but as he remains courageous in the face of deceit and betrayal, his faith becomes firm. And while his desire to fight the infernal robbers remains, Kiah comes to know his true calling: to be a warrior of God.Concecrating his life as a missionary, Kiah labors among Nephites and Lamanites caught in destructive cycles of pride and sin. He testifies of Christ amidst fierce persecution, witnessing the miracle of redemption as well as the brutal murder of loved ones. And as the Missiah's advent draws near, Kiah must face the bitterness of unrestrained corruption before tasting the sweetness of a promise fulfilled.

    Three years later, an angel guides him to an ancient record buried in a hill near his home. With God’s help, he translates the record and organizes the Savior’s church in the latter days. Soon others join him, accepting the invitation to become Saints through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. But opposition and violence follow those who defy old traditions to embrace restored truths. The women and men who join the church must choose whether or not they will stay true to their covenants, establish Zion, and proclaim the gospel to a troubled world. The Standard of Truth is the first book in Saints, a new, four-volume narrative history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Fast-paced, meticulously researched, Saints recounts true stories of Latter-day Saints across the globe and answers the Lord’s call to write history “for the good of the church, and for the rising generations” (Doctrine and Covenants 69:8).

    In Our Sacred Honor, the first volume in the series, master storyteller Ron Carter presents the early events of the Revolutionary War through the eyes of common people. We meet the heroes, but we see them through the eyes and hearts of the soldiers and the sailors, men and women, who came out of the shops, fields, and forests and paid the price. No human mind could ever have created a plot so diverse, so intensely gripping, so inspiring as the story of the American Revolution. The history of the Mormon people is inseparably connected with the establishment of a free nation wherein the gospel could be restored. Through fictional as well as real-life characters, Prelude to Glory powerfully depicts that dramatic story.

    . . . More than three decades had passed since she'd lost her precious Joseph. She had learned to live without him . . . but nothing had ever felt right without him. . . . “Joseph,” she whispered into the breeze as she lovingly fingered the worn gold beads encircling her throat, a gift from Joseph, one of the few tangible remnants of his love for her. In this triumphant tribute, well-loved LDS author Anita Stansfield conveys Emma Smith's greatness of spirit; her undying love for and loyalty to Joseph; her remarkable compassion, courage, and dignity; and her unwavering testimony of the Savior. Joyful and poignant, insightful and moving, intense and reverent, this thoroughly researched fictional narrative paints an intimate portrait of the Lord's “elect lady” through a love story that transcends time and embraces eternity.

    The chaos ultimately divided their family and tested their faith, as some of the Lindlof children were sent to Siberian work camps.As they face an uncertain future of danger and despair under the Bolshevik regime, life for the wealthy Lindlof family is changed forever by an idealogy that forces equality and demands the silence of God.This well-researched novel by author Gale Sears – a powerful new voice in LDS historical fiction – offers a rare glimpse into a fascinating period of history, including the rise of socialism and the origins of the LDS Church in Russia.As the only LDS family living in Russia at the time, the Lindlofs witnessed Elder Francis M. Lyman of the LDS Church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicate the land for the preaching of the gospel on Aug. 6, 1903. His scribe was the only other person there. Now, on Aug. 29, 2010, the Kyiv Ukraine Temple will be dedicated, the first temple in a former Soviet bloc country – just a few miles from the very spot where LDS was first introduced in Russia.

    At the urging of many people whom I admire, I have attempted to describe some of the experiences and feelings I encountered those many years ago. The main purpose of this book is to emphasize the overwhelming need for faith in our lives. I realize that in some ways I am describing a time and a place and circumstances that no longer exist. Yet in other ways, I am describing feelings and challenges that are as old as time and as fresh as the morning sun. I am convinced that regardless of the physical background or the decade our life's experiences are cast against, the need for love and faith to bring meaning to our lives and reason for our decisions remains unchanged. I do not apologize for the time, the place, or the circumstances described, as that was the way it was. I suppose most people who have passed through this planet earth have lived and died closer to the type of life described herein than the hectic one we live in America today. We all need more faith, and I know we can learn from others. In looking back and reading letters and other items written at the time, I have tried to describe how I felt then. I had no feeling that I was going into a particularly hard situation or that things were going to be tough. I had no thought of doing anything unusual, but rather simply wanted to do my best to get through each day doing as much good and as little damage as possible.

    He appeared before her in her father's house, filthy from the desert, tired and thirsty. But as the dirt of travel was washed from his body, the sight of him filled her heart. And when Abram promises Sarai to return in ten years to take her for his wife, her fate was sealed.Abram kept his promise, and Sarai kept hers they were wed, and so joined the royal house of Ur with the high priesthood of the Hebrews. So began a lifetime of great joy together, and greater peril: and with the blessing of their God, a great nation would be built around the core of their love.Bestselling author Orson Scott Card uses his fertile imagination, and uncanny insight into human nature, to tell the story of a unique woman--one who is beautiful, tough, smart, and resourceful in an era when women had little power, and are scarce in the historical record. Sarah, child of the desert, wife of Abraham, takes on vivid reality as a woman desirable to kings, a devoted wife, and a faithful follower of the God of Abraham, chosen to experience an incomparable miracle.

    James and Jeffrey Birmingham, brothers, now find themselves and their families on opposing sides of a great and terrible conflict.James is a wealthy Bostonian with a son who is a passionate and outspoken abolitionist, and a daughter who must hide her identity as the writer of controversial newspaper articles.Jeffrey, who lives on a South Carolina plantation, has a son who joins the Mormon Church, then leaves home after a failed attempt to free his family's slaves. Jeffrey's cowardly younger son ruthlessly preys on the weak; and his young daughter despises her family's beliefs — finding more kinship with the slaves than with her own flesh and blood.Caught in the middle are the slaves, who, along with immigrant families, are desperate to find their place in a country that is rapidly drawing its battle lines. From the bustling streets of Boston to the lush plantation fields of the South, from the drudgery of camp life to the terrors of the battlefield, millions of lives are about to be irrevocably changed...A House Divided, volume one of the epic series Faith of Our Fathers, is one of the most ambitious novels in LDS publishing history. Chronicled in this remarkable book are the lives of compelling characters in the midst of astounding events — set forth and guided by the merciful hand of our Heavenly Father.

    A deeply divided family led by Lehi and his son Nephi leaves the ancient city of Jerusalem and flees into the Arabian wilderness to make their long journey towards a promised land.

    "They'd all vote against me if you put my name up," she tells him, "and I'd vote with them." She's prickly and proud, a farm widow who doesn't get along with the town women at all. Why would the Lord want her? Because it's 1932, the depth of the Great Depression, and, as the bishop tells Leah: "You lost your husband and you didn't give up. You know how to survive hard times, and some women in our ward don't. I'm not looking for a nice church lady right now. I'm looking for someone with some grit, and that's what you've got." But will grit be enough when the opposition begins?

    

    Richard Bushman, an esteemed cultural historian and a practicing Mormon, moves beyond the popular stereotype of Smith as a colorful fraud to explore his personality, his relationships with others, and how he received revelations. An arresting narrative of the birth of the Mormon Church, Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling also brilliantly evaluates the prophet’s bold contributions to Christian theology and his cultural place in the modern world.