NIGHTFALL AT NOON

Continuing the renascence of interest in inspirational material drawn from biblical times, this tells with considerable lyricism of Malchus, a Jew, and Lucia, the daughter of a Roman centurion whom he loved. Fleeing from the Romans to Jerusalem, Malchus is still haunted by Lucia whom he had seen in Caesarea, and when the Roman legions come to Judea, Malchus is still searching for her among them. With little religious training or belief, Malchus is caught up in the arrest and the trial of the ""Rabbi""; is wounded and miraculously healed by Jesus; and with the crucifixion and the ""nightfall at noon"" which shadows the land, Malchus gains a faith stronger than his love for Lucia, goes to serve the disciple Peter... The quality of the writing matches the transcendence of the material, but this is still not for the wider Lloyd C. Douglas market.