The Pillar of Fire; Or, Israel in Bondage
1859
A sweeping 19th-century epic that transports readers to ancient Egypt at the height of its glory, seen through the eyes of an outsider. Prince Sesostris of Phoenicia arrives at the court of Pharaoh as a state guest, and from his first glimpse of the magnificent city of On, he writes to his mother with breathless wonder at Egypt's temples, libraries, and the terrible splendor of Queen Amense's court. But what captures his heart is something else entirely: the Hebrew people, toiling under cruel taskmasters, their suffering a stark contrast to the lavish wealth that surrounds him. Through the Prince's intimate letters, Ingraham builds a powerful drama of sympathy and moral awakening, as a young man from privilege comes to witness and feel the weight of injustice. The novel interweaves fictional love and political intrigue with the biblical narrative of oppression, building toward a divine deliverance that will shake empires. For readers who cherish grand historical fiction that treats ancient worlds as genuinely strange and magnificent, this is a vivid, often surprising recreation of a world where gods walk among men and a people cry out for freedom.
