Fire of the covenant : a novel of the Willie and Martin handcart companies /cGerald N. Lund

In the summer of 1856, three companies of handcarts were outfitted and sent west from Iowa to the Valley of the Great Salt Lake. All went well, and they arrived without undue incident. But two additional companies - one captained by James G. Willie, and the other by Edward Martin - left England late in the season. When they arrived at Iowa City, they were long past the time for safe departure across the plains. By the time they left Florence, Nebraska, with still more than a thousand miles to go, it was near the end of August. As if that were not serious enough, President Brigham Young thought that the arrival of the third company ended the migration for that season and ordered the resupply wagons back to Salt Lake. Fire of the Covenant is the story of those handcart pioneers and their exodus to the Salt Lake Valley. Author Gerald N. Lund has used the same techniques present in The Work and the Glory series to blend fictional characters into the tapestry of actual historical events, making this a story filled with all the elements of great drama - tragedy, triumph, pathos, courage, sacrifice, surrender and faith. Share in the pathos and spiritual power of the handcart experience

The author of the acclaimed historical fiction series The Work and the Glory brings another dramatic chapter in Church history to life in Fire of the Covenant, a novel about the 1856 Willie and Martin Handcart Companies. Elder Lund weaves his fictional characters into the tapestry of actual historical events helping us feel a part of the companies who set out for Zion late in the season during the first year of the great handcart migration. Trapped by early winter snows in Wyoming, these Saints driven by the "fire of the covenant" they had made with God rose to heights of unsurpassed courage and endurance. Their story will thrill you to the core.

About the Author
Elder Gerald N. Lund was sustained to the Second Quorum of the Seventy in April 2002. He was employed in the Church Educational System of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint for more than 30 years and has served on many writing committees. He is the author of numerous bestselling novels, including The Work and the Glory series, The Kingdom and the Crown series, One in Thine Hand, and The Alliance. He and his wife, Lynn, are the parents of seven children.

Gerald N. Lund. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [763]-764).