Recommendation: The Last Jihad Series

I finished Joel C. Rosenberg's final chapter (Dead Heat) in the Last Jihad series several days ago, and I'm still spinning from its ramifications. The series includes five books:

The Last Jihad
The Last Days
The Ezekiel Option
The Copper Scroll
Dead Heat

If you're familiar with Rosenberg (or with my blog), you know that he's an expert in Jewish history and Biblical theology. He personally knows many power players in both Washington and Israel. And he's predicted any number of recent world events related to terrorist attacks and Middle East events. For a non-fiction version of his expertise, check out Epicenter. For a more exciting fictional description, read this series.

The thing you have to remember as you read these books is exactly when they were written. Generally, it takes about a year for a book to go from completion to publishing, so as you start each novel, rewind a year in your mind to see just how prescient Rosenberg's 'fiction' is.

I've always thought that the best fiction is a story that is so close to real that you could envision it actually happening. Michael Crichton is a master at taking a real subject with loads of real research and tweaking it ever so slightly to make it work in a fictional setting - for example, the genetic manipulation in Jurassic Park or Next, or the quantum physics in Timeline. Rosenberg has become no less adept at this tricky skill through this series, partly because he actually predicts through his fictional novels many of the events that have happened in the real world. I've read several different 'end times' stories from major authors, and I can honestly say that this one is far and away the most realistic. As such, its implications are truly frightening.

I don't want to spoil the plot, but these books are a perfect blend of political intrigue and rapid-fire action that begins with the (fictional) President who takes office after George W. Bush. Through terrorist attacks, international posturing, wars, and rumors of wars, Rosenberg paints a scenario that seems so plausible that it should send chills down your spine. At the very least, it should open your eyes to the events taking place in the world around us - there are a scary number of things happening now that appear to be lining up according to Biblical end times prophecy.

One of the biggest questions to which Rosenberg ventures a fictional answer is that of why the United States -- the wealthiest and most powerful nation the world has ever seen -- plays almost no role in the final days of this world.

Now that you're intrigued, get reading! Not only is it an eye-opening experience that will change the way you look at the world around you, it's also supremely good entertainment.