In the little town of Goray, laid waste by murder, famine and demonic spirits, the stargazers have reported seeing one Sabbatai Zevi, robed in purple, bedecked with jewels, riding a wild lion into Jerusalem. Meanwhile, as dark forces gather, the prophetess Rechele prepares to be the Devil's bride.

Tells the story of the prosperous Moskat family, Polish Jews living in Warsaw between the dawn of the 20th century and the gloom of 1939. Characters in this novel include saints and swindlers, tough Zionists and mystic philosophers, and medieval Rabbis and ultra-modern painters.

Traces the lives of a group of Jewish refugees in New York City in the late 1940s. At its centre is Boris Makaver, a pious, wealthy businessman whose greatest trial is his unstable daughter, Anna. A chain of events disrupts the lives of the close-knit community as each refugee struggles to reconcile the horrific past with the difficult present.